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A new visual identity and foster carer recruitment campaign for Wiltshire Council.

Wiltshire Council

Wiltshire Council came to us with a problem - they were facing a shortage of foster carers.

Some of their existing foster carers were reaching retirement. And they were having to use costly independent fostering agencies - that often place children in homes outside of the borough - to help meet the demand for foster carers.

They asked us to create a new identity for their fostering service and to plan, implement and manage a foster carer recruitment campaign. The objective of the campaign was to recruit 100 foster carers over a three-year period between May 2020 and April 2023 - to minimise the use of more costly independent fostering agencies and keep cared for children and young people within their local communities, as much as possible.

A new visual identity and foster carer recruitment campaign for Wiltshire Council.

Wiltshire Council

Project summary

  • Research and insights
  • Brand positioning
  • Brand identity development
  • Concept development
  • Campaign strategy
  • Messaging development
  • Channel planning
  • Copywriting
  • Graphic design
  • Digital design
  • Animation and motion graphics
  • Website design and build
  • Audience testing
  • Paid search
  • Paid social
  • Campaign stewardship
  • Reporting and optimisation

Approach

We worked with existing foster carers to understand their motivations. From this, we developed an identity for the fostering service and a campaign concept that would speak the right language. We called the campaign ‘everyday matters’ as it was all about the positive impact fostering can have on foster carers, their families and the young people they care for – every day. We used a combination of hand-drawn typography and natural shapes to help make the campaign feel human, authentic and accessible to the audience.

For the foster carer recruitment campaign, we proposed a three-phase strategy that moved the audience through the decision-making process – from awareness to consideration and ultimately action. To activate this strategy, we implemented a paid digital campaign, consisting of Google AdWords and Facebook, driving the audience to a landing page where they could download an information pack. We also used Facebook retargeting to encourage sign-ups to a virtual event hosted by the Council – enabling them to nurture leads further down the recruitment funnel. We created over 50 different assets for this recruitment campaign, including leaflets, posters, exhibition collateral, vehicle graphics, a website, a downloadable information pack, infographics, social content and digital advertising.

As part of our ongoing partnership with Wiltshire Council, we also ran a brand awareness campaign to raise the profile of the Council’s fostering service and to encourage people to consider becoming a foster carer. For this, we used a range of channels, including:

  • TV (Sky AdSmart)
  • Radio
  • Display
  • Search
The 'fostering with wiltshire council' brand identity.
Mock ups of the google display ads we designed.

Impact

From May 2020 - April 2023, our ongoing campaigns have driven over 400 genuine enquiries from potential foster carers across Wiltshire.

Thanks to our ongoing marketing support for Wiltshire Council, many more people have been inspired to begin their fostering journey and provide loving, stable homes to young people across the county.

 

"The campaign creative is exactly what we hoped for and the results of the digital campaign have impressed various stakeholders, including foster carers, social workers, managers, senior managers and elected councillors. Eleven managed to deliver most of our annual recruitment target enquiries in just a few months!"

Kinship and Fostering Team Manager

Wiltshire Council

Some pull up banners we designed for the campaign for in-person events.
A section of the recruitment infographic we designed.