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Table  of  Contents    

EXECUTIVE  SUMMARY                 PAGE  3  

SITUATIONAL  ANALYSIS               PAGE  4  

  Environmental  Analysis               PAGE  4  

    Background                 PAGE  4  

    Funds                   PAGE  5  

  Opportunity  and  Issue  Analysis             PAGE  9  

    SWOT                   PAGE  9  

MARKETING  OBJECTIVES               PAGE  10  

MARKETING  STRATEGY                 PAGE  11  

  Segmentation                 PAGE  11  

  Target  Market                 PAGE  12  

  Marketing  Mix                 PAGE  13  

ACTION  PROGRAMS                 PAGE  14  

  Objective  One                 PAGE  14  

  Objective  Two                 PAGE  15  

  Objective  Three                 PAGE  16  

FINANCIAL  PROJECTIONS               PAGE  18  

MONITORING  AND  CONTROL               PAGE  19  

 

 

 

 

 

 

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EXECUTIVE  SUMMARY  

Relay  for  life  is  the  main  volunteer-­‐‑driven  fundraising  event  of  the  American  Cancer  Society.  Relay  events  comprise  of  a  number  of  people  including  survivors,  caregivers,  friends,  and  family  members  of  survivors  who  get  together  and  raise  money  by  participating  in  activities  and  fundraising  attempts  for  ACS.    

Relay  For  Life  has  the  ability  to  empower  every  community  to  help  fight  back  against  cancer.    An  ongoing  challenge  for  ACS  has  been  successfully  running  Relay  For  Life  events  among  the  densely  populated  communities  due  to  safety,  increased  costs,  cultural  differences,  and  county  ordinances  that  ban  overnight  activities.    Running  Relay  events  in  these  markets  has  the  potential  to  reach  more  survivors  and  caregivers  and  establish  strong  relationships  with  multicultural  organizations  within  the  communities.  The  American  Cancer  Society  wants  to  establish  and  enhance  Relay  events  in  Chapel  Hill,  North  Carolina.    

ACS  attempts  to  integrate  Relay  For  Life  in  Chapel  Hill  by  reaching  out  to  the  top  three  largest  employers,  featured  churches  representing  a  variety  of  denominations,  and  the  top  five  high  schools.  ACS  employees  will  build  relationships  with  these  three  markets  and  inform  its  publics  about  Relay  For  Life,  its  philanthropic  benefits,  and  how  they  can  help.  ACS  aims  to  host  Relay  events  through  these  targets  and  attain  large  turnouts  at  the  events  through  educating  the  varied  publics.    For  schools,  ACS  will  host  mini  fundraising  events  for  a  couple  years  to  build  a  Relay  presence  then  transition  into  actual  Relay  events.    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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SITUATIONAL  ANALYSIS  

Environmental  Analysis  

Background  

I.  Relay  For  Life  

Relay  For  Life  is  the  main  volunteer-­‐‑driven  cancer  fundraising  event  for  the  American  Cancer  Society.  Relay  events  are  mainly  held  during  the  summer  months  but  can  take  place  all  year.  Most  events  are  held  at  colleges,  high  schools,  fairgrounds,  and  military  installations.  The  purpose  of  Relay  For  Life  is  to  raise  money  and  awareness  for  cancer.    Relay  For  Life  embraces  all  types  of  cancer  and  has  its  own  cancer  research  team.    

In  the  mid-­‐‑1980s,  Dr.  Gordy  Klatt  a  Tacoma  colorectal  surgeon,  wanted  to  increase  the  income  of  his  local  American  Cancer  Society  office  and  decided  to  personally  raise  money  by  running  marathons.  He  spent  24  hours  circling  the  track  at  a  local  college  in  Tacoma  and  raised  $27,000.  Dr.  Klatt  thought  about  ways  after  much  support  on  the  track  from  volunteers  and  committee  plans,  the  vision  turned  into  over  5,200  Relay  For  Life  events  across  the  United  States  today.    

Relay  teams  consist  of  approximately  8-­‐‑15  people  and  are  led  by  a  team  captain.  The  team  captain  recruits  members  for  the  team  and  facilitates  fundraisers  for  the  event.  Relay  events  are  24  hours  long  to  represent  that  when  someone  has  cancer,  it  is  present  24  hours  a  day  and  does  not  sleep.  Teams  of  participants  camp  overnight  at  local  athletic  tracks,  taking  turns  to  run  or  walk  laps.  It  is  required  for  only  one  member  from  a  team  to  be  on  the  track  at  all  times.    

The  registration  fee  to  participate  in  a  Relay  event  is  $10.  The  American  Cancer  Society  asks  each  participant  to  have  a  goal  to  raise  at  least  $100,  but  it  is  not  required.    

II.  Event  Features    

Relay  For  Life’s  slogan  is  “Celebrate.  Remember.  Fight  Back”  which  is  represented  by  each  event.  

1. Celebrate.  The  Survivor  Lap  signifies  the  start  of  Relay  and  is  used  to  celebrate  the  survivors.  During  the  Survivors  lap,  friends,  families,  and  caregivers  cheer  on  the  survivors  while  they  take  the  first  lap  around  the  track.  Sometimes  survivors  speak  during  this  time  to  encourage  others  with  cancer  to  keep  fighting.  A  survivor  who  cannot  attend  the  event  is  called  a  “Virtual  Survivor.”  A  Virtual  Survivor  is  someone  who  has  been  diagnosed  with  cancer,  but  due  to  distance,  time,  or  illness,  is  not  able  to  physically  attend  the  event.  In  this  case,  a  family  

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member  will  represent  them  by  creating  a  poster,  photo  collage,  or  t-­‐‑shirt  featuring  them  and  walk  the  Survivor  Lap  in  their  place.    

2. Remember.  The  Luminaria  Ceremony  honors  loved  ones  who  lost  to  cancer  or  still  fighting  cancer.  It  takes  place  after  dark  and  has  decorated  bags  spelling  out  “HOPE”  or  “CURE”  around  the  track.  Each  participant  lights  a  candle  inside  their  personalized  bag,  honoring  their  loved  ones  who  have  lost  to  cancer  or  are  still  fighting.  Participants  and  guest  speakers  are  invited  to  share  their  stories  during  this  event.  After  the  Luminaria  Ceremony,  participants  walk  a  lap  around  the  track  in  silence  to  respect  those  who  have  lost  their  lives  to  cancer.  At  certain  Relay  events,  pictures  of  cancer  patients  are  shown  and  “Amazing  Grace”  is  performed.    

3. Fight  Back.  The  Fight  Back  Ceremony  is  held  at  the  end  of  each  event  and  symbolizes  the  emotional  commitment  made  by  every  single  person  volunteering  in  Relay  For  Life.  It  is  when  participants  pledge  to  take  action  and  spread  awareness  for  cancer  research,  treatments,  and  prevention.  Participants  are  encouraged  to  hold  events  in  their  community  that  help  others  quit  smoking  and  educate  about  cancer  in  minorities,  and  to  volunteer  their  time  to  the  American  Cancer  Society.  Sometimes  representatives  from  ACS  come  and  speak  about  legislations  that  are  trying  to  be  passed.    

Funding  

Funds  received  by  Relay  For  Life  are  allocated  to  the  following  areas:    

1. Research  Programs  

Intramural  Research  department  is  comprised  of  five  programs:  Epidemiology,  Surveillance  and  Health  Services  Research,  International  Tobacco  Control  Research,    the  Behavioral  Research  Center  (BRC),  and  the  Statistics  and  Evaluation  Center  (SEC).      

1. The  Epidemiology  Research  Center  studies  factors  that  influence  health  and  disease  occurrence  in  populations.  This  is  the  scientific  foundation  of  public  health  preventative  medicine.    This  research  program  conducts  and  communicates  high  quality  epidemiologic  research  to  advance  the  understanding  of  cancer  causes,  prevention,  and  survivorship.  

2. The  goal  of  Surveillance  and  Health  Services  Research  is  to  analyze  and  disseminate  population-­‐‑based  information  on  cancer  occurrence.  This  causes  prevention,  treatment,  and  survival.  In  addition  to  its  own  independent  research,  the  group  also  collaborates  with  other  surveillance  and  health  services  organizations  nationally  and  internationally  and  provides  scientific  expertise  to  other  components  of  the  Society.  

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3. International  Tobacco  Control  Research  conducts  original  research  on  international  tobacco  control,  emphasizing  on  the  economics  of  tobacco  control  and  policy.  This  work  is  done  in  collaboration  with  national  and  international  investigators  and  serves  to  build  capacity  for  collection  and  analysis  of  economic  data  to  provide  the  evidence  base  for  tobacco  control  in  low-­‐‑  and  middle-­‐‑income  countries  

4. Behavioral  Research  educates  the  public  on  what  family  caregivers  should  do,  tobacco,  the  quality  of  life,  and  survivorship.  The  American  Cancer  Society  was  one  of  the  first  organizations  to  recognize  the  importance  of  behavioral  and  psychosocial  research  in  the  prevention  and  control  of  cancer.  

5. The  Statistics  and  Evaluation  Center  assists  society  researchers  in  the  design,  analysis,  and  preparation  of  manuscripts  for  publication  in  peer-­‐‑reviewed  scientific  journals.  It  functions  as  part  of  the  Society  team  that  evaluates  selected  mission  delivery  interventions.  And  it  conducts  methods  on  cancer-­‐‑related  problems  for  publication  in  peer-­‐‑reviewed  journals.      

2. Prevention  Programs  

There  are  three  major  areas  of  research  within  the  Cancer  Control  and  Prevention  Research  Program.      1. Psychosocial  and  Behavioral  Research:    Applications  that  focus  on  the  following  

population  groups:  • Studies  that  focus  on  reducing  disparities  in  the  following  population  groups:  

African  Americans,  Hispanic/Latinos,  Asians/Pacific  Islanders,  Native  Americans/Alaskan  Natives;  Low  Income/Rural  Poor.    

• Studies  of  interventions  designed  to  reduce  measurably  cancer  health  disparities  across  the  cancer  continuum,  especially  in  reducing  risk;  enhancing  screening  or  informed  decision  making;  effective  population-­‐‑specific  messaging;  improvement  in  provider-­‐‑patient  relationship;  treatment  decision-­‐‑making  or  treatment  compliance;  and  improvement  in  quality  of  life  of  patients  and/or  caregivers.    

• Community-­‐‑based  participatory  research  or  research  conducted  in  partnership  with  other  groups  or  organizations.      

2. Health  Policies  and  Heath  Services  Research:  • Studies  that  focus  on  health  care  costs,  system  structure  or  capacity,  delivery  of  

healthcare  services  or  state  or  Federal  policies  that  have  the  potential  to  contribute  to  a  decrease  in  unequal  access  to  care  and/or  treatment  in  populations  of  focus.    

3. Palliative  Care  and  Symptom  Management:    

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• Palliative  care  is  defined  as  research  that  focuses  on  prevention  and  relief  of  suffering  by  the  early  identification,  assessment  and  treatment  of  pain,  as  well  as  of  other  physical,  psychosocial  and  spiritual  problems  associated  with  cancer.        

3. Patient/Family  Support  Programs    

• I  Can  Cope-­‐‑  An  educational  program  for  people  with  cancer  and  their  family.  The  program  includes  physicians,  nurses,  social  workers,  and  other  health  care  professionals  who  discuss  issues  related  to  cancer.  

• Coping  with  Breast  Cancer-­‐‑  A  support  group  designed  to  educate  and  provide  emotional  support  for  patients  and  their  families.  

• Dialogue-­‐‑  An  ongoing  support  group  designed  to  help  patients,  their  families,  and  friends  better  understand  and  learn  to  live  with  cancer.  

• Man  to  Man-­‐‑  Provides  accurate,  factual  information  to  men  and  their  partners  about  prostate  cancer.  

• Look  Good,  Feel  Better-­‐‑  Licensed  cosmetologists  team  up  with  oncology  health  professionals  to  provide  information  to  women  undergoing  cancer  treatment  to  help  them  look  great  and  feel  more  comfortable  with  the  changes  in  their  appearance.  

• Life  After  Loss-­‐‑  A  grief  support  program  for  anyone  who  has  experienced  the  loss  of  a  loved  one  with  in  the  past  two  years,  regardless  of    the  cause  of  death.  

 4. Treatment  Programs    American  Cancer  Society  offers  treatment  programs  in  the  following  areas:    • Understanding  Your  Diagnosis  • Finding  and  Paying  for  Treatment  • Treatments  and  Side  Effects  • Survivorship:  During  and  After  Cancer  Treatment  • Children  and  Cancer  • Caregivers  • Nearing  the  End  of  Life  

 

5. Fundraising    The  money  raised  from  Relay  For  Life  goes  to  creating  other  local  fundraising  programs  for  the  American  Cancer  Society.  A  few  of  these  fundraisers  include:    

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 • Bark  For  Life  • Garage  Sale  • Rose  Bush  Memorial  • Turkey  Raffle  • Little  Black  Dress  Night  • Radio  Station    

6. Construction  of  Hope  Lodges  

Hope  lodges  offer  cancer  patients  and  their  caregivers  a  free,  temporary  place  to  stay  when  treatment  is  in  a  city  that  they  are  unable  to  get  to.    There  are  currently  31  Hope  Lodges  across  the  United  States.    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

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Opportunity  and  Issue  Analysis    SWOT  

The  Customer  Satisfaction  Study  was  designed  to  evaluate  event  quality  and  participant  experience  at  Relay  For  Life.  Every  Relay  volunteer  who  participated  in  a  Relay  from  January  1  –  August  31  were  emailed  an  online  survey.  Over  75,000  surveys  were  completed  for  the  study,  making  this  one  of  the  largest  and  most  comprehensive  studies  ever  conducted  by  the  American  Cancer  Society.  These  results  will  allow  Relay  For  Life  to  set  benchmarks  for  quality  and  customer  service,  and  allow  for  monitoring  of  ongoing  performance.  The  Strengths  and  Weakness  section  of  the  SWOT  analysis  was  taken  from  the  results  of  this  survey.    Strengths    

§ Overall  event  Image  § Location  and  quality  of  Relay  

sites  § Check-­‐‑in  /  Registration  § Committee  Meetings  § Team  Captain  Meetings  § Kickoff  Meetings  

 

Weaknesses  § Event  Activities  /  Programs  

o Public  Address  System  /  Sound  System  

o Closing  Ceremony  o Entertainment  o Games/activities  

§ Recognition  o Participants  are  not  feeling  

recognized/appreciated  for  their  involvement  and  fundraising  efforts    

§      Advertising  /  Communication  o Lack  of  clear  signage  to  event  o Participants  don’t  have  access  to              promotional  materials    

Opportunities  § Reaching  out  to  elderly  (65+)  

they  are  more  likely  to  have  experience  with  cancer  and  support  it  

   

Threats  Other  major  Cancer  Associations:  (ACS  was  rated  #2  nonprofit  by  http://www.myphilanthropedia.org/,  organizations  in  the  Top  5  would  be  its  major  competition)  

§ Susan  G.  Komen  for  Breast  Cancer  (#1)  

§ LIVESTRONG  (#3)  § The  Leukemia  and  Lymphoma  

Society(#4)  § St.  Jude  (#5)  

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MARKETING  OBJECTIVES  

1. Build  relationships  with  largest  organizations  and  businesses  that  are  trusted  in  these  communities.  Through  these  relationships,  educate  and  inform  society  of  how  Relay  events  can  save  lives  and  promote  awareness  for  cancer.  

 2. Build  trust  of  religious  institutions  such  as  churches.  Establish  a  presence  of  faith  

and  church  within  Relay  events  and  this  will  engage  religious  communities  towards  Relay.    

 3. Establish  fundraiser  events  to  raise  money  for  Relay  through  school  systems.  

This  spreads  awareness  to  young  populations  and  will  help  build  a  broader  base  of  citizen  involvement  for  the  future.  (Goal  of  transitioning  this  into  a  community  Relay  event  within  2-­‐‑3  years)  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

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MARKETING  STRATEGY    

Market  Segmentation      Chapel  Hill  currently  covers  5  zip  codes:    

1. 27514  2. 27515  3. 27516  4. 27517  5. 27599  

 Demographics  of  Chapel  Hill,  NC      Estimated  Current  Population:  

87,389  

Population:   91,595  

White  Population:   71,512  

Black  Population:   9,322  

Hispanic  Population:   6,468  

Asian  Population:   9,136  

Hawaiian  Population:   82  

Indian  Population:   801  

Other  Population:   3,248  

Male  Population:   43,221  

Female  Population:   48,374  

Avg  House  Value:   $217,950.00  

Avg  Household  Income:   $49,850.00  

Avg  Persons  Per  Household:   2.44  

Median  Age:   32.67  

Median  Age  (Male):   32.27  

Median  Age  (Female):   33.23  

           

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Age  Census    Total  2012  Census  Population  for  CHAPEL  HILL,  NC   57,233   100.0%  

Under  5  years   2,391   4.2%  

5  to  9  years   2,909   5.1%  

10  to  14  years   2,896   5.1%  

15  to  19  years   7,693   13.4%  

20  to  24  years   12,065   21.1%  

25  to  29  years   4,410   7.7%  

30  to  34  years   3,069   5.4%  

35  to  39  years   2,823   4.9%  

40  to  44  years   3,199   5.6%  

45  to  49  years   3,016   5.3%  

50  to  54  years   2,911   5.1%  

55  to  59  years   2,518   4.4%  

60  to  64  years   2,052   3.6%  

65  to  69  years   1,553   2.7%  

70  to  74  years   1,085   1.9%  

75  to  79  years   950   1.7%  

80  to  84  years   803   1.4%  

85  years  and  over      

 Target  Market  

The  American  Cancer  Society  is  aiming  to  reach  out  to  large  businesses,  churches,  and  school  systems  in  Chapel  Hill.  ACS  first  wants  to  establish  strong  relationships  with  these  groups,  spread  information  about  Relay  For  Life,  and  eventually  have  a  decent  turn  out  of  people  (100)  at  Relay  events  in  these  areas.      

1. Large  Businesses  • ACS  will  reach  out  to  the  top  three  employers  in  Chapel  Hill  which  are:    

1. Harris  Teeter  2. Blue  Cross  &  Blue  Shield  of  NC  3. A  Southern  Season  

2. Churches  • The  featured  and  most  advertised  groups  are  the  ones  ACS  will  choose  first:    

1. Church  of  Holy  Trinity  Chatham  (Anglican)  2. Mount  Carmel  Baptist  Church  (Baptist)  

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3. Chapel  Hill  Christian  Church  (Disciples  of  Christ)  4. University  United  Methodist  Church  (United  Methodist)  5. Newhope  Church  (Non-­‐‑Denominational)  6. True  Praise  and  Deliverance  Tabernacle  (Pentecostal)  

3. School  Systems  • ACS  will  reach  out  to  high  schools  that  are  rated  with  4  or  more  stars  on  

greatschools.org:  1. Woods  Charter  School  2. East  Chapel  Hill  High  School  3. Chapel  Hill  High  School  4. Phoenix  Academy  High  School  5. Emerson  Waldorf  School  

 Marketing  Mix    5D’s  of  Relay    Mission  Delivery  is  a  critical  part  of  the  development  of  community-­‐‑based  outreach  for  Relay  For  Life.  American  Cancer  Society  aims  to  reach  the  town  of  Chapel  Hill  by  integrating  the  5  D’s  of  Relay,  which  need  to  be  considered  when  reaching  objectives.      

1. Leadership  Development    2. Team  Development  3. Event  Development  4. Survivor  Development  5. Fundraising  Development  

   4  Ps  

Place:  Relay  For  Life  is  a  part  of  The  American  Cancer  Society  but  can  be  found  locally  in  every  major  city  during  Relay  season.  This  current  project  is  to  expand  Relay  For  Life  in  the  nation’s  most  densely  populated  communities.      

Product:  Relay  For  Life  event  sign-­‐‑ups  and  fundraisers  for  schools.  

Price:  Donation  amount  of  personal  choice,  the  event  registration  cost  is  $10.    

Promotion:  Through  building  relationships  and  dispersing  promotional  material  to  selected  business  organizations  and  churches,  fundraising  with  selected  high  schools  in  Chapel  Hill.  

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ACTION  PROGRAMS  For  Objective  One:  Build  relationships  with  organizations  and  businesses  that  are  trusted  in  Chapel  Hill.    This  approach  to  establishing  a  Relay  For  Life  event  focuses  on  demonstrating  the  impact  of  our  mission  to  save  lives  in  order  to  build  relationships  with  local  organizations  and  businesses  that  already  have  the  trust  of  the  community.  By  creating  and  strengthening  relationships  with  these  organizations,  ACS  employees  will  be  better  positioned  to  establish  the  American  Cancer  Society  as  an  advocate  for  everyone  affected  by  cancer  and  a  resource  for  those  who  have  never  had  the  disease.  Through  these  relationships,  ACS  can  educate  and  inform  the  community  about  how  the  Society  saves  lives  and  helps  people  in  their  community  get  well,  stay  well,  find  cures,  and  fight  back  against  cancer.  Once  those  relationships  are  established,  trusted  groups  will  be  more  likely  to  join  the  American  Cancer  Society  to  fight  back  through  Relay  and  to  encourage  the  community  to  do  the  same.          

1. Meet  with  finance  departments  of  each  business  to  see  which  charities  they  have  previously  supported  and  analyze  which  strategies  worked  and  which  did  not.    

2. Integrate  ACS  mission  speakers  at  company  and  business  meetings  and  job  fairs  within  the  community.  

3. Design  a  mission  tent  (a  table  with  Relay  promotional  materials)  for  upcoming  Relay  events  at  monthly  business  meetings.  This  tent  should  display  and  demonstrate  community  programs  that  help  people  stay  well  and  get  well.  

4. With  a  monthly  focus,  create  a  plan  to  engage  and  educate  new  Relay    volunteers  in  Chapel  Hill  about  the  American  Cancer  Society’s  mission  and  the  role  that  Relay  plays  in  helping  save  lives.  Engaging  volunteers  in  the  Society’s  mission  and  encourage  them  to  pass  along  the  message  into  the  community.    

   How  this  will  fulfill  the  5D’s:    Leadership  Development:  An  organization  or  business  that  collaborates  with  the  American  Cancer  Society  because  they  believe  in  and  feel  connected  to  the  mission  to  save  lives  will  most  likely  provide  leadership  to  help  further  efforts    to  create  a  world  with  less  cancer  and  more  birthdays.    Team  Development:  When  Relay  For  Life  teams  are  recruited  through  a  combined  effort  of  Health  Initiatives  and  Income  Development,  they  will  be  teams  who    

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come  to  the  event  with  a  strong  knowledge  of  why  they  are  participating  in    Relay.  Strong,  dedicated,  informed  teams  develop  strong,  dedicated,  informed    advocates  and  supporters  for  the  American  Cancer  Society.    Event  Development:  By  introducing  the  American  Cancer  Society  with  a  focus  on  its  mission  to  save  lives  and  create  more  birthdays,  your  event  will  most    likely  have  a  strong  mission  component.  When  people  understand  what  the  American  Cancer  Society  does  and  why  our  work  together  is  so  important,  they  are  more  likely  to  get  involved,  stay  involved,  and  encourage  others  to  do  the  same    Survivor  Development:  Through  regularly  established  meetings  with  collaborating  organizations,  committee  members  and  teams  will  have  the  opportunity  to  learn    more  about  survivor  and  caregiver  development  as  well  as  organize  recognition    events  within  the  collaborating  organization.  This  approach  also  presents  an    opportunity  to  engage  survivors  and  caregivers  year-­‐‑round,  educating  them  that    the  American  Cancer  Society  is  in  their  corner  around  the  clock  to  help  guide    them  through  every  step  of  the  cancer  experience  and  beyond.    Fundraising  Development:  When  donors  understand  how  their  dollars  make  a  difference,  they  are  more  likely  to  get  engaged  and  stay  engaged  with  our    organization.  By  deepening  understanding  of  how  the  American  Cancer    Society  saves  lives  using  funds  raised  through  Relay  For  Life,  collaborating    organizations  and  constituents  will  be  more  inclined  to  give      For  Objective  Two:  Build  trust  of  religious  institutions  such  as  churches    This  strategic  approach  utilizes  an  existing  church  to  establish  and  organize  a  community  Relay  For  Life  event.      

1. Identify  churches  that  are  highly  visible  with  good  reputations  within  the  communities  and  get  groups  to  host  a  Relay  event  in  their  place  of  worship.    

a. Use  “Mission  First”  approach  when  reaching  out  to  these  groups.  People  in  churches  may  suffer  from  cancer  and  will  be  willing  to  get  involved  when  they  learn  that  they  will  be  helping  others  as  well.    

2. Analyze  current  staff  and  volunteer  base,  is  there  someone  who  is  a  trusted  member  of  a  church?  This  person  needs  to  be  the  one  to  reach  out  initially.    

3. Cultural  inclusion  is  necessary;  cultures  of  the  particular  religious  organization  need  to  be  included  throughout  the  event.  (Dancers,  singers,  people  sharing  personal  stories,  etc.)  

 

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How  this  will  fulfill  the  5D’s:    Leadership  Development:  The  benefit  of  a  faith-­‐‑based  engagement  approach  is  that    volunteer  leaders  can  be  recruited  from  within  the  organization,  which  works  well    since  most  people  who  participate  in  that  organization  are  from  the  community  and    often  present  a  diverse  group  of  people.      Team  Development:  Several  hundreds  of  people  will  sign  up  to  participate  at  one  time.  The  choir  and  other  members  of  the  church  will  be  wearing  the  same  Relay  shirts  and  engaging  with  each  other.      Event  Development:  In  this  strategy,  location  can  be  secured  either  on  the  property  of  the  faith-­‐‑based  organization’s  church/or  by  leveraging  members’  relationships  in  the  community.  This  will  give  the  Relay  event  exposure  for  people  interested  in  the  church  while  the  event  is  going  on.      Survivor  Development  (same  as  business):  Through  regularly  established  meetings  with  collaborating  organizations,  committee  members  and  teams  will  have  the  opportunity  to  learn  more  about  survivor  and  caregiver  development  as  well  as  organize  recognition    events  within  the  collaborating  organization.  This  approach  also  presents  an    opportunity  to  engage  survivors  and  caregivers  year-­‐‑round,  educating  them  that    the  American  Cancer  Society  is  in  their  corner  around  the  clock  to  help  guide    them  through  every  step  of  the  cancer  experience  and  beyond.    Fundraising  Development  (same  as  business):  When  donors  understand  how  their  dollars  make  a  difference,  they  are  more  likely  to  get  engaged  and  stay  engaged  with  our    organization.  By  deepening  understanding  of  how  the  American  Cancer    Society  saves  lives  using  funds  raised  through  Relay  For  Life,  collaborating    organizations  and  constituents  will  be  more  inclined  to  give    For  Objective  Three:  Establish  fundraiser  events  to  raise  money  for  Relay  through  school  systems.      This  strategy  focuses  on  establishing  a  school-­‐‑based  Relay  fundraiser  as  a  revenue    enhancer  for  a  community  Relay  event  at  its  inception,  until  it  engages  the    community  with  the  American  Cancer  Society  and  mobilizes  it  to  become  a  Relay    For  Life  community  event.      

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1. Analyze  projects  that  the  school  system  has  previously  supported  2. Look  at  youth  leadership  within  the  schools  such  as  Key  Club,  honor  society,  

athletics,  etc.    3. After  schools  and  groups  within  the  schools  are  chosen,  team  recruitment  needs  

to  happen  to  educate  committee  members  within  the  groups  on  how  to  promote  Relay  and  get  donations.    

4. Provide  participants  with  enough  information  about  fundraising  activities.  Encourage  friendly  competition  between  school  systems  with  reward  programs.    

How  this  will  fulfill  the  5D’s:    Leadership  Development:  Identifying  a  volunteer  champion  with  influence  in  the  schools  supporting  your  Relay  event  is  key.  Champions  are  able  to  open  doors  to  recruit  leaders  and  identify  contacts  in  each  of  the  school  systems.  

Team  Development:  Team  recruitment  occurs  within  each  school  location  requires  multiple  team  recruitment  subcommittee  members  Team  captain  meetings  hold  tremendous  potential  to  promote  competition,  so  meetings  must  be  in  central,  visible  locations.    

Event  Development:  Events  illustrate  the  relevance  of  Relay  within  schools  and  the  American  Cancer  Society’s  mission  to  the  participants  and  solidify  the  engagement.  

Survivor  Development:  Identifying  survivors  within  the  systems,  faculty,  and  student  body  is  a  realistic  approach.  Promoting  the  mission  is  another  strong  component  for  clubs  and  organizations  from  the  school  to  provide  creative  energy.  

Fundraising  Development:  Educating  participants  at  all  levels  on  the  importance  of  how  dollars  raised  through  Relay  help  save  lives  and  create  more  birthdays  is  vital.  A  school  Relay  fundraising  event  also  has  the  potential  for  small  business  involvement  for  sponsorship  and  activities.  Encourage  friendly  competition  among  the  schools  with  acceptable  rewards  offered  by  the  district.  

   

 

 

 

 

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FINANCIAL  PROJECTIONS  

Businesses  and  Community  Organizations  Educational  messaging  and  materials  for  Relay  tents  in  community  programs,  this  includes  posters,  brochures,  business  cards,  and  other  promotional  items:  $1,500    Churches  Special  ceremonies  that  have  religious  themes  for  churches  (hiring  singers,  dancers,  preachers):  $3,000    School  Systems  Team  Recruitment  materials  for  school  systems:  $500  Promotional  items  for  subcommittees  to  hand  out  and  use  for  donations:  $700  Rewards  for  winning  schools:  $2,000    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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MONITORING  AND  CONTROL  

After  6  months  of  promotion  using  businesses,  is  the  community  member  base  growing?  Or  at  least  to  a  number  that  is  acceptable  to  have  a  relay  event  (100)?  

§ If  not,  then  study  promotional  items  and  think  of  a  different,  more  centralized  approach.  This  includes  speakers  and  marketing  editors  (people  who  create  marketing  messages  on  brochures  and  other  promotional  items).  Do  not  stop  educating  and  informing  business  leaders  and  employees  about  Relay  but  meet  with  ACS  marketing  department  to  think  of  new  approaches.    

 Are  people  willing  to  let  Relay  events  happen  inside  their  churches?  

§ If  yes,  visibility  will  be  maximized  and  Relay  will  be  at  a  greater  success.  If  they  are  hesitant  about  activities  happening  inside  their  churches,  then  for  the  time  being  be  open  to  holding  church-­‐‑based  Relays  at  other  locations  and  keep  educating  and  informing  main  church  members  about  the  purpose  of  Relay,  focusing  on  how  this  will  be  help  others.  

 Are  groups  targeted  at  school  systems  successfully  collecting  donations?  

§ Are  the  fundraising  attempts  bringing  in  an  acceptable  amount  of  donations?  If  so,  are  they  increasing  over  time?  If  not,  keep  educating  schools  about  teamwork  and  how  volunteering  is  an  important  part  of  college  applications.  If  there  are  not  enough  donations  coming  in,  limit  the  amount  of  fundraising  activities  per  month  until  schools  are  more  excited  about  Relay.  Last  case  scenario  would  be  to  maximize  incentives  (prizes,  pizza  parties,  etc.)  

 Theses  are  all  initial  ways  to  monitor  and  control.  Currently,  there  is  no  Relay  activity  in  densely  populated  areas.  After  6  months  of  promoting  to  businesses,  churches,  and  schools,  ACS  needs  to  determine  if  there  is  enough  progress  to  continue  to  spend  time  and  money  on  promotion.  The  only  way  to  make  this  judgment  in  the  beginning  is  based  on  the  number  of  relationships  made.  After  Relay  events  are  successfully  implemented  in  different  communities,  monitoring  tactics  will  change  along  with  promotion  and  goals.