Bark For Our Parks | Community Fundraising Campaign
Background
Fields in Trust is the only UK charity protected by Royal Charter that works to safeguard parks and green spaces forever. Since 1925, it has protected almost 3,000 parks, playgrounds, sports fields and green spaces, helping communities enjoy and preserve the places that matter most.
Yet despite a century of success, only a small proportion of the UK's publicly accessible green space is permanently protected. Fields in Trust wanted to build new, sustainable income streams while raising awareness of the vital role parks play in everyday life.
The Challenge
The charity asked us to develop a brand-new mass participation fundraising event that could attract new supporters, generate long-term income and increase public awareness of its mission.
Whether virtual or in person, the event needed to be commercially viable, scalable and closely connected to the charity's purpose.
The Creative Strategy
The best fundraising products grow naturally from the cause.
For Fields in Trust, the answer was already walking through the nation's parks every day.
Bark For Our Parks invited dog owners to walk 50km or 100km throughout May, raising sponsorship to help protect the green spaces their dogs love to explore.
Before developing the campaign, we commissioned independent audience research through YouGov to test demand, understand participant motivations and validate the proposition. The results confirmed a strong appetite for the concept and helped shape the campaign messaging, audience targeting and communications strategy.
From there, we designed the entire fundraising product, including the participant journey, acquisition strategy, media plan and supporter stewardship programme. Every stage of the campaign was planned to ensure it could be successfully delivered by a charity of Fields in Trust's size while creating a strong foundation for future growth.
Creatively, we chose a distinctive illustrated approach rather than photography, giving the campaign an ownable personality and the flexibility to represent every type of dog and owner. A cast of playful illustrated characters became the heart of the campaign, creating a warm, welcoming identity that worked across digital advertising, social media, animation and participant communications.
Impact
Bark For Our Parks gave Fields in Trust a distinctive community fundraising campaign built around a simple, highly relevant idea that supporters could immediately connect with.
The launch campaign generated 447 participants, built an active online supporter community and delivered more than 3 million campaign impressions, providing a strong platform for future growth and establishing a scalable fundraising product with long-term potential.
Services Delivered
Fundraising Product Development
Community Fundraising Strategy
Mass Participation Event Development
Audience Insight & Research
Proposition Development
Campaign Naming
Creative Direction
Campaign Branding
Media Planning
Supporter Stewardship
Social Media Campaign
Integrated Campaign Strategy