Upon realizing that their organization’s existing name — the Washington County Youth Service Bureau – no longer encapsulated the full scope of their work, the non-profit contacted KSV to help facilitate a name change and rebrand. In 2021, the Bureau officially became known as Elevate Youth Services. A passionate organization committed to caring for Vermont’s vulnerable adolescent population, Elevate’s rebrand sought to reflect their endeavor to provide their crucial services throughout all of Vermont, border to border.
Elevate’s work and community impact struck a chord with the KSV team: As a Certified B Corp, KSV is committed to leveraging the talents of our team to empower organizations doing purpose-driven work at every level, whether that is on a regional scale or right in our own backyards. We believe that our creative and strategic work is only as good as the impact it has in our community. Our social and design team worked with Elevate Youth Services to not only enhance their presence across Vermont through a brand redesign, but also equip the organization with the tools they needed to share their own story and impact through strategic messaging tactics and bespoke social media templates.
Identifying the Opportunity to Support
Through in-depth conversations with community partners and youth served by the organization, alongside collaborative working sessions with Elevate’s team, we were able to revise and refine the organization’s messaging strategy to more accurately reflect their purpose and impact. An updated color palette and new typography choices helped to enhance the refreshed messaging style and breathe a new life into Elevate’s brand.
Equipped with this refreshed visual identity and messaging strategy, Elevate Youth Services was primely positioned to bring their reinvigorated voice into the market.
One sticking point remained in effect: a very talented but small and busy team. Many members of Elevate’s staff wear more than one hat, lend a helping hand across job titles, and generally have limited time in their daily schedule. Following our initial partnership in 2021, KSV was hired again to develop a marketing strategy that could be supported by Elevate’s limited in-house resources and capabilities. In reviewing the channels available for them, maximizing the impact of their social media presence was a clear priority.
The Strategy Behind the Content
To expand their reach and hone in on their audience targets, we developed high-level messaging and strategy recommendations for their regularly used owned social media channels: Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. The recommendations offered guidance on maximizing the effectiveness of these platforms they used most. Sample post themes were provided to bolster the communications strategy and offer varied content ideas that would be sure to resonate with Elevate’s target audiences.
We also created a comprehensive social media toolkit that worked in tandem with the messaging strategy. This provided their team with platform best practices and sample post copy for their three main channels. The social media toolkit outlined individual channel overviews with specific guidelines for community engagement and details regarding content type and post frequency, along with ideas to leverage trends and boost content. With options for infeed posts and Stories across each platform, Elevate was outfitted with an arsenal of materials to drive further awareness of their commitment to the Vermont community.
Visual Refreshment to Propel Growth
Pivoting to their visual identity, we refreshed the look and feel of Elevate’s social content with engaging and fun design elements that spoke to the professional yet youth-centric purpose of their organization. Elliot Schneider, Associate Design Director, developed the enhanced visuals and crafted a system for implementation that allowed Elevate’s team to generate materials quickly and efficiently. Speaking to this process, Elliot noted:
We created a suite of easy-to-use, editable Canva templates that made staying on-brand feel seamless, not stressful. It’s a great example of design meeting mission — and making life easier in the process. The templates gave them flexibility to add variety across platforms, while keeping content fresh, consistent, and true to their voice.
Uplifting the Community
This campaign was all about supporting our statewide community by propelling a cornerstone organization forward with the strategies and tools needed to expand the reach of their services to Vermont’s next generation.
Our collaborative partnership with Elevate Youth Services allowed our team the opportunity to dive into one of the key focuses of our mission: community-centered work. As part of our commitment to being a Certified B Corp, KSV is passionate about helping our neighbors and partners thrive. We believe our work should impact the communities around us — whether large or small and global or local — for good.
See the full case study and visit our other case studies to view more purpose-driven work and discover how impactful community-focused initiatives, coupled with creative solutions, come together to drive meaningful change.