Doorways has worked for more than 30 years to give hope to people living with HIV. Even though the disease is no longer an automatic death sentence, those living with it still struggle. We helped Doorways tell the real story of HIV in St. Louis and raise funds to keep people safe and alive.
Objective
While a capital campaign is an opportunity for stakeholders to relate to an organization in a new way, it can also be a moment to remember why your work is critical. When Doorways began raising dollars for a new building which would combine medically-supported residences with programming and educational opportunities, they felt an additional responsibility to let donors and supporters know that HIV is still a real issue and is striking hardest at the most vulnerable.
Strategy
The faces of HIV are familiar: real people, raising families, working, going to school. Showing those faces and telling those stories provided a narrative to the data on which Doorways built its case: 76% of people living with HIV are poor; homeless people with HIV are 10X more likely to die from HIV-related causes. We're forever grateful to the courageous people who agreed to tell their stories and show the world their strength through this campaign.
Beyond Tonight
Through a discovery process that brought us face to face with donors, supporters, and clients, we uncovered unique attributes of Doorways’ work and campaign. Even though the most pressing need was emergency housing, we recommended a campaign theme and name that hinted at the depth and breadth of the transformational work Doorways does. They meet you where you are tonight, and help you get past this moment to a better life.
Helping donors FEEL the need
The look and feel of the campaign brand combined the grittiness of the work and the places homeless people find themselves with a limited color palette of black, white, gray and red to convey the urgency of the situation. The brochure cover, kraft paper, was chosen for its likeness to cardboard, a material that many homeless people use to protect themselves from the elements. The laser cut campaign title on the cover hints at what’s inside and brings the reality of life on the streets into focus for potential donors.
““Everyone is wowed! Thank you so much for your partnership and vision. I think all of our brainstorming and editing made for a wonderful end product.”
Opal Jones, President & CEO, Doorways
The real faces of HIV today
As with many chronic diseases, HIV strikes hardest at the most vulnerable: people living in poverty, especially African-American men and women who do not have consistent housing. A key shift in Doorways’ work has been, in the words of CEO Opal Jones, “from support for the dying to building lives for the living”. It was important to show the people who are LIVING with HIV and the difference Doorways’ work has made for them.
