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CHALLENGE CAMPAIGNS:A PRACTICAL INTRODUCTORY GUIDE

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I. Introduction 3

II. Campaign Steps - Brief Overview Before the Campaign 4

During the Campaign 5

After the Campaign 5

III. Strategic Advice and Best Practices A. Setting Realistic Goals 6 End Goals 6 Intermittent Goals 7

B. Defining a Target Audience 8

C. Find Partners 9

D. Communication 10 Provide content that supports your audience’s needs 10 How to get your message out there 11

E. Maintaining High Engagement 13

F. Assess, Evaluate, and Improve 14 The Participants 14 Your Team 15 Your Partners 15

G. Financial Plan for the Future 16

IV. Case Study ‘Try Vegan’ by (EVA and BE Vegan) - Belgium 17

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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I. INTRODUCTION

Veg*n challenges are a great way to show people, how easy, tasty, and fun a plant-based diet can be while removing common misconceptions or prejudices with veg*n diets.

This introductory guide provides guidelines and tools to develop and launch a new challenge or make an existing challenge more successful. This guide is non-exhaustive and is meant to be used as a resource alongside the

Challenge Intervention Accelerator webinars (or webinar recordings) where more indepth details will be discussed. Recognizing that social contexts play a major role in any campaign’s success, rather than providing process procedures, we aim to provide advice and tools that can be easily modified to fit varying cultural, economic, and social contexts. Lastly, this guide will be occasionally updated.

We hope this guideline helps you in your journey to create a more compassionate world for people and animals.

To find the list of webinars and other Challenge Intervention Accelerator resources, visit www.globalveganadvocacy.org.

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You are thinking of organising a challenge campaign? That’s fantastic! This is an overview of the basic steps to build and launch a challenge campaign. Keep in mind that this list is not intended to be final and please adapt the steps according to your culture, network, organisation’s experience, and budget.

II. CAMPAIGN STEPS − BRIEF OVERVIEW

BEFORE THE CAMPAIGN » Organise a team and define roles. Common roles are:

• website follow-up

• managing newsletters

• managing social media

• providing content and recipes

• graphic design

• communicating with partners

• etc.

» Make a strategic plan and set deadlines (see sections A)

» Make a financial plan

» Find strategic partners. Partners might include companies, local governments, other orga-nizations, influencers, journalists, restaurants, etc. (see section C)

» Develop content and recipes (see section E)

» Finalize evaluation surveys

» Finalize digital support (such as website, registration system, newsletters, etc.)

» Launch the campaign, start communicating to the public, start accepting registrations (see section D)

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DURING THE CAMPAIGN » Send newsletters to participants

» Support participants by engaging in Facebook groups, activities, etc.

» Provide your partners with the information they need to promote the challenge

» Update your website with the campaign’s content

AFTER THE CAMPAIGN » Analyse evaluation (see section F)

» Plan future campaign and finances (see section G)

» Continue to engage participants & support their diet change journey (see section E)

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The following pages include strategic advice and best practices. This advice is meant to compliment the Challenge Accelerator webinars which will discuss the information in more detail. The advice is not one size fits all and we encourage you to modify these guidelines to adapt to your culture.

III. Strategic Advice and Best Practices

A) SETTING REALISTIC GOALS

Defining end goals gives a direction for your campaign, helps you to evaluate the campaign, and helps you improve and set more realistic goals for future campaigns.

End Goals

These essential questions will aid you in setting goals.

Essential Questions

» What is the mission and goal of your organisation and how can this challenge help to reach these goals?

» Who is your target audience? (see section B)

» How many people do you want to reach with the campaign?

» When do you want to achieve these numbers?

» How many and which partners do you aim to involve? (see section C)

» Which kind of media would you like to use?

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Once your end goals are set, it is essential to define intermittent goals. Consider them as key milestones that will help you reach your end goals. For example, if your end goal is to reach five thousands participants during the challenge, set key deadlines in your calendar and define the steps required to get there. For example:

» Four weeks before the launch, aiming to get five hundred registrations,

» Three weeks before the launch, a total of one thousand registrations,

» Two weeks before the launch, a total of two thousand registrations,

» One week before the launch, a total of three thousand registrations,

» The week of the launch, a total of four thousands registrations,

» At the end of the first week of the challenge, a total of five thousand registrations.

These intermittent goals are crucial indicators as they can help your team identify in the preparation phase of the challenge the areas to develop further. For instance, intermittent goals might lead you to recognize that you need to put more effort in communication if you notice registrations aren’t happening fast enough.

Remember that setting goals is also important when it comes to evaluating the campaign afterwards and will help you to set (even more) realistic goals in following campaigns.

Intermittent Goals

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These essential questions will help you define the target audience.

Essential Questions

» Who are we already reaching?

» What are their unmet needs?

» How do the campaign elements fit into their lives?

» What sub-group (if applicable) is the focus of your campaign?

• A gender group?

• An age group?

• An occupation group?

• A geographically focused group (for example, urban area, rural area, a neighbourhood, regional level, national level, international level)?

B) DEFINING A TARGET AUDIENCEDefining the group of people to reach out to is essential to design the most appropriate content and support. Will you be focusing on vegetarians, vegans, flexitarians (people who still eat meat but have veg*n meals often) or omnivores (people who have almost no experience at all with veg*n eating)? Each group has distinct needs and it is difficult to launch a campaign that covers the needs of all these different groups at once so to improve your strategy and results, define your specific target group.

It is advisable to choose a target audience that is not too difficult to reach. For instance, if you are already reaching flexitarians or vegetarians in your work, you could decide to focus on these groups and support their next step into vegan eating. While omnivores, for instance, might not have ever heard of your organisation or campaign and might be more difficult to motivate to take the challenge. Start with the low hanging fruit!

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These essential questions will help you define partners and allies.

Essential Questions

» Do you have contacts with other organizations that could be allies or partners in your campaign?

» Are there any community centers, religious communities, schools, companies, etc. that you or your organization are currently affiliated with and who might be potential partners?

» What would partners need from you to contribute to your campaign?

» How can this campaign benefit your partners?

» Are your potential partner’s goals and mission aligned with yours?

C) FIND PARTNERSNext, defining allies and partnering with other organisations or entities (such as local governments, corporate businesses, influencers, etc.), are important aspects to ensure success. Promoting plant-based food is an inherent intersectional topic, meaning it has the advantage of touching a large number of issues and causes and thus gives you a wide array of potential partners. For instance, partners outside the vegan movement might be health, environment, animal welfare, social justice, delicious food, access to healthy food, etc. This makes it even more interesting (and/or easier!) to partner with other organisations who might have a different focus but are still aligned with your campaign. Even if an organization or entity does not want to create a formal partnership, they might be willing to be your ally by simply promoting the campaign or supporting it in another way.

Reach out to possible partners and explain what role you see for them in your campaign and how a partnership can benefit them or help them to achieve their own mission. Listen to their needs and find an agreement where you can reinforce each other. Remember there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ when it comes to partners’ needs, for instance, the needs of a local government will differ from the needs of a company. After the partnership is agreed upon, provide the content and visuals your partners will need to promote the campaign, a website page with all relevant content, a link to subscribe, nice visuals or videos they can easily share, etc.

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These essential questions will help you define the content to support your audience’s needs.

Essential Questions

» What motivates your participants to take the challenge?

» What are the main barriers for them and how can you overcome those?

» What information do they need?

» What word usage will work best?

D) COMMUNICATIONIn every campaign, communication is key. This section shares advice about the communication ‘what’ (content) and the ‘how’ (communication channels). Communication styles and channels are culturally dependent, so adapt these guidelines to your own situation!

Provide content that supports your audience’s needs

When working on campaigns like a challenge, it is essential to keep in mind that the needs of the participants could be very different then what you assume. Therefore, it is important to put yourself in your participants’ shoes and decide how you can support them in the best way possible during the challenge. Deciding to participate in the challenge is one thing, but make sure to provide all support needed to keep your participants engaged during the challenge and afterwards!

Choosing the right vocabulary (for example, in some contexts and cultures it could be wise to choose to talk about plant-based meals instead of vegan meals), providing the right amount of information (enough but not too much), and selecting the right recipes are just a few factors that make your campaign aligned with participants‘ needs.

Be attentive that the content and recipes you use are comprehensible and accessible for your target group. Think about the daily budget participants generally spend on food, the time they have to prepare meals, etc.

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We highly advise to use scientifically based research when data or claims are used. Health-related information can be difficult to translate into simple terms while also ensuring the information remains correct, so seek help from experts like dieticians or physicians to answer health-related questions and provide you with relevant studies.

Consider yourself as the expert in your country in terms of what might work and what not, but be careful in making assumptions in what non-vegans need. Every individual is different, and what has worked for some might not work for others.

These essential questions will help you define a communication plan.

Essential Questions

» What communication channels can you make use of?

» What communication channels is your target audience already familiar with?

» What is your communication budget?

How to get your message out there

A detailed communication plan will support the success of the campaign. It will help you to structure, coordinate and oversee all types of communication needed during the project. This communication plan, set in accordance to the needs of your target audience, is essential to define the different channels to use, the partners involved, the deadlines, and the content of each message. It will be also useful regarding the tasks division of everyone involved. Plus, a communication plan will help you to ask the right questions in the right moment, to connect all stakeholders, and structure your work in accordance to the goals. Overall, it is a timesaver. The communication plan can be adapted, if necessary, along the process.

Depending on your target audience, it is essential to define what the most important communication channels are. Using social media like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Instagram are a cost efficient way to reach a lot of people. The use of advertisements through these media to target specific people will help to accomplish the aimed number of registrations.

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Working with influencers is another way to multiply the reach of the campaign. Choosing trustworthy advocates who are supporting the values of your organisation is crucial. They can also be briefed and be provided with the content they will need in interviews or on their social media channels.

Depending on your audience, an alternative to social media might be needed, such as traditional media like newspapers, local news stations, radios, etc. It can be as simple as writing a press release or contacting your local/regional journalist about the campaign. Ask them to report on it and provide them with information they need. If you have some interesting new data which can be linked to the campaign, or just the fact that x thousand people already registered is often newsworthy enough to get it in the media.

Be prepared for interviews! Make sure someone in your team is a trained spokesperson for the campaign when journalists want an interview. This person will need to be available before and during the campaign. They will need to know all the details about the campaign and have general knowledge about veganism.

Developing a communication plan is the topic of the third webinar of the Challenge Intervention Accelerator and will be discussed in more detail at that time.

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These essential questions will help to ensure a high engagement.

Essential Questions

» How can the participants stay motivated during the entire campaign?

» What do they need to stay involved during the campaign?

» How can we help them to continue after the campaign?

E) MAINTAINING HIGH ENGAGEMENTAchieving the number of aimed registrations is great! But keeping participants motivated throughout the entire challenge is the main goal. And getting to a long-lasting diet change is even better.

Vegetarians and vegans can feel lonely and socially isolated because of their diet. The same goes for people who participate in a challenge, they often don’t identify (yet) with vegetarians or vegans, and at the same time don‘t feel understood by their peers or family.

Providing a safe and positive environment where they can meet other like-minded individuals is crucial to keep them involved. A safe environment might be through meetups, online open question hours, a Slack channel, a Facebook group, etc. Train people to moderate those community channels to answer to participants’ questions and ensure a safe, friendly, and welcoming environment. They should understand that a positive and encouraging approach might have the best results. Participants are very likely to face barriers or cravings during this time, it is therefore important to keep a supportive approach and that if they experience small eating deviations during the challenge, they should feel welcomed to pick up again at any moment.

When the challenge has finished, keep your participants close. In the best case scenario, they feel encouraged to continue the new diet after the challenge. However, there is a high risk that participants fall back into previous eating behaviours. Think of ways to stay in touch and keep them motivated, for instance, invite them to subscribe to your newsletter, invite them to become a member or follower of your organisation, invite them to your activities, allow them to remain in the Facebook group or meetup group, etc.

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These essential questions can be answered during the evaluation.

Essential Questions

» Do you have the contact information of the participants?

» How was the campaign perceived by the participants?

» What is the impact of the campaign?

» What did partners think of the campaign and the partnership?

» How was it for the team in terms of workload and motivation?

F) ASSESS, EVALUATE, AND IMPROVEDon’t we all want to know what we achieved with the projects and campaigns we undertake? Did we really succeed? How do we measure success? A general feeling might give you a good indication but is not enough to rely on to strategically develop future campaigns. Good feelings also will not be convincing enough for your (current and future) campaign partners. Assessment and evaluation will bring transparency of your actual achievements and serve as a tool for future fundraising and partnerships.

The participants

Collecting email addresses of your participants is essential to the evaluation process (if you are in the EU, when you collect data, follow GDPR guidelines). To evaluate your campaign, a survey can be distributed to participants before they begin the challenge, immediately after the challenge, and a few months after the challenge. Evaluations and surveys will be discussed in a Challenge Intervention Accelerator webinar and a Nonprofit Managment Accelerator webinar, where an evaluation template will also be provided.

The participant surveys can help you collect important information to evaluate the campaign. And collecting information a few months after the challenge will enable you to learn about the long-term impact of the campaign.

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Your team

However, collecting data on your participants is only one part of your evaluation. Make sure you also evaluate your internal efforts. For example, how did your team feel before, during, and after the campaign? How was the task distribution? Are there certain aspects which could be improved in the following campaign?

Your partners

You can also evaluate the efficiency of your partnerships in the campaign. Whether you worked with companies, other NGOs, or local governments, sit together and learn how they experienced the campaign and your collaboration. Learn from mistakes you made in order to improve future collaborations!

Furthermore, to more information on evaluations, refer to the Nonprofit Management Accelerator.

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G) FINANCIAL PLAN FOR THE FUTUREWhen receiving a grant or a subsidy for a campaign, it is often a one-off situation, and if you want to continue the campaign this will require new funding. Once you have undertaken a successful campaign, it will make it easier to raise interest from corporate companies or even local governments. You can, therefore, consider your first campaign as a means to further your fundraising efforts. Having knowledge about consumers, the means to approach them, and how you encourage them to modify their eating habits, are valuable assets to potential partners; and in the case of local governments or local institutions, it could help them to reach their sustainability goals.

These essential questions will help you define a financial plan for future campaigns.

Essential Questions

» How can you ensure that your partnership will benefit you after the campaign?

» How could you use funds for the second edition of the campaign?

Companies and public institutions can play an important role in providing the funding to further continue the campaign, but it’s also essential to ensure that your organisation benefits from it. In fact, partnering with companies can be particularly tricky as they have different interests then you have as a nonprofit. Make sure to set your boundaries as an organisation and be clear about what each partner can bring to this partnership. Furthermore, keep in mind that asking for a fair price for the work you do is increasing the value of your campaign and labour.

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"Try Vegan" by (EVA and BE Vegan) - Belgium

We met Melanie Jaecques, from EVA (Belgium) to discuss the challenge she undertook with her team.

IV. Case Study

GOAL

"Try Vegan" is an annual vegan challenge campaign run by two Belgian NGOs (EVA and BE Vegan) since 2017. The goal of the campaign is to support people who are already familiar with vegetarian eating to take the next step towards vegan eating. We reached around 5,000 people during each campaign.

Tell us about "Try Vegan" and what was your campaign goal?

DESCRIPTION

Participants who subscribed to the campaign got three newsletters a week with a weekly menu, product information, a list of vegan-friendly restaurants, and some general information about health, environment, or animal welfare. The communication style was positive and supportive. The aim is to encourage participants through positive psychology (focusing on what they gain, rather than miss on).

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The campaign included two different community platforms. First, a Facebook group for participants where they could exchange information, recipes, ask questions and connect with each other. Second, a second Facebook group where participants are added after the campaign, gathering all participants from past editions of "Try Vegan".

To support the participants, volunteers organised activities in several cities in Belgium. For example: potlucks, movie screenings, lectures, vegan drinks, and cooking classes. Furthermore, participants often asked questions related to their health during the campaign and a dietician was available to answer questions by email or during ‘online consulting hours’. Volunteers managed the Facebook group and answered other questions, supporting people or moderated the group.

How did you provide support and community platforms during your campaign?

Social media influencers were contacted and invited to participate in the campaign. We managed to recruit around 30 influencers per campaign. Every influencer received a goodie bag with sponsored products.

New participants were targeted through paid Facebook and Instagram advertisements. A press release was sent out a couple of days before the campaign.

How did you reach your participants?

After the campaign, all participants were sent a questionnaire by email asking details about their eating behaviour before and during the campaign, their intentions after the campaign, quality of the content (recipes, support, etc.) and barriers they perceived. Adequately, other questionnaires were sent six and twelve months after the campaign. A reward was used to incentivise participants to answer to the surveys: the response rates were quite high.

How did you evaluate your campaign?

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FINANCES

To finance staff cost, materials, advertisement, ‘Try Vegan’ partnered with corporate businesses. They could subscribe to three different packages: they could choose a fixed amount and get exposure of their products according to their financial contribution (like using a product in one of our workshops, in a recipe, a social media post, a product in a goodie bag for the influencers, etc.)

What was your financial strategy?

TEAM

The core team consisted of a coordinator, responsible for setting the goals, the strategic plan for the campaign and the budget. A manager was leading the project team and setting task division according to the timeline. The project team consisted of 4 people. One was responsible for communication (website, newsletters, social media, press release, etc.), the volunteer manager was supporting the volunteers organising events during the campaign. Another person was in charge of partnerships (selling packages, following up on the deal), and a culinary expert was supporting the team with everything related to recipes. Other experts like a dietician and communication agency worked as volunteers or freelancers.

Who did your team consist of?

BEST PRACTICES

Which elements of your campaign were the most successful?

1. Launching the campaign with newsworthy data in order to attract the attention of the media. Before the campaign, we undertook consumer research with a professional agency and used key findings for the launch of the Try Vegan campaign.

2. Our quantitative reach. Our sponsors were impressed by the amount of people we reached. This made the campaign interesting economically speaking for them, which made it possible to continue without grants or other subsidies in the next years.

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Our first goal was to launch a coaching program for the broad public. We found out we reached mostly vegetarians and vegans. A minority were flexitarian and we reached almost no omnivores. We tried to reach them anyways through partner organisations, influencers, social media advertisements, with no success. After a thorough evaluation we concluded we had a great campaign for the audience we currently reached which made it worth continuing. Instead of trying further to have omnivores and flexitarians participating, we launched another campaign for them with different content and a different communication strategy.

What challenges did you face and how did you overcome them?

3. The usage of goodie bags and rewards. Our sponsors provided us with goodies which are typically positively welcomed among participants. Plus, in order to encourage people to fill out the evaluation form, we used a prize incentive, which gave us a completion rate of 15-20% of the total participants.