Somerset Hills YMCA Magazine Ads

[ about ]

Somerset Hills YMCA—located in Basking Ridge, NJ—sought to support membership objectives and drive programming awareness, interest, and action among higher-income residents living within its service area. Audience-targeted print ads in publications delivered to local households were an appropriate traditional print tactic to complement concurrent localized digital marketing and social media content.

APPROACH & OUTCOME

Print advertising was incorporated in Somerset Hills City Lifestyle Magazine, a local monthly publication whose distribution reached 135,000+ households with a home value of $500K+ in the New Jersey towns of Basking Ridge, Bernardsville, Bedminster, and Far Hills—the majority of the zip codes serviced by the Somerset Hills YMCA branch. Ad content was tailored specifically for this publication’s readership and complemented concurrent seasonal multi-channel campaigns.

Content was designed to competitively differentiate and effectively promote membership, programs, and philanthropic impact among target audiences. Images featuring Somerset Hills YMCA members and instructors were intentionally selected to enhance affinity for the Y and spur word-of-mouth benefits of seeing local individuals in media. Creative execution was done in full alignment with YMCA national brand standards.

This traditional print tactic was executed as part of the broader association-wide integrated marketing communications plan, including campaigns comprised of digital marketing, print advertising, email promotion, organic and paid social media marketing, newsletter content, out-of-home (OOH) and outdoor display ads, targeted direct mail, text messaging, location signage, as well as owned and earned media placements. Successful implementation of the plan contributed to a 10.48% increase in Greater Somerset County YMCA’s annual membership and programming revenue to $23.6 million.

This project is an example of the player-coach role I pivoted into while at Greater Somerset County YMCA as the organization recovered from impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, including significantly reduced staffing levels in areas like marketing, finance, and HR.

MY ROLE

Graphic Design, Print Production & Vendor Management

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & TOOLS

• Strategy: Audience Segmentation | Brand Differentiation | Brand Messaging | Brand Stewardship | Campaign Management | Customer-Centric Mindset | Nonprofit Marketing | Strategic Marketing & Planning
• Creative & Production: Budget Management | Content Creation | Creative Development | Graphic Design | Layout & Composition | Print Advertising | Print Production | Vendor Management
• Tools: Adobe Acrobat Pro | Adobe InDesign | Adobe Photoshop