WE ARE THERE.

How will the campaign be structured? 
CCUSA will spend more than $1 million in media ad buys over the next 12 months across two fronts. First, we will place a national buy in which messaging is not targeted geographically but by other demographics, such as Catholics, age, income, etc.   
 Second, we will seek to amplify the national campaign message agency-by-agency through cost-effective means in local markets. For agencies fully participating, this may include additional media buys in their market by CCUSA or the agency. Participating in the campaign does not require a financial investment in media by an agency, however. 

The local media options are: 

• You can choose to allow CCUSA to place digital media in your marketplace, mostly targeting social channels, YouTube, Google, etc. These ads will contain localized campaign messages and will direct back to the campaign landing page.  
• Or, you can add local media dollars and receive a dollar-for-dollar match from CCUSA (ranges to be set based on number of participating agencies).  
• Note, in the open input field on the form, please note if you would like consideration of a hybrid model where CCUSA places some media and your agency places the rest. We’ll review and get back to you. 

NOTE: Most national ad placements will not be able to exclude regions of the U.S./non-participating agency areas, and audiences in those non-participating and partially participating areas will likely experience some of the national messaging. An example would be if we place a national ad in America  magazine. 

How will we use the toolbox if my agency fully participates? 
The following are the requirements of fully participating agencies.  

• Distribute a news release based on a template provided to local media about the campaign launch.  
• Share provided PSA television and radio spots — with your agency logo at the end and your agency name in the radio script — with your local stations.  
• Place a minimum number of provided and customizable assets on your social media channels organically over the course of the campaign.  
• Use provided national reach/campaign talking points in media interviews, where appropriate.  
• Submit campaign-focused stories with your local diocesan newspaper, with a participating agency localization opportunity in each story.  
• Report back periodically on your efforts for best practice sharing with agencies and CCUSA.  

Campaign assets will be delivered via Canva. Some assets will be fixed in position, and others will allow for customization in size, image, logo, color and copy. The essence of the campaign theming is expected to stay intact in any agency customization.

Campaign Schedule

What is the timetable for a decision, and when will the campaign run? 
Here are the next steps related to the campaign:

• COMPLETE: Information Weeks | Weeks of April 15 and April 22: FAQ review and information meetings were held with requesting agencies. If you have additional questions or inputs, please reach out via email to Kristine Livdane (klivdane@catholiccharitiesusa.org; senior director of marketing) and Bill Gangluff (bgangluff@catholiccharitiesusa.org; chief communications and marketing officer).  
• COMPLETE: Decision Weeks | Weeks of May 6 and May 13: In this first week, we sent you a form link for you to tell us if you will participate in the campaign. The deadline to determine whether your agency will participate is Friday, May 17. 
• COMPLETE: Wave 1 | Weeks of June 10 through August 9: Wave 1 of the national and local campaign runs.  
• Hold Time | Weeks of August 12 through September 6: Campaign doesn’t run, and agencies are given the opportunity to join for Wave 2. 
• Decision Weeks | Weeks of August 16 through August 28: Please complete this form link if you did not participate in Wave 1. If you participated Wave 1, we will anticipate you are continuing with Wave 2 in the same fashion. If that is not the case and you want to change your participation preferences (e.g., you don't want to participate in Wave 2, you want to change your media preference, etc.) please use the same form link. The deadline to determine whether your agency will participate is Friday, August 28. 
• Wave 2 | Weeks of September 9 through November 1: Wave 2 of the national and local campaign runs. The local portion of the media will start September 9th.
• Hold Time | Weeks of November 4 through January 3, 2025: Campaign doesn’t run, and agencies are given the opportunity to join for Wave 3. 
• Wave 3 | Weeks of January 6 through February 28, 2025: Wave 3 of the national and local campaign runs.  

Messaging and Target Audience

What is the messaging creative direction? 
A localized message presented from a national lens performed very well in the Campos research. Messaging around “neighbors helping neighbors” in communities across the nation is the focus of the campaign. “We Are There” is a message that delivers in two ways: 1) That Catholic Charities has a broad, hyperlocal geographical reach across the U.S. and its territories in nearly 4,000 locations across 168 agencies; and 2) We “are there” emotionally — caring for our vulnerable neighbors who may be going through the most trying times of their lives.  
 
Campos also noted that basic services and a focus on families with young children, veterans and seniors drew the most compassion. A message of service “regardless of faith” is also central to the campaign based on numerous inputs from agencies about confusion in their markets. Mentions of specific services such as affordable housing or food pantries are reserved for agency-specific descriptions on the landing page to ensure the national messaging can relate to all agencies.  

What is the media target for the campaign? 
Below is the current media target. As noted in the Campos data (see below), we have opportunities to continue to educate Catholics related to the mission and services of Catholic Charities. As “Catholics” as a demographic is often not targetable in general digital channels, we will seek to target based on their common associations, behaviors and interests. Secondarily, we plan to target Catholics and consumers of conservative and conservative-leaning news outlets to counteract narratives related to our work with immigration they may hear through other channels.  

• Audience: Catholics, Conservatives 
• Location: National; regional participating agency targeting for digital ads 
• Age: Adults 25+ 
• Income level: $70K and above 
• Education: Bachelor’s, Master’s, PhD+ 
• Education organizations: Affiliation with/enthusiasm for Catholic universities and colleges e.g. Villanova University, Loyola University, University of Notre Dame, The Catholic University of America, Gonzaga University 
• General interests: Charity and causes, community issues, volunteering, philanthropy 

How did the Campos research enlighten the campaign media target? 
The Campos research identified an awareness opportunity with Catholic respondents. The following data points indicate we have room to educate Catholics about our work and to gain their favorability. The research also indicated a propensity for them to consider giving.    

• 38% of Catholics said regarding Catholic Charities they “know a little” or “never heard of it.” 62% of Catholics said they were “very familiar” or “familiar” with Catholic Charities.  
• 45% of Catholics said they viewed Catholic Charities “not at all,” “not very” or “somewhat” favorably. 55% of Catholics viewed Catholic Charities very favorably.  
• 73% of Catholics said they would consider donating to Catholic Charities. 

Local and National Media Placements

What kinds of media placements should I expect nationally? 
Wave 2 will have many of the same components as Wave 1, with the notable exclusion being Fox News national broadcast ads. Because of the close proximity to election day, media is at a premium and inventory is low. CCUSA will continue to place print and digital media with national Catholic and conservative periodicals using the performance lessons from Wave 1 to decide where to invest for Wave 2. The "call to action" will continue to be to "support your local agency". A PDF of planned placements will be added as the lineup is finalized.

What kinds of media placements should I expect locally? 
Agencies that decide to fully participate have two options related to local media. In the signup process, agencies will be asked if they want to participate in one or neither  of them. An agency can participate in the campaign without placing local media, by meeting the toolbox requirements.  

• Option 1: A fully participating agency can choose to allow CCUSA to fund and place the following digital media in their marketplace based on their counties/ZIP codes:   
• Connected TV: Based on the general PSA creative with your agency logo concluding  (See sample :30 spot, below.) 

Note: Connected TV (CTV) is a device that supports streaming services and connects to TVs for viewership. These devices can be specifically for viewing streamed content, like Apple TVs, Amazon Fire TVs or smart TVs.  

• Social media and YouTube Ads: These digital platforms will be used to target keywords that deliver impressions within our target audience. Ads will be based on the general ad visuals and messaging with your agency name in the ad copy for the placements. Note: For social media buys, these ads would be bought and presented from the Catholic Charities USA account.  (See sample social media carousel ad, below.)  

• Option 2: Participating agencies can choose to invest their own dollars into campaign media for an even greater local impact, and CCUSA will provide a dollar-for-dollar match. The levels at which an agency can invest will be set after the signup deadline based on the number of agencies interested in participating in this media option. Local ads using the match funding would need to match the design and messaging of the national campaign but would carry your agency’s branding and name. Agencies would create their own local media plan, using the campaign materials provided by CCUSA. Local media plans placed by agencies can run outside the wave periods but should plan to end by March 1, 2025, as CCUSA reassesses brand awareness nationally.  

Call to Action

What is the call to action for the campaign? 
All calls to action from the national and local placements will direct to the campaign landing page. Based on geofencing (where a visitor's IP address dictates what the visitor will see), they will encounter a combination of agency content and network content based on an agency’s participation choices. 

Please note that geofencing is not an absolute guarantee that your constituents will see your agency block when they visit the landing page. Some visitors may have the IP address hidden for their phone, desktop or laptop and in those cases, they may get an alternate agency served to them based on a VPN address or recent GPS tracking. A prompt to search for your local agency by ZIP code will easily assist the user in overriding an incorrect IP match.

Do I have to participate in all three waves?  
No, although full participation is highly advised. If you change your participation status (full, partial, none) before a a wave, how you appear on the landing page and what is expected of your agency will shift accordingly.  

I already have a positioning line and campaign efforts going on in my agency. Will this affect those?  
The “We Are There” theme for the campaign is not meant to replace any agency’s positioning line, including CCUSA’s. Its shelf life is only for one year at this point. We have found that “We Are There” works nicely with existing positioning lines if you desire to join them for the campaign period. For example, in CCUSA’s case, this would look like: “We Are There. Working to Reduce Poverty in America.” In the case of one positioning line used by many agencies, this would look like: “We Are There. Providing Help. Creating Hope.” To recap, we see “We Are There” as a pilot message influenced by the Campos research message testing. We won’t determine its lifespan until the end of the effort in 2025.  

Your inclusion of “We Are There” or other messages from the campaign into your direct mail efforts, existing campaigns or other fundraising initiatives is up to you. This incorporation is not a requirement of participation, nor is it anticipated that you would do so.  

What do we do when markets overlap? 
We recognize this is a legitimate concern and look forward to discussions with markets impacted by shared counties or ZIP codes. As the local media footprint is optional, digital and highly targetable, we hope these issues can be overcome readily, such as when one agency decides to participate, and another does not. If two adjoining agencies choose to participate and raise concerns about media placement overlap, we will work closely with marketing representatives from affected agencies to come to an acceptable framework based on historical solutions by those agencies.

Will this campaign cause brand confusion? 
We recognize that each local market already has considerable “competition for support,” including the diocese, Catholic schools and other local Catholic organizations, as well as other prominent social services nonprofits specific to your marketplace. This campaign provides a media strategy that is unique compared to any local Catholic media strategy and more consistent to what one might see from national nonprofit brands — e.g., Red Cross, Salvation Army or Feeding America — educating and engaging your same local audience but through a national media footprint. As John F. Kennedy was fond of saying, “A rising tide lifts all boats.”   
 
At the same time, we will use every opportunity to associate your local agency in name and/or logo to the effort. Your agency name, a local photo, a services description and a link to your website will appear on the campaign landing page when a visitor from your area acts on an ad. The landing page will also include a description that educates viewers about the 168 Catholic Charities agencies across the U.S. and its territories, the role of the diocese and bishop and the role of CCUSA as a member agency.   

To exclude yourself, Option 1, "No Participation", allows you to opt-out of the campaign and not appear on the landing page. 
 
Additionally, any localized media chosen by you as a participating agency will include your agency name and/or logo in the ads placed in your market.