Adopt-A-Pastor Campaign
Foursquare Disaster Relief
“The originality of the Adopt-a-Pastor brand was something we would never have come up with, it cut through the clutter and got our donors’ attention. As a result, the response was off the charts, from email opens to social media engagement. No question, the enormous strides we made during a hard year tie directly to Pillar’s unique messaging.”
SITUATION
The global 2020 lockdowns left thousands of Foursquare Church pastors surviving on meager rations. When Giving Tuesday announced a new, May 20 day of giving, Foursquare Disaster Relief (FDR) hired Pillar Brands to promote the donation event. GOALS: Quickly raise money to address the food insecurity impacting the Foursquare Church’s partners.
ACTION
In contrast to the predominant doom-and-gloom messaging, Pillar humanized food insecurity with an “Adopt a Pastor” campaign, including email, social media, and Adopt-a-Pastor.org. The hopeful messaging centered on the testimonies and gratitude of real-world pastors when they receive food—along with the impact this relief made on pastors and their congregants.
RESULTS
This last-minute campaign raised more than $27,000, fueling an additional 10-month engagement for Pillar to continue highlighting FDR through the upcoming holiday season. Ultimately the campaign brought in more than $620,000 in revenue—a more than 200% year-over-year donation increase—allowing FDR to feed food-insecure pastors and families in 33 countries.
206% increase in donations year-over-year
1,683 first-time donors
23% average email opens / 8.23% average email clicks
12,400 monthly food kits delivered to hungry families
