Proposal By:

Drew McManaman
Ixchel Martinez
Collin Morris
Hannah Ryan
Taylor Brandon

Table of Contents
Project Overview . 1
BackGround.. 1
Outline.. 2
Goals
Objective
Audience
Channels/Tactics

Message. 3
Brochure 4-5
Social Media. 6-7
Twitter
Facebook

TimeLine... 8
Evaluation.. 9
Addition Suggestions. 9

Project Overview & Background

Project Overview:
The Scleroderma Foundation (The Greater Chicago Chapter) is a foundation located in the heart
of downtown Chicago. The non-profit organization provides various services to people, family,
and friends that are affected by this horrible disease. In order to increase awareness of the
disease. The Scleroderma Foundation has dedicated a whole month and day (June 29) to
Scleroderma awareness in which they hold many events such as the Stepping Out to Cure
Scleroderma Walk. Stephanie Somers is the only employee of The Greater Chicago Chapter,
therefore she could use an increase in volunteers and an increase in awareness of Scleroderma.

Background Research:
Our first meeting with Stephanie in the classroom was the stepping point for the teams
background research of the Scleroderma Foundation. The foundation formed in 1998 has a focus
on support, education and research. National Scleroderma month is held in June. Most of the
background information was found on their website www.scleroderma.org. Meeting with
Stephanie in her office and looking over pamphlets gave the team insight on how Scleroderma
affects families and those living with the disease. The disease can harden the skin makes daily
activities very difficult.
The Scleroderma foundation in the Chicago area is only possible with Stephanies hard
work and volunteers. The foundation hold a series of races throughout the year and two cooking
fundraisers with celebrity chefs.

Primary Research:
A bulk of the teams primary research included having personal interviews with Stephanie
the executive director of the Chicago area Scleroderma Foundation. This interview provided the
team with information on what the foundation needs and why it is important that they receive our
help. Stephanie needs our team to bring awareness and funding to the Scleroderma Foundation in
the Chicago area. We were given a $500 budget to do so. This interview also gave the team an
opportunity to see Stephanies work place which is very organized.
In addition, to the meeting the team also viewed interviews and testimonials of members
from the foundation. This provides insight on how the program benefits its mentors.

Goals:

Increase awareness of Scleroderma

Awareness month in June

Recognition of the causes, signs, and symptoms of Scleroderma

Increase in volunteers

Help run events

Increase in participants for the annual walk in June

Objectives:

5% participant increase in the Step Out to Cure Walk

10% increase in volunteers for events

10% increase in Scleroderma Foundation memberships

Audience:

Women

Between the age of 25-50

We chose this because of the ratio of women affected by scleroderma is much

greater than that of men. 4:1 ratio

College students

Volunteer

Internship

Chicagoland area

DePaul, UIC, Loyola, etc

Tactics and Strategies

Informational Brochure

Information about the disease and how to be involved

Social Media Plan

Twitter & Facebook

Increase Social Media Presence

Create engaging posts

Content Calendar

Message:

Scleroderma
Get the Facts
Get Checked
Get Involved
In order to increase awareness of Scleroderma as a whole, our team decided to have several calls
to action in the messaging in order to reinforce the equal needs for information, to go to the
doctor, and to get involved through participating in the Chicago Chapter. For example, The Get
Involved could potentially lead towards the walk in June, and Get the Facts could lead to the
national website as well as the Chicago Chapter website. This messaging would be in line with
the positioning of the Chicago Chapter goals of increasing participants in the June walk as well
as the more general goal of increasing public awareness of Scleroderma.
Here are the examples/ mockups of the possible messaging that could be posted on social media
channels for general awareness as well as for the run in June:

Brochure

In addition, we also created a pamphlet to be distributed at local Chicago universities in order to

increase campus involvement in philanthropy efforts. By placing pamphlets in the community
services offices of each school, we are providing volunteer opportunities for students who know
someone who is diagnosed with Scleroderma, along with students who are unaware of the
disease. Weve included the pricings of the pamphlets below from different vendors.

Social Media Plan

Scleroderma Awareness Month is nearing and The Scleroderma Foundation of Greater Chicago
Chapter should have and maintain a presence across social media. A creative, engaging, and
consistent social media channel will keep the audience informed and aware of Scleroderma, the
Scleroderma Foundation, and its events. The following are guidelines for Twitter and Facebook.

Twitter
Profile Image

Scleroderma Foundation Greater Chicago Chapter logo will be used as the Twitter profile image.
Twitter users and followers are more likely to recognize the organization and its brand. The logo
must be square to prevent cut-offs.

Tweet Guidelines
Add Twitter Button to the Main Page of the Scleroderma Foundation of Greater
Chicago website.

Post at least 3x a week to maintain visible to the followers.

Post between 9:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. For better engagement post during lunch

(12:00 p.m. 1:00 p.m.) or commuting times, (5:00p.m. 6:00p.m.).

Keep tweets under 100 characters. This will provide followers with enough

characters to add on to retweets.

Use relevant and trending hashtags. Use #Sclero2015 and other relevant hashtags.

Limit 2 hashtags per tweet.

Links should be shorten through Bitly.com, or any link shortening website.

Include a call to action on important news or events. Adding #Retweet will

encourage followers to do so.

Facebook
Post Guidelines

Post at least 3x a week from Now to April

Post at least 5x a week from May to June. Increasing the amount of posts in May

and June will keep the audience mindful of June, Scleroderma Awareness Month.

Post between 8:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. For better engagement post during morning

commute (7:00 a.m. 9:00 a.m.), lunch (12:00 p.m. 1:00 p.m.), or evening commute
(5:00 p.m. 6:00 p.m.).

Keep characters under 100. Best post is 50 characters or less.

Use relevant and trending hashtags. Use #Sclero2015 and other relevant hashtags.

Limit 2 hashtags per post.

Give a clear call to action. Suggested terms are submit, comment, click, visit and

tell us.

Content Calendar
The following is a content calendar that can be used to create facebook posts and tweets. Also,
take advantage of holidays, seasons, and large special events. Posting about these events will
create engagement from your audience especially if the event are of their interest. Examples of
these events include, Christmas, the First day of Summer, and the Super Bowl.
Monday
Motivational
Monday
Post a quote
thatll get
your
audience over
the Monday
Blues
Ask question
about the
audience.

Tuesday
Informational
posts of
articles or
news.
Tip TuesdayGive a tip
about dealing
with
scleroderma
or how to get
involved

Wednesday
Behind the
Scenes Post
photos of
employees
and support
group
members

Thursday
Testimonials of
support group
members
Throwback
Thursday
Pictures of
Events #tbt

Share videos
about
Scleroderma

Friday
Upcoming
Events
Follow
Friday
suggest pages
to audience to
follow. Use
#ff

Timeline:
Tactic

Start Date

End Date

Social media for Food Fight

and #Sclero2015 month

Monday, March 23

Sunday, April 26

Distribute Brochure

Monday, March 23

Tuesday, June 30

Food Fight For Scleroderma

(Includes live tweeting)

Sunday, April 26

Sunday, April 26

Social Media for Stepping

out to Cure Sclero and
#Sclero2015 month

Monday, June 1

Wednesday, July 1

Stepping Out to Cure

Scleroderma Highland Park,
IL

Sunday, June 28

Sunday, June 28

Evaluation

Monday, July 8

Monday, July 22

Evaluation
To ensure that the campaign is succeeding we will be conducting summative research in the
month of July when the campaign ends. We plan on sending a short evaluation to the
participants of the runs and cooking fundraisers to determine how they heard about the events.
We would also like so determine how many new members joined the Scleroderma Foundation in
the months of March-June.
Additional Suggestions:
We would like to make a few additions to the proposal in case you ever have an increase in
budget and would like a few more ideas. What we would have loved to provide for the
Scleroderma Foundation Chicago Chapter was a video highlighting the effects that Scleroderma
has on someone living in the city. The video would follow a person with Scleroderma, and
feature the struggle that someone with this disease has to go through in order to accomplish
everyday tasks. Some examples would be using the CTA, opening a door, visiting local tourist
sites, or eating a hotdog. The video would be made to raise awareness about the effects of
Scleroderma, and have a call to action to volunteer, donate, or become a member. This would
serve more as a commercial for the organization to be used when Scleroderma Awareness Month
and the events within that time period, such as the Stepping Out to Cure walk, occur. A video
interview with Stephanie Somers, asking why she is so devoted to the cause, and what people
can do to get checked. The video would also be great content on all social media platforms, as
well as other forms of media throughout the city.