The National Comedy Center was still in its infancy, with construction on its second rescheduled completion date and new features being pitched all the time. The line between its identity and that of its sister institution, The Lucille Ball Comedy Museum, was still blurred. The problem was emphasized by the annual Lucille Ball Comedy Festival because it’s an event meant to publicize both entities and also bring in revenue for them. The biggest obstacle to its impending success, though, was the lack of community buy-in. This was especially important due to the need for the community to attend events and become regular patrons of the Center when it is finished. The need was to build patronage.
Promoting the recent acquisition of the Carlin archives, the unveiling of the Lucille Ball statue, and the upcoming events and headliners of the Lucille Ball Comedy Festival were large parts of building regional pride in the Jamestown area. Social promotions were also important to reach this goal.
Press
The New York Times New York Upstate Niagara Gazette WBFO WRFA Jamestown
Strategic efforts to reach local audiences included sending representatives to regional comedy events, print media placement and disbursement, and promotional events and offers available only to locals.
There was also a grant that required buy-in confirmation from a certain number of local businesses, an affair handled personally by me. This involved conversations and interviews, plus paperwork and confirmation letters that I also created.
Trust for Life of Kentucky had hit a plateau. They were getting very few sign-ups for organ donation as well as financial donations. Given their line of work, they were not equipped to create media materials to gain the attention of consumers, nor did they know how to reel them in, so to speak.
Research showed that the community was uninformed about organ donation, and that a majority of them also believed false information about the process. They also felt very far removed from the situation unless they had been directly impacted by organ donation.
The plan was to enact a campaign called Generations of Hope, meant to bring organ donation “Down Home”.
To combat misinformation, a local event was organized for the immediate community, a spaghetti dinner at the most sophisticated building in town. We hired a local band, wrangled a celebrity spokesperson (Muse Watson), and enlisted local gatekeepers (a priest, lawyer, and doctor) to dispense truths about organ donation to guests. To bring locals closer to the situation, the guests’ dining area was decorated with photos of those who had benefited from organ donation within the community, and some of those people were invited to speak and implore guests to “just check yes” at the DMV.
The organization is regional, meaning community relations would only go so far. To get the message to a broader audience, a PSA was created and distributed to regional news stations, radio stations, and television providers. The PSA featured real people, not actors, portraying a scene between a young girl and her grandfather talking about organ donation.
Press about the campaign was targeted and concentrated in Central and Eastern Kentucky.