Emergency Shelter Leverages Media Relations for Opening of New Facility
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Overview: The Emergency Shelter of Northern Kentucky (ESNKY) is a life-saving, life-changing nonprofit organization serving as the only immediate-entrance, low-barrier homeless shelter in Northern Kentucky for adults ages 18 and up. The shelter opened a new facility in February 2022, doubling its capacity to 10,000 square feet and 68 beds. The new building also serves as Northern Kentucky’s first Daytime Navigation & Engagement Center with an on-site healthcare clinic, meeting rooms, guest mail services, self-service laundry, showers, phone charging stations, internet and computer access.
Scooter Media was tasked with using the new facility’s ribbon-cutting ceremony as a platform to gain awareness, understanding and support for the shelter and its services. This was especially important in the face of false and negative stereotypes about individuals experiencing homelessness in the community.
Strategy: Scooter Media created a communications plan and timeline for news announcements leading up to the new facility’s ribbon-cutting ceremony, developed and distributed press materials to generate positive press leading up to said ceremony and leveraged timely news opportunities to showcase the shelter’s mission and progress toward its new building. Scooter Media began media relations by announcing ESNKY’s “Help Us Home” capital campaign and promoting the importance of community support and donations toward building the new facility. The agency also garnered media attention around the shelter’s winter services in order to highlight its mission and purpose and preview the grand opening. Media outreach leading up to the ribbon cutting also included messages about the shelter’s partnership with local community members to provide overflow sheltering during a winter weather emergency and to promote the importance of grants toward funding new and expanded programs and services in its new space.
Evaluation: Scooter Media‘s goal was to secure at least 15 stories in advance of the official ESNKY shelter opening between September 1, 2021-Jan. 31, 2022, as well as 15 stories about the ribbon cutting event itself during February 2022. Scooter Media exceeded its goals, securing 111 earned media placements prior to the shelter’s opening, and 46 earned media placements about the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
