Our Mission:
Spark meaningful change by empowering individuals to raise their voices for mental health and domestic violence awareness. We create safe spaces for open dialogue, promoting healing and cultivating informed advocates, ensuring that everyone affected has access to the support and resources needed to thrive.
Purpose and Objectives
Mental health and abuse survivor advocacy are passions of mine. I myself have a survivor story that involves both, so by paring this passion with my developed skills in graphic design and public speaking, I had the idea to create a speaker series. This series would be to create a space for those affected (which includes survivors, victims, and advocates alike) to educate, support, and drive change in our community through the sharing of stories and resources
Given the timeline I set for this project, it was my goal to create a complete branding and marketing kit. As a stretch goal, I wanted to share my story in the inaugural presentation delivery.
Project Processes
I primarily utilized Microsoft Word and PowerPoint, Canva, and Instagram for this project. Principles that I needed to further expand my knowledge on were creating a branding kit as well as particulars regarding copyright laws.
Each section of the project was marked by two-week sprints with deliverables on the dates outlined below:
Oct. 19, 2024 – Branding Kit
Create a branding kit for the series including, logo(s), colors, fonts, and presentation templates.
Nov. 2, 2024 – Media Permissions and Series Outline
Obtain permissions for media usage, as necessary, and plan for potential topics and speakers.
Nov. 19, 2024 – Networking
Network for speakers, partners, and potential venues for delivery of the series. Compile these resources, and document potential speaker and topic pairings..
Nov. 30, 2024 – Presentation Outline and Marketing
Develop a content outline for my specific presentation in the series along with event marketing to distribute, likely a poster and copy for an email or Teams message.
Dec. 14, 2024 – Presentation Content and Marketing
Further project development and marketing. Adding content to the previously created outline.
Dec. 16, 2024 – Final Delivery
Finalize branding and marketing, and deliver on presentation as a stretch goal.
Experiences
While I was able to work within my sprints at first, especially toward the end, much of the content preparation and research started to bleed together.
Along the way, I received help in unexpected ways from a mentor and other close connections. I was able to connect with those individuals on presenting, branding suggestions, podcast basics, and networking that led to ultimately scheduling the inaugural event, set to take place in February 2025.
As I started with my marketing and posting biweekly updates, I was humbled by the responses to and interest in this initiative. It was validating to know that there is a want and need for this, even just within my circle of influence. I look forward to seeing that circle expands as I launch and market the series.
Challenges
It became apparent early on that there was more to this project than what I had anticipated as multiple people I networked with mentioned that this would make for a great podcast as well. Through exploration of that option in tandem with creating the branding and presentation, I ultimately was unable to move forward with that aspect of the project due to the cost of entry for the needed equipment.
I also was unable to get official media usage rights for presentation due to a delay in communication from the needed parties. Those efforts will continue to be ongoing.
I also was unable to delivery on the stretch goal of giving a finalized presentation. However, I did complete all branding and an Instagram account launch along with content outline and a scheduled date (Feb. 27) for the presentation itself. I will have the opportunity to present at a corporate Employee Resource Group meeting that focuses on mental health.
Post-Project Insights
My two main takeaways were that, first, there are more people in your corner than you realize. Once you start sharing your ideas and asking for help, if you have networked well and built strong relationships, the right resources will eventually come along. The second is that if you have an idea, be willing to go where it wants to lead you. Even though I had no intention of exploring a podcast and it ultimately wasn’t feasible at this time, I was able to gain a new set of knowledge to potentially explore the opportunity in the future.
Please enjoy this showcase of the finalized presentation template!
Email: asparkofhopespeaking@gmail.com
Instagram: @a.spark.of.hope.speaking