Client
Year
Deliverables
Paid Media Strategy and Buying
Creative Development
Google Ad Grant Management
Analytics and Reporting
Situation
Forgotten Harvest is Michigan’s largest food rescue organization, collecting millions of pounds of fresh, surplus food each year from grocery stores, restaurants and farmers and distributing it to metro Detroiters in need. As a nonprofit, every dollar raised has a direct operational impact on those who need help getting food on the table.
Most of Forgotten Harvest’s annual giving occurs within a short, crowded window between Hunger Action Month in September and Giving Tuesday in late November or early December, when thousands of nonprofits compete for the same donors. An early November 2025 pause in SNAP benefits further increased Forgotten Harvest’s community need during an already critical giving period. Throughout this period, our paid media strategy focused on capitalizing on peak giving moments while maintaining enough efficiency to sustain donation activity during quieter periods.
Approach
Franco built an always-on, full-funnel paid media strategy across Forgotten Harvest’s July 2025 through June 2026 fiscal year. Rather than treating fundraising as a seasonal burst, donation campaigns ran continuously, building awareness and maturing audiences year-round, with heightened activity and investment concentrated around targeted giving moments, including Hunger Action Month in September and Giving Tuesday in November.
We positioned Google Search to capture high-intent donors at the moment of decision, while Google Display and YouTube campaigns expanded reach and maintained brand visibility earlier in the donor journey. We designed Facebook and LinkedIn paid ad content to drive engagement and layer in emotional storytelling to deepen connection to the mission. Audience-building began in October with awareness-focused Display and YouTube campaigns, helping build familiarity ahead of Giving Tuesday and creating a more engaged audience for November’s donation push.
Creative strategy prioritized donor match messaging in headlines, where it could capture attention quickly, while we crafted deadline-driven copy to drive stronger click-through rates. We also used short-form video featuring emotional storytelling and community-focused messaging across Facebook and LinkedIn to deepen engagement.
Results
During the fiscal year, donation-focused paid media generated a steady stream of directly attributed donations, with results accelerating around key giving moments.
- Monthly donations during Hunger Action Month in September were five times higher than in July 2025.
- November became the strongest month of the year, generating roughly 32% of the year’s directly attributed donations and delivering nearly a 3:1 return on investment.
- Combined, November and December accounted for approximately 52% of directly attributed donations for the year, reflecting how the always-on foundation paid off when heightened giving-season activity kicked in.
Most importantly, performance extended beyond the traditional giving season. After the expected decline in January, Google Search steadily rebuilt donation volume through the spring and summer, which are typically slower fundraising months for Forgotten Harvest. Search was the most consistent donation-driving channel at the end of the fiscal year, demonstrating paid media’s ability to generate support outside of peak giving periods.
Efficiency also remained strong as donation volume grew. Google Search’s click-through rate (CTR) exceeded 20% during peak-performing spring and summer months, while Facebook and LinkedIn consistently outperformed the respective industry CTR benchmarks.
The results established a strong foundation for the next fiscal year: Build awareness ahead of the giving season, maximize investment during high-intent moments like Giving Tuesday and leverage Google Search to sustain donations year-round.
With these learnings in place, Franco has a clear path to continue refining paid strategy, uncover new opportunities, improve efficiency and drive even greater impact for Forgotten Harvest.
