Project purpose and objectives
For this project, I conducted a campaign to spread awareness of Second Helpings, a nonprofit thrift store that helps victims of domestic violence and abuse.
I started this project because I was amazed by the help provided to people by the Family Crisis Center through Second Helpings. I decided to spread awareness of this organization for three main reasons. First, by bringing more people to the store, more people would know of the resources available to those experiencing domestic violence or abuse, which would increase the likelihood of reaching people in need of those resources. Secondly, by increasing the sales and donations of the store, the Family Crisis Center would be able to keep providing free attention and help. Finally, more funding could enable this organization to make more resources available for free to community members in need.
The project
On September 21st, Second Helping participated in an event called Experience Rexburg. At that event, Second Helpings had an informative booth, and even though I didn’t plan the event, I had the opportunity to participate in it. During that event, the store hosted a giveaway, and the only requirement to enter the giveaway was to follow Second Helpings’ social media accounts. It was a successful way of getting more followers, as you can see in the data pulled from their Instagram account, this event attracted 148 followers, an increase of 128% more followers.
Another tool that helped spread awareness of the store was the creation of reels. As you can see in the data shown below, over the last 90 days, Second Helpings’ Instagram page got over 7000 views. Next to the data shown is the first reel I created and posted; and next to the video, you will see the number of views the other reels I created generated and how many accounts were reached because of that.
Lastly, I also worked in the organization of the store. I tried to make areas of the store easy for customers, store workers, and volunteers to keep organized. I also reorganized some areas to create continuity in the products and worked hard to showcase seasonal items aligned with the weather and the holidays.
Challenges encountered in completing the project
I encountered some challenges with the management of the social media accounts. One of the challenges I had while creating the content was that it was hard to record videos while the store was open. I didn’t want to make customers uncomfortable and couldn’t always record audio without unexpected noise. So, I would usually record segments of the reels after the store closed, which could be a challenge for a social media manager who works during store hours.
Project processes
I would follow similar processes to create social media content and find new ways to organize sections of the store.
- I would start by observing. For both the store and social media, I would observe the seasons and trends.
- Then, I would look for areas of improvement. In the store, I would look for problematic areas, those that would confuse customers or that would not stay organized. In social media, I looked at previous posts and saw what I should focus on based on their needs.
- After seeing what needed to improve, I would start brainstorming ideas, thinking of different options and scenarios, and pick one option.
- Once I knew what I wanted to do, I would create a plan to accomplish it. Sometimes, this step was as simple as, “I will move these clothes here, and then gather those there,” and sometimes, it had more steps like recording videos in a specific order.
- Finally, I would evaluate. I would see the metrics on social media, and I would observe customers in the store to see if the idea needed to be developed further or changed.
An overview of the experiences I had
Insights gained from the project
I learned a lot from this project. First, I learned to communicate with the store managers, it was a little intimidating at first, but then I learned to be comfortable asking for clarification if I needed it and proposing ideas. Secondly, I learned to feel more comfortable making decisions. I used to think that if I were confident in a decision maybe it would come across as arrogant or as if it didn’t have room for feedback, but I learned that confidence is not arrogance and that delivering a message confidently shows the preparation behind our work. Finally, I learned that keeping your objective is a great motivator to accomplish any task. During the completion of this project, I faced challenges in my personal life, and because of it, sometimes I would get to the store already exhausted. Yet, every time I saw people receiving help, every time I could greet someone who could only speak Spanish in their native language or would see a little kid thanking me and smiling at me, I would get a boost of energy because those little acts would remind me of the reason I was working on this project. As I attached my actions to a purpose, I was motivated to do more and more.
In a meeting with the store managers, I learned that sales and profit have increased in the past weeks. It makes me so happy to see that the actions I took, accomplished the desired goals and objectives of this project.