StandUp for Kids Chicago
November 2018 - May 2019
Position: social media manager
After graduating with my B.A. in public relations and advertising, I was hired as an unpaid intern fulfilling the duties of a social media manager at StandUp For Kids Chicago, the local chapter of a nationwide organization working to end youth homelessness in major cities across the U.S. Before joining the organization, I knew very little about the plight of youth experiencing homelessness in Chicago and beyond. Soon after joining, though, I quickly learned about the plethora of issues this community faces, its demographics and why the population is considered 'invisible,' which explained why it never crossed my mind.
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The internship was a one-person position, which meant I had to rely upon myself to make executive decisions but also recognize when I needed to reach out for approval, collaboration or help. Given the newness of the position and the chapter's lacking social media presence and reach, no documentation existed for past social media metrics. First on the agenda was to conduct a social media audit. This gave me an overview of where the accounts stood in the larger landscapes of Instagram and Facebook. Moreover, the social media audit document helped me segment content onto the different channels, outline general social media goals, and make suggestions for adjustments. Next, I created a style guide to help guide my work and ensure that StandUp For Kids' social media channels achieved a unified voice and presence. This was achieved by outlining the brand voice and how captions were to be written, the specific hashtags to use with the freedom to add new ones when necessary, and visual guidelines for the various types of posts. At the end of each month, I generated analytics reports and then used the insights received to draft an improved content calendar for the next month.
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When I first joined, we were a few days away from Thanksgiving and the organization was launching a social media fundraising campaign in connection to Giving Tuesday. From November 21, 2018, to November 27, 2018, I created graphics and copy to intrigue and convince our audience members to donate to the Chicago chapter of StandUp For Kids Chicago. In addition, the campaign relied on email marketing in addition to social media postings, to encourage and remind people to donate. This catapulted me to work in multiple capacities and wear multiple hats during my internship.
In December, StandUp For Kids Chicago held a fundraiser at the drop-in center to showcase the space and make a case for why the organization needs donations and constant support from the community. To follow-up with attendees, I used Salesforce again to coordinate a mass email encouraging the recipients to continue donating to the center over the holidays. I flexed my video editing skills in two instances. First, I created a video of images of the youth interspersed with factual graphics which was displayed during the December 2018 fundraiser. Second, I created an instructional video for the Facebook page to direct new audience members to turn on notifications for new posts to ensure constant reach.
Whenever we hosted events at the center or participated in events, I created additional marketing materials, including flyers, brochures, and graphics with facts to hand out. As an avid writer, I leveraged my position as a content creator for Odyssey and wrote two articles, one about StandUp For Kids Chicago, and an article about the movie "American Street Kid," a movie about youth experiencing homelessness and the challenges they face. This love of writing led me to write two blog posts for the national organization's website. The first article highlighted a partnership between StandUp For Kids Chicago and Evive, and my piece about the movie "American Street Kid" was also published.
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Arguably, however, volunteering was the most important role I fulfilled. I didn't volunteer form myself, but I volunteered to interact and learn from the youth the organization aids. Since the topic of youth experiencing homelessness was unknown to me and I didn't know what their experiences were, I knew I had to make the posts as honest and reflective of our youth as possible. I volunteered for a total of 76 nights or 228 hours, which helped me bring an honest voice to the posts of social media channels and use what I learned as a teaching opportunity for many in our target audience who were unfamiliar with the issues at hand.​​
Giving Tuesday Campaign Posts and Copy
These images are a collection of the graphics and copy used for social media posts during the Giving Tuesday campaign.
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For one week before the event, I posted testimonials from volunteers and members of the StandUp For Kids Chicago board, that detailed why they are passionate about advocating for youth experiencing homelessness.
Three days before Giving Tuesday, a branded reminder was created based on a template to send a more direct message about the campaign and fundraiser. Another branded reminder was sent out one day before the event. Both of these posts asked questions of the audience members to increase their engagement not only with the campaign and the fundraiser but with StandUp For Kids Chicago long after the campaign ends.
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Multiple posts were made during the day on Giving Tuesday to remind people to donate and share why they donate and support the cause to end youth homelessness. To further call people to action, direct messages in the copy included 'you' in all caps to add a sense of urgency and responsibility.
Instagram Posts and Copy
These images are a collection of a variety of graphics I created during my tenure. Each month's analytics provided me with insight into what material to keep, update, or discard.
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Early on I decided to leverage 'national hashtag days' to add relevance to the posts and the social media account. As time went on, I noticed audience members gravitating towards posts with more text on them, be it facts, anecdotes, or quotes. Copy for these posts elaborated on the main message and made the experience of homeless youth relevant to distant audience members.
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The Instagram and Facebook accounts mainly targeted members of the larget Chicagoland community but included followers who were youth who came to the center, and volunteers. Therefore the channels became about also disseminating announcements to supplement email chains.
Other Marketing Materials
Flyer asking people for donations of large amounts of food to feed to the youth at the drop-in center.
A flyer urging people to volunteer by listing the benefits and the positive impact volunteering has.
StandUp For Kids Chicago partnered with Industrious to hold a Happy Hour where we had the opportunity to tell people why they should volunteer for or donate to the organization.
Flyer asking people for donations of large amounts of food to feed to the youth at the drop-in center.