THE PROJECT

Books for Kids and Read for the Ride are two wonderful community projects right here in northern Nevada. Former Sparks educator Patti McClelland was inspired by an amazing state-sponsored program in New Zealand that gifts books to children several times annually, and she came back determined to launch something similar. Books for Kids was born – a community project that gives a book to children in specific grades at specific schools. Since its inception in 1994, the project has given away between 65,000 and 70,000 books to local Sparks students through a non-profit organization funded entirely by free-will donations and the proceeds of an annual golf tournament fundraiser. Kyle McClelland, a member of the board, reached out to me for help with a brand new website that would explain both projects and capture registrations and donations.

THE APPROACH

The non-profit has functioned to this point with very little in the way of marketing materials, minus the logos, so we were essentially starting from scratch. I worked with Patti to develop an understanding of the motivation and intent behind her community work, and we roped in an excellent programmer who was also willing to jump into a pro bono project. Between the three of us, we got all of the important ideas and critical elements down.

THE UPSHOT

Our goal was a functional, informative website that would successfully capture donations and registrations, and within about two weeks, we had exactly that.

“I reached out to Jessica because of her expertise in telling the story of her clients. She does a deep dive into the company to truly understand who they are and what their needs are, and then is able to turn that knowledge into an amazing presentation that shows the company’s true colors. Because of that ability, I knew she was the perfect fit. Once we got started, I knew that I had made the right decision. She is extremely active and proactive when it comes to dealing with the content and information. She was very responsive and thoughtful in her actions and dealing with the project. Simple is the word I would use when it comes to working with Jessica. The results of the project are phenomenal and I couldn’t be happier with what we were able to accomplish. Jessica showed professionalism and was able to help deliver a product that will be utilized for years to come. We were on time, on budget and exceeded our expectations.” – Kyle McClelland