past projects
MAKING BIG THINGS HAPPENLAUNCH STRATEGY
THE 21-DAY SUGAR DETOX
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BRAND IDENTITY + CHANGE MANAGEMENT
PBS SoCal
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BRAND IDENTITY
THE INDIA PROJECT
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BACKGROUND
As a newly-certified Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, the client developed a 21-day whole food approach to stop sugar cravings and sold it as a PDF on her website.
A few years later, The 21-Day Sugar Detox was published as two books that made the New York Times bestseller list.
In the years that followed, I helped the client develop a digital course and certified coaching program to support the published books.
For this launch, I channeled the client's vision into an integrated marketing strategy, developing an approach for customer and competitive research, sales copywriting (email, landing pages, Facebook group content, video scripts), customer journey mapping, team leadership, and project management.
References to "we" indicate collaboration with the client and a team of specialists contributing to subject matter content, design, social media, public relations, and video production.
SUMMARY
In 2017, the client wrote an update to The 21-Day Sugar Detox program that addressed common problems and provided daily support. The digital program, a companion to the book, provided daily emails, videos, recipes, and community support.
Unfortunately, the book's release date put both holiday and pre-sales at risk.
Customer research identified the client's perceived superpowers and a timely pain point. We built a strategic plan around them.
Starting early put us ahead of the holiday noise and competitor's campaigns.
A relationship-focused approach allowed us to activate her existing audience, generate leads, and establish her as the go-to resource for health and wellness during the holiday season.
And then we sold the heck out of that book.
This launch was a masterclass in the power of research, crafting an irresistible offer, supporting each stage of the customer journey, and investing in your customers before you ask them to invest in you.
THE CHALLENGE
Book pre-sales are considered the leading indicator of demand, a robust response to pre-sales can unlock national distribution and prominent placement with major retailers.
Slated for a December announcement with pre-sales leading to a January 2 release, the new book faced one major challenge:
Pre-sales don't make great holiday gifts.
Without a physical book available during the holiday sales period, there was risk of missing pre-sale targets and compromising the long-term success of the program.
THE APPROACH
The team focused on one goal: Getting the book into Costco.
To get there, we needed to activate the existing audience with something so good they just had to share it, followed by irresistible pre-sale incentives that sold enough books to earn prime retail distribution.
Research showed that the client's greatest appeal was her no-nonsense approach to setting boundaries. It also revealed our customer's biggest seasonal struggle: Making healthy choices during the holiday season.
Using this information as our True North, we developed a full-funnel, omnichannel marketing plan.
PRE-LAUNCH
The key to the pre-launch period was the Healthy for the Holidays community.
A pop-up Facebook group packed with value, it provided a survival guide with recipes and tips, weekly themes, live sessions with the client, and regular prompts to foster community engagement.
The survival guide was offered as a lead magnet when members joined the group with frequent CTAs that made it an essential part of the program. Downloading the survival guide activated an automated email series kept members engaged through the entire book launch.
We developed ad campaigns with messages tailored to the unique needs of each customer persona, reactivating existing customers and expanding reach outside of the existing audience. Additional ads were created with messaging that supported each phase of the launch.
PRE-ORDERS
The book's pre-sale period began in December, with a scheduled live announcement, email campaign, and paid media.
To encourage pre-orders, we offered two digital cookbooks with popular detox-friendly recipes.
At this time, certified coaches were activated as ambassadors for the new program. After completing a live training on the program changes, coaches were provided with early access to the digital program, affiliate codes, a promotional timeline, and professionally designed graphics for social media, empowering them to create and market services around the launch.
DIGITAL PROGRAM LAUNCH
With the new program came a new digital course on a more robust platform that provided streamlined sales and a high-quality customer experience. Course content and landing pages were built in Kajabi, with an automated system that guided the customer journey from opt-in to course onboarding.
When customers provided proof of pre-order to download the bonus guides, they received an upsell offer to purchase the digital program with immediate access to a quick start module.
The quick start module provided everything the customer would need to prepare for the detox before the book arrived. It provided us with an opportunity to test the new platform, and created demand for the digital program before the product was officially released.
BOOK LAUNCH
The book launched on January 2, with the client leading the community through a group detox the following week. Because the audience was already engaged, we created the largest group detox in the history of the program.
In addition to media appearances and a national book tour, the launch focused on elevating social participation in the group detox, elevating user-generated content to create long-tail results that sustained book sales beyond the initial launch period.
THE RESULTS
The impact of the launch showed across all KPIs, and robust pre-sales unlocked prime retailer distribution.
Mission accomplished.
In March of that year, we celebrated the win with a contest. Fans entered by sharing a picture of the book at their local Costco, and we all admired the blue beauty in the place where she belonged - right next to Joanna Gaines.
The impact of the launch showed across all KPIs, and robust pre-sales unlocked prime retailer distribution.
Mission accomplished.
In March of that year, we celebrated the win with a contest. Fans entered by sharing a picture of the book at their local Costco, and we all admired the blue beauty in the place where she belonged - right next to Joanna Gaines.
THE OPPORTUNITY
A small, underfunded PBS station in Southern California was presented with a dream opportunity to lead the LA Market, expanding reach, gaining access to prime programming, drawing national visibility, and creating exponential fundraising opportunities.
The catch?
We had three weeks to change everything, and zero resources to make it happen.
THE APPROACH
Resourced or not, we needed to elevate the brand to meet the moment.
With the determination of a Sesame Street character and a team of helpers that would make Mr. Rogers proud, we implemented a fully integrated strategy that spanned brand identity, programming, website migration, fundraising, traditional and digital marketing, public relations, outreach, and broadcast regulations.
It paid off in every way imaginable.
THE RESULTS
In just a few weeks, we elevated the station’s identity to the standards of the most trusted brand in America, managed infinite changes within the organization, communicated the transition to viewers, and executed a record-breaking fundraising campaign.
Elmo even flew in from Sundance to help us make the announcement.
Following the initial launch, the station saw membership triple from 27,000 to 82,000, with annual revenue growing from $10 million to $22 million annually.
BACKGROUND
Dr. Dixit founded The India Project in 1968, dedicating his life to providing free reconstructive surgeries to the underserved people of India. During his lifetime, the organization grew organically with thousands of volunteers joining the cause.
After his passing, Dr. Dixit's daughter stepped in to lead the organization, expanding the mission with additional programs to support the mission. They needed a visual identity that would appeal to the next generation and a website that would allow them to receive online donations.
THE GOAL
We set out to create a brand that honored their incredible history and the legacy of Dr. Dixit. The messaging and visual design needed to appeal to millennials while values remained consistent for older donors.
We planned to launch the website at a live event kicking off their end-of-year fundraising campaign. The goal was to fund 1,000 cleft palette surgeries.
THE APPROACH
Our initial interview revealed the client's vision, the awe-inspiring achievements of the organization, and the goals for the upcoming surgery camp. We defined brand values, expanded their mission, and pulled historical data to determine how many people they had served, the number of volunteers, and the cost per procedure.
Together, we developed a visual identity that reflects the rich history and beautiful colors of India, mixing images of Dr. Dixit with colorful iconography, using stock photos to represent the people of India and respect patient privacy.
THE RESULTS
The client kicked off the year-end fundraising campaign with an event in New York City, revealing the new brand and website.
Digital fundraising was a massive success and The India Project was able to provide more than 1,000 facial reconstruction surgeries at their event the following January.
The client kicked off the year-end fundraising campaign with an event in New York City, revealing the new brand and website.
Digital fundraising was a massive success and The India Project was able to provide more than 1,000 facial reconstruction surgeries at their event the following January.
BACKGROUND
Dr. Dixit founded The India Project in 1968, dedicating his life to providing free reconstructive surgeries to the underserved people of India. During his lifetime, the organization grew organically with thousands of volunteers joining the cause.
After his passing, Dr. Dixit's daughter stepped in to lead the organization, expanding the mission with additional programs to support the mission. They needed a visual identity that would appeal to the next generation and a website that would allow them to receive online donations.
THE GOAL
We set out to create a brand that honored their incredible history and the legacy of Dr. Dixit. The messaging and visual design needed to appeal to millennials while values remained consistent for older donors.
We planned to launch the website at a live event kicking off their end-of-year fundraising campaign. The goal was to fund 1,000 cleft palette surgeries.
THE APPROACH
Our initial interview revealed the client's vision, the awe-inspiring achievements of the organization, and the goals for the upcoming surgery camp. We defined brand values, expanded their mission, and pulled historical data to determine how many people they had served, the number of volunteers, and the cost per procedure.
Together, we developed a visual identity that reflects the rich history and beautiful colors of India, mixing images of Dr. Dixit with colorful iconography, using stock photos to represent the people of India and respect patient privacy.
THE RESULTS
The client kicked off the year-end fundraising campaign with an event in New York City, revealing the new brand and website.
Digital fundraising was a massive success and The India Project was able to provide more than 1,000 facial reconstruction surgeries at their event the following January.
The client kicked off the year-end fundraising campaign with an event in New York City, revealing the new brand and website.
Digital fundraising was a massive success and The India Project was able to provide more than 1,000 facial reconstruction surgeries at their event the following January.