Women’s Achievement Network and Development Alliance (WANDA) II

Round
Fall-Winter 2020
Project Type
Fast track
Project Focus
Marketing & Communications
Organization Type
Community or Economic Development,
Women

Organization

WANDA empowers low-income single mothers with knowledge, skills and financial assets to develop and achieve economic self-sufficiency. Founded in 2007 by three women who combined their individual philanthropic and volunteer efforts to assist single mothers in achieving self-sufficiency, the organization now accepts 35 women per year into a three-year program focused on the three E’s of Education, Equity, and Empowerment. In addition to a comprehensive curriculum and networking opportunities, WANDA provides a 2:1 savings match (up to $4000 if a participant saves $2000). Participants apply the savings and corresponding match toward a home purchase, retirement savings, or college education for themselves or their children. WANDA’s results show clients increase their annual salaries by up to $14,000, improve their credit scores by nearly 100 points, and save more than the $2000 matching grant cap.

Situation

As WANDA continues to grow and evolve, it recognizes that its marketing and communications need to evolve as well. WANDA seeks to refine, focus and expand storytelling that reflects the organization’s impact and potential in changing the economic circumstances of low-income single mothers who now need the program more than ever. In so doing WANDA hopes to leverage new investments from funders and partners.  

Project Objectives

WANDA seeks a phase II consultancy with ACT to build upon the recommendations through the last engagement, which demonstrated the need for WANDA to refine and focus its storytelling. The marketing message needs to reflect its impact and potential in changing the economic circumstances of low-income, single mothers who need its program now more than ever. The crisp, concrete messaging of what benefits WANDA’s programming delivers will have the goal of obtaining new investments from funders and partners. The project team will also provide high-level guidance on marketing communication channels to reach prospective funders and partners. (The team, and client, might benefit from ACT’s newly developed Digital Marketing Guides.)

Project Overview

The project consisted of 

  • Information gathering and brainstorming with key WANDA staff and board members
  • Interviews with key organization stakeholders including clients, partners, donors and foundations
  • A brand framework, audience-specific messaging recommendations and general communications best practices. 

Key Recommendations

The ACT team provided:

  • A proposed brand framework
  • Specific messaging approaches for individual donors, partners and foundations
  • General communications best practices