Franco worked with Hospice of Michigan, which has a large presence in Grand Rapids, to promote its annual Barley, BBQ & Beats fundraiser event at Grand Rapids’ Van Andel Arena.
The agency worked with Grand Rapids media outlets to promote advance ticket sales, highlight the distillery and barbecue vendors and event sponsors and capture the sights and sounds of the annual food and drink fundraiser. Franco secured in-studio interviews with Hospice of Michigan event organizers and a cooking segment with a Barley, BBQ & Beats pitmaster, as well as numerous event mentions during weekend roundup segments.
Franco also implemented a Facebook advertising campaign to promote the fundraiser and maximize donations. Franco launched a refined event messaging over the course of the buy to reach as many potential guests as effectively as possible.
A member of Franco’s video production team interviewed Hospice of Michigan representatives, event co-chairs and sponsors at the fundraiser to include in a produced b-roll video package that was submitted to Grand Rapids television stations for 10/11 p.m. newscast consideration. WXMI and WZZM ran the footage in conjunction with the post-event announcement results.
Overall, the media outreach efforts garnered 21 print, broadcast and online mentions, reaching more than 400,380 impressions and the advertising effort reached 82,500 people. More than 1,700 West Michiganders “pigged out” on barbecue, sampled craft whiskey cocktails and rocked out to live music while raising more than $256,000 to support Hospice of Michigan’s Open Access program.
