The Challenge: Clarifying a Nonprofit Brand to Grow Giving

The foundation needed a clearer identity and a sharper way to reach donors. Trillion was asked to clarify its purpose with a new name, refocused messaging, and a new brand identity, then build a segmented marketing strategy to raise awareness and engage new supporters.

The organization came to Trillion for a name change and a clearer identity, emerging as the UCU Foundation. Its donor outreach was rebuilt around targeted, personalized communications, from direct mail to segmented email, focused on student impact and success stories.

The Solution: A Rebrand and a Segmented Donor Strategy

Trillion delivered the new name, messaging, and visual identity, then executed targeted, personalized communications built on student impact and success stories. The work spanned personalized direct mail, new donor communications, segmented email campaigns, added digital components, and social media advertising. When the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, Trillion pivoted the messaging toward humanitarian relief while continuing to show how students were learning and supporting the war effort.

Results

In the first 100 days of war, UCU Foundation raised approximately $2 million for humanitarian relief. The end-of-year appeal yielded a 118% increase in revenue and a 59% increase in average gift size over the prior year, and the foundation went on to its strongest fundraising year ever, raising over $11 million.