Blood donor recruitment isn’t a one-size-fits-all strategy. Methods that get some donors through your door may not work for the others, so you’ll want to make sure you have all of your bases covered! From Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter, phones, (and more!), there’s a whole world of blood donor recruitment to be explored!
Be Where Your Donor Is
Each touchpoint is going to cater to each demographic differently. Facebook is generally used to target all age groups, but some perform better than others. 10% of Facebook users are over the age of 55, with the senior demographic being the fastest-growing demographic on the site. Facebook recently changed its advertising rules setting restrictions on advertising to those under the age of 18. Advertisers can no longer target those under 18 based on their interests, nor can they advertise to those under the age of 18 via a targeted list or lookalike audience. Targeting those under the age of 18 would strictly be based on age, gender, and location.
This is where multichannel advertising really steps into place. With limited access to those under the age of 18 on Facebook, advertisers can utilize other platforms to hit this target demographic. We’ve seen success with Snapchat amongst donors under the age of 25. Read below to see how Incept used Snapchat to target this younger demographic along with the success points.
Related Article: Snapchat Case Study
Layering Approach
With there being so many different touchpoints available, it’s important to layer your targeting approach. Based on our experience, fewer than 15% of donors we recruit come in to donate after being engaged by only one channel. More than 50% of our successful blood donations come from donors who have been engaged on three or more channels. The effectiveness of adding just one additional channel can increase your successful blood donations. The more a donor is exposed to your blood center’s message, the more likely they will be to come in and donate.
The Marketing Rule of 7 indicates that a user has to see a message seven times before taking action. If you’re depending on all seven exposes taking place on one channel, you will likely burn out your audience before they get the chance to come in and donate. Being overexposed to a brand on one channel can lead to negative associations with your brand, too. No one likes to get repeat ads!
Predictive Modeling Approach
While layering additional channels is a great first step, layering the right channels for the right donors at the right time is the secret sauce. There are so many factors impacting a donor's engagement and readiness to donate, so we developed predictive models to help our outreach become more efficient and effective. We look at 24 donor attributes related to call and show history and weigh them based on model and significance in order to drive our channel strategies.
One of the most significant things we've learned is that there is no single channel approach that effectively engages donors. Instead, it's all about the combination and layering of channel touchpoints along with message consistency that makes the biggest impact at the individual donor level.
Why should you shift your strategy to engage donors in the most preferred method? Every blood center's donors engage in a unique way. We start every new campaign with preliminary testing to get a better understanding of what types of content, visuals, and channels will work best for each unique segment of a donor base. The predictive models set us up for success, but the testing phase is an essential piece of the campaign.
Because there are so many factors impacting a donor's engagement and their readiness to donate, we developed predictive models to help our outreach become more efficient and effective. We look at 24 donor attributes related to call and show history and weigh them based on model and significance in order to drive our channel strategies.
One of the most significant things we've learned is that there is no single channel approach that effectively engages donors - we wish it were that easy! Instead, it's all about the combination and layering of channel touchpoints along with message consistency that makes the biggest impact at the individual donor level.
Why should you shift your strategy to engage donors in the most preferred method? Every blood center's donors engage in a unique way. We start every new campaign with preliminary testing to get a better understanding of what types of content, visuals, and channels will work best for each unique segment of a donor base. The predictive models set us up for success, but the testing phase is an essential piece of the campaign.
Consistency of Brand Message
Though it’s important to cater your ads to the platform you are using, it’s still essential to keep a consistent brand message throughout your campaigns. This will allow familiarity and recognition of your brand across the many touchpoints and increase the chances of the donor coming in! It’s important to have a consistent brand message, but they don’t necessarily have to be identical. Different platforms have different personalities, and your ad creative should reflect that! You want to create a specific branding guide to ensure your team can stay consistent across all spectrums.
There are many things to consider when creating your branding guide, listed below are a few things to get your ideas flowing:
Font - The font you choose can say a lot about your brand. Think about how certain fonts make you feel, for example, bubbly, playful fonts will make your brand look fun and laid back, while bold distressed fonts will make you feel tense and suspenseful. Think about the difference between a horror film advertisement font and a child’s film advertisement!
Color - Sticking to the same color scheme will help your brand create its own identity. You’ll want your colors to complement each other, as well as stand out when needed. Think of Netflix’s black and red theme - you instantly recognize their logo when you see their colors! Some brands stick to using only a few colors for their logo, but we’ve seen success with client ads that use certain color schemes, such as brighter colors.
Messaging - It’s important to stay consistent with your messaging. Do you have a coined phrase for your brand? Do you use “donate blood” or “give blood”? Small changes like this can make a huge impact! Whether it’s information on a current promotion or a tagline your blood center uses, it’s crucial to use the same messaging on both digital and calling campaigns. This ensures a better and more cohesive experience for your donors.
All of these design guidelines, and more, are important to identify in order to keep your messaging and branding consistent.
Related Article: Images vs. Videos - Which Engages Donors Best?
Conclusion
With the help of a comprehensive brand guide and a multichannel approach, you can reach donors across different platforms with a consistent message. It’s important to get in front of your donor on the platform that they’re most likely to engage on. You never know which platform could be your donor demographic sweet spot! There are many different touchpoints to test out, and we’re here to help! Through our experience and tests, we’ve been able to get a better idea of which platforms and which style of ads work better than others for certain demographics.