Family Giving Tree by ZURB

Persistence Pays Off

Family Giving Tree was our winning nonprofit organization in 2012. The Elves at Family Giving Tree had applied several times in the past and weren't chosen. But that didn't stop them from applying again and again.

In 2012, their persistence paid off and we selected them to be part of our fifth ZURBwired. Our selecting them couldn't have come at a better time for the organization as 2012 was the year they celebrated helping a million children.

Since 1990, Family Giving Tree has ensured that the holiday wishes of children in low-income neighborhoods go fulfilled. They also provide backpacks stuffed with school supplies in many Bay Area communities. Over the years, they’ve helped one million children and they wanted to celebrate that achievement with a marketing campaign. In 24 hours, we not only crafted a marketing message for their campaign, but we created posters, invitations to their celebration, Thank You cards and t-shirt. We also redesigned their website and rewrote the copy to better reflect their story.

Planting the Seeds

Despite this being our fifth ZURBwired, each event has its own set of unique challenges. This year was no different. Our print deadlines were very tight so that we could get all the materials back by the next morning. We had to have the brochures, invites and Thank You cards all in by 4 PM while we had to have the posters and stickers in by 5 PM. So we hit the ground running on the print materials, quickly brainstorming ideas among the various teams. What was amazing was that the content writing team and the visual design team both latched onto similar ideas independent of one another. In other words, we were both on the same page from the very start despite brainstorming in different areas of ZURB HQ.

Despite the tight print deadline, the web design team didn’t waste anytime, doing an audit of the old site and sketching out the lo-fi wireframes for the new site. Using Foundation 3, the team was able to whip up the scaffolding on the site, which got us quickly to doing the visual designs once we met our print deadline.

The Big Wins

1. Responsive website with Foundation 3

Foundation 3 made it easy for us to move quickly from sketches to prototype. Having a prototype also made it easier for both the visual design team and the content writing team to envision where they needed to focus their efforts. By 7:45 AM on Friday, we had the entire site up and running, beating the previous year’s record by 13 minutes.

2. Brochures, Posters, Cards and Stickers … Oh, My!

With both the visual design team and the content writing team working in tandem, we were able to craft new brochures that Family Giving Tree can use for years to come. We also were able to create posters, invitations and Thank You cards to help the Elves celebrate their accomplishment of helping a million children. We were able to do all that and still meet our tight print deadlines!

3. Stylish New T-Shirts

Not only were we able to create new print materials, but we had enough time to whip up not one, but two new t-shirts for the Elves to wear while sorting through all the holiday gifts they collect.

4. Brand-new Newsletter

We were able to update Family Giving Tree’s newsletter, pulling elements from all the other branding aspects. We focused on the logo and the purple motif so that there was a consistent look across the board. Other elements were also pulled into the newsletter more in line with the new website.

View the FGT Extranet Project Page