JobTrain Case Study

JobTrain

A Job Training Organization Increases Its Revenue

Ongoing fundraising and communications strategies are helping this organization elevate its brand, leverage AI, and raise more money.

Organizational & Brand Strategy
Fundraising Messaging
Capital Campaign Messaging Strategy
Annual Fund & Spring Appeal Campaigns
Fundraising Event Promotion
Annual Impact Reports
Internal & External Newsletters
Videos
Custom AI Solutions
AI Technology Adoption
Strategic Consulting

Fundraising Results

61% increase

in total amount raised v. prior year

2024 YEAR-END CAMPAIGN

400% return on investment

and reclaimed 3 long-lapsed donors

2025 SPRING APPEAL

Fundraising Results

61% increase

in total amount raised v. prior year

2024 YEAR-END CAMPAIGN

400% return on investment

and reclaimed 3 long-lapsed donors

2025 SPRING APPEAL

School Capital Campaign Brochure

Yeshivah of Flatbush

School Capital Campaign

We developed the name, logo, messaging, and brochure for this school’s $50 million capital campaign for new buildings and renovations.

Services

Discovery & Stakeholder Insights
Campaign Theme, Name & Logo
Fundraising Messaging
Case for Support Brochure

Transforming Space to Empower the Future

To address pressing infrastructure needs and prepare the next generation of Jewish leaders, Yeshivah of Flatbush launched a bold campaign to reimagine its elementary and middle school facilities.

Challenge

Yeshivah of Flatbush faced several hurdles: aging buildings, overcrowded facilities, and the need for learning environments that match 21st-century education. The school had recently completed a high school campaign and was asking donors for another major investment during a time when giving was also being directed toward Israel and other urgent causes.

Solution

We framed the case in a positive way: the school is so successful that our enrollment exceeds our capacity. We developed a campaign that emphasized both urgency and aspiration. Rooted in the message “our kids deserve more,” the campaign positioned this capital project as an investment not just in facilities, but in children’s education, community pride, and the future of Jewish leadership.

Building a Case That Resonates

Drawing on the themes of joy, pride, and legacy, the case for support framed the investment in these key dimensions:

Educational Excellence: Environments designed for modern pedagogy, enhanced enrichment programs, and improved student-teacher interaction.
Student Transformation: Emphasizing how the new physical space would be transformational for students in their academic learning, social development, and community pride.
Community Investment: A call to invest in the next generation of leaders and sustain the cohesiveness of Brooklyn’s Jewish community.
Fiscal Responsibility: Highlighting a phased, financially prudent approach to construction and the school’s commitment to tight fiscal management.

Telling the Story, Creating a Tactile Experience

The upscale production of the brochure suggests the quality of the new buildings. An extra-thick cover, gold foil stamping, clear foil, vellum overleaf, and satin-finish paper provide a tactile experience to engage affluent donors.

Other Case for Support Projects

Helping a Homeless Organization Reach New Heights

LifeMoves

Helping a Homelessness Organization Reach New Heights

We helped one of the largest providers of services for the homeless in the country reach unprecedented levels of growth to meet increased needs in Silicon Valley.

Organizational & Brand Strategy
Brand Positioning, Design & Management
Fundraising Campaigns
Fundraising Event Promotion
Corporate Sponsorship Materials
Strategic Messaging & Presentations
CEO Letters & Communications
Annual Reports & Newsletters
Thought Leadership & Client Success Videos
Website Pages & Enhancements
Google Ad Grant Management

A growing homelessness crisis demands effective approaches and funding. LifeMoves tapped into our strategic branding, marketing, and fundraising services to propel the organization to take on this challenge. With a new CEO at the helm, we helped position LifeMoves for success. Over the four years we have worked with this nonprofit, its annual revenue grew from $38 million to $118 million due largely to new government contracts.

Select Results

19% increase

in total amount raised v. prior year

2020 YEAR-END CAMPAIGN

42% increase

in total amount raised v. prior year

2021 YEAR-END CAMPAIGN

43% increase

in average gift amount for lower-level donors

2021 YEAR-END CAMPAIGN

65% increase

in average gift amount for higher-level donors

2021 YEAR-END CAMPAIGN

100% increase

in number of donations by lapsed donors v. prior year

2020 SPRING APPEAL

100% increase

in amount donated by lapsed donors v. prior year

2020 SPRING APPEAL

43% increase

in monthly givers over 2 years

2021 – 2023

475% increase

increase in the amount raised v. prior year

2021 RIDE TO END HOMELESSNESS

73% increase

increase in the amount raised v. prior year

2022 RIDE TO END HOMELESSNESS

The Challenge

LifeMoves first brought on Red Rooster Group to improve its fundraising in March 2020, just as COVID started. The organization needed to keep its 7,000 clients safe and re-trench for the new realities of lockdowns. Since then, the closing of businesses exacerbated the already unprecedented homeless situation due to rising home prices in Silicon Valley. LifeMoves needed to raise money for the short term and develop its brand and fundraising outreach to address growing needs.

Transforming an Organization

Over four years, Red Rooster Group has worked to enhance the organization’s strategic perspective, brand story, fundraising outreach, and marketing communications.

Our brand repositioning work helped reshape perceptions of the organization from a provider of services locally, to a leader that has been recognized by the state with solutions that can be adopted elsewhere. LifeMoves built one of the first modular, interim housing facilities in Northern California (whose opening was attended by the Governor) and won contracts for six more sites, including one of the largest in Northern California.

We have managed fundraising campaigns that have brought back lapsed donors and increased the amounts raised, including their largest campaign ever, and promoted fundraising events that attracted key audiences such as high-level donors and elected officials.

Our strategic advice, research, and communications have elevated the organization as it introduced its strategic plan, attracted new corporate and community partners, and set a strong foundation for success.

By introducing new fundraising ideas and best practices, we have increased the organization’s level of sophistication so that it can continue to improve results.

How We Helped

Strategy

Organizational, Fundraising, Marketing, Branding, & Thought Leadership

Leveraged the CEO as an authoritative voice on the issue to position the organization as a national leader on homelessness.
Developed strategy presentations to convey the needs of homelessness in Silicon Valley and attract funding from corporations.
Supported the organization’s strategic plan by creating a presentation, summary document, webpage, and promoting a series of online events to introduce the strategic plan to high-end donors, government officials, and community partners.

Individual Fundraising

Produce two campaigns per year (spring and year-end), including developing concepts, narrative, and theme, writing and designing direct mail packages and email series, producing videos, creating landing pages and donation pages, social media posts, and handling campaign management. Introduced personalization, custom gift arrays, and efficient mailing techniques.

Major Donor Fundraising

Promote two Principal Giving events annually including all digital strategy, outreach, presentation, journals, and sponsorship packages. Created customized materials and managed customized emailing for 7 Principal Gift Officers.

Fundraising Events

Promote the annual Ride to End Homelessness peer-to-peer fundraising event. Created brand strategy, designed new event logo, developed segmented email strategy and managed all emails, and design other promotion (advertising, banners, etc.). The ride has grown from $40K before us, to $400k in revenue.

Corporate Giving

Support the corporate sponsorship department with a range of strategic and marketing initiatives to shore up corporate support including researching and developing a presentation on homelessness in Silicon Valley and materials to promote sponsorship opportunities for the new interim housing sites and other opportunities.
Created materials to solicit sponsorship naming rights on LifeMoves facilities.

Brand Management

Evolved the organization’s brand to be more authentic — from merely showing happy outcomes to conveying the vulnerabilities of people experiencing homelessness and the complexities of their circumstances.
Balanced their story of interim housing sites with their services, crafting the narrative around their customized, and comprehensive approaches to helping people achieve stability.
Stewarded their brand and updated their colors and overall look to be more dynamic.

Organizational Collateral

Crafted their organizational story and corporate collateral materials.
Designed banners and pop-up displays for community events.
Produce their annual Impact Report.
Write and design their quarterly print and email newsletters.
Write and design the monthly Keygivers email newsletter for monthly supporters.

Website

Set up landing pages in WordPress and donation pages in Classy to support fundraising campaigns.
Create new website sections and pages and update website content as needed.

Videos

Produce videos to tell the organization’s story and elevate its profile. Includes scripting, on-site shooting, and all post-production work.
- Thought Leadership Videos (click and scroll down)
- Client stories
- Services videos
- New Sites
- Other Videos

Communications Planning

Conducted an analysis of all emails sent by the organization over a 2-year period by audience and results, open rate, click rate, etc.
Handle dozens of emails for the organization over the course of the year (developing schedules. writing, designing, testing and approvals, coordination of URLs and lists, documenting, and reporting).

Fundraising & Marketing Continuity

Maintained all outreach, fundraising, website updates, etc. through 2 Executive Directors, a complete turnover of the Marketing Team, and new Chief Philanthropy Officer, and several new VPs of Development, providing stability and continuity throughout the organization’s growth.

What the Client Says

“I had the opportunity to work with Howard and the Red Rooster Group team during organizational change and growth initiatives at LifeMoves, one of the largest providers of homeless services in Silicon Valley. Howard’s talent for blending analytical thinking and creative problem-solving became critical for our transformation. He was a true partner and collaborator in our success.

He and his team are strong in revitalizing brands, launching groundbreaking initiatives, and tackling complex social issues. What truly sets Howard apart is his ability to look beyond immediate challenges. He envisions comprehensive solutions that drive long-term success, blending his expertise in behavioral psychology and fundraising with a genuine passion for creating positive change.

When you work with Howard, you’re not just gaining expertise; you’re partnering with a thought leader who expands your horizons and helps you achieve audacious goals.”

Marie Amoruso Jackson, Chief Marketing Officer

“I’m finally wrapping up my day and wanted to tell you all how great you were today. You totally hit it out of the park (just like my Dodgers last night!). We heard nothing but totally positive comments afterward. Your suggestions on how to engage the team right from the start were spot on. Many, many thanks.”

Katherine Finnigan, Development

“AMAZING….thank you Amit & Erin for making all this happen so quickly after our conversations…

Best“

Marie Jackson, Chief Marketing Officer

“This is such an understatement of what you did, Amit, what with the testing for ALL of these plus sorting out exclusions. Thank you for your amazing work!”

Erin Hayes, Database Specialist

“This is what you’ll call a well-oiled and amazing machine!!! Thank you!”

Camille Gonzalez Kennedy | Vice President of Philanthropy

[re: our customized sending of emails for spring events]

“Brian, not sure who is doing your videos and online appeals, but I want to give a heartfelt congratulations to the folks responsible for this one. The subject heading is what I always tell nonprofits who want coverage or for people to actually read what you’ve done. As a professional in the business for more than 40 years, I don’t give kudos often. This one works.”

Rita

“You all rocked the webinar this morning… huge thanks to all that you did as we went through all the learnings and even our ‘interesting’ glitches on the back end. Your calm and expertise really did shine…

We so appreciate you…”

Marie Jackson, Chief Marketing Officer

Promoting Early Education

LearningLinks Preschool

Integrated Digital & Print Campaign

A comprehensive marketing plan and digital campaign, including testing various offers online and in person for driving enrollment.

Services

Assessment
Messaging Strategy
Facebook Targeting Strategy
Digital Marketing Management
Emails
Social Media
Print Collateral
Website Enhancements
Testimonial Videos
Marketing Videos

Results

139,000

Impressions

2,074

Link Clicks

The Challenge

LearningLinks Preschool needed to grow enrollment in a competitive early education market. At the same time, a parallel challenge emerged: recruiting qualified teachers in a tight labor market. Both audiences — parents considering enrollment and educators considering employment — needed to be reached simultaneously with distinct messages and through different channels.

Communications Assessment & Recommendations

We interviewed staff and mapped every prospective parent touchpoint from awareness through enrollment. The resulting flow chart revealed gaps in follow-up, messaging, urgency, and motivation, allowing us to recommend more effective emails and communications to move families toward action.

Messaging Strategy & Overview Document

We developed an overview document defining the school’s core proposition: what made LearningLinks distinctively valuable to parents. This became the foundation for all subsequent creative work, ensuring consistency across every channel and audience.

Digital Enrollment Ads

To establish the awareness of the school’s value proposition, we created a series of brand positioning ads around the theme of “play-based learning.”

Testimonial Ads

We created a series of ads featuring parents describing what they like most about LearningLinks.

Video

We also created a series of videos featuring parent testimonials that were used as ads and on the website.

Offer Testing

To determine what would motivate enrollment, we designed a systematic offer testing program. We tested multiple incentives, including tuition discounts and fee waivers, across different channels and formats:

Facebook advertising with distinct offer variants
Open house events promoted with channel-specific messaging
Community fairs with in-person offer presentation
Printed flyers distributed to parents
Direct email to the school’s existing list and through partner channels

Testing was conducted with real audiences in real conditions. We measured response rates by offer type, channel, and audience segment — generating learnings about what actually moved prospective parents toward enrollment decisions.

Email

We used email to the school’s list as well as partnership emails with local media for reaching a wider audience.

Website

To improve the school’s online appeal and increase conversions, we redesigned key pages, added videos and testimonials, and updated the website regularly with the new offers and open house events.

Signage

To improve visibility for the pre-school, we recommended and produced low-cost banners facing the various sides of the building.

Teacher Recruitment Ads

As part of the effort, we created a marketing plan to recruit teachers, including recommendations for job postings and online marketing efforts, creating print and video ads, and a new Careers page on the website.

Results

139,000

Impressions

2,074

Link Clicks

Promoting an Educational Support Organization

Hidden Sparks trains teachers to better recognize students’ different learning abilities. They needed a way to break into schools and convey the value of their coaching program, which requires a 5-year commitment. Based on interviews with teachers and administrators, we identified the pain points and created an appropriate strategy for communicating the before and after scenarios, they will experience. We then used that to create a brochure that takes the perspective of a teacher facing a challenging student situation. Readers are engaged through a multiple choice question and die-cut window that tease them to discover how this professional development program can help in that instance. The brochure has been a very successful sales tool in opening doors for the organization.

JCC Capital Campaign Brochure

Sid Jacobson Jewish Community Center

Capital Campaign Uses Stories of Intersecting Lives

To raise money for renovation and expansion at this Jewish Community Center, we used a storytelling approach. We developed the theme of Intersecting Lives to show how the JCC brings together different people from the community.

Services

Campaign Theme & Identity
Campaign Logo & Digital Assets
Core Fundraising Messaging
Campaign Brochure

Challenge

We had to communicate the value of needed upgrades to the existing building as well as a new facility that would serve as a community food hub for those in need.

Solution

Our solution was to use stories to show how integral this JCC was to different populations within the community.

The brochure describes the specific improvements to the building as well as new additions planned, framed around supporting the Jewish community and putting Jewish values into action.

The hand-drawn style of the people and textured stock lend a personal touch, while a pocket contains inserts describing the various giving opportunities for donors.

We designed the brochure around three stories, each featuring three different people who connect at the JCC. The stories are told in panels that show two people but open up to reveal all three.

A spread features quotes about how people will benefit from the capital improvements.

See more examples of capital campaign brochures and learn more about our capital campaign services on our site: CapitalCampaignKit.com

New Brand Unifies Temple

Temple Sinai, the largest Reform congregation on Long Island, needed to update its brand. In a discovery phase, we explored the perceptions and strengths of this thriving congregation, including its rich diversity of offerings. To appeal to both members and potential members, we developed the theme of, “Where every heart has a home,” a new logo made out of Hebrew letters, and a visual identity system that creates a unique look for the temple while unifying all of its divisions.

Old Brands

Old Materials

Old Messages

Capital Campaign for U.S. Navy Seabee Museum

U.S Navy Seabees

Capital Campaign for U.S. Navy Seabee Museum

$10 Million Campaign

To preserve the legacy of the U.S. Navy’s construction battalions, the CEC/Seabee Historical Foundation conducted a $10 million capital campaign to fund state-of-the-art exhibits at the U.S. Navy Seabee Museum in Port Hueneme, CA.

Services

Competitive Analysis & Campaign Strategy
Campaign Theme
Core Fundraising Messaging
Campaign Identity & Logo System
Digital Assets & Style Guide
Campaign Website
Campaign Brochure

The Challenge

A Campaign That Had Stalled — and a Donor Base That Had Shrunk

The CEC/Seabee Historical Foundation had an ambitious goal: raise $10 million to fund state-of-the-art exhibits at the U.S. Navy Seabee Museum in Port Hueneme, CA. But the campaign needed more than a refresh. It needed to expand beyond its existing donor base of military veterans and their families to reach the construction and engineering industries, STEM educators and students, and the broader public. Without a compelling story that could speak to all of them, the campaign would keep fishing in the same small pond.

The Insight

What Makes the Seabees Different From Every Other Military Branch

We started with a competitive analysis of military and institutional capital campaigns. The question was simple: what makes the Seabees a cause worth supporting that no other campaign can claim?

The answer was in the stories.

On Iwo Jima, Seabees solved the problem of a hidden enemy patrol by pumping 500,000 gallons of water into their cave.

A Seabee got his engine running again by building a working condenser from tinfoil stripped off cigarette packs, waxed paper from a fruitcake box, and a discarded beer can.

In the field, Seabees converted 55-gallon drums into sewer pipes, roofing material, canoes, bathtubs, and solar-heated showers.

No other branch had stories like these. The Seabees didn’t just fight — they invented, improvised, and engineered their way through every obstacle.

Messaging Strategy

The Insight That Unlocked the Campaign

That pattern of solving impossible problems with whatever was at hand became our strategic foundation. It wasn’t just military valor. It was the same creative problem-solving that drives modern engineering, powers the construction industry, and defines what we want STEM education to produce.

Ingenuity was the thread that could connect a Seabee veteran to a construction executive, a museum donor to a high school student considering a career in the trades. It gave the campaign a story bigger than its history — and an audience far larger than its traditional base.

Campaign Theme & Identity: 75 Years of Ingenuity at Work

The theme we developed — 75 Years of Ingenuity at Work — anchors the campaign in the Seabees’ diamond anniversary while making their legacy relevant to audiences who may never have heard of them. The campaign logo and visual identity system were built around that idea: flexible enough to work across print, digital, and event materials, consistent enough to build recognition across a long campaign. We delivered a complete style guide with all assets so the Foundation’s team could execute independently across every fundraising touchpoint.

A Website That Pulls Donors Into the Story

The campaign website was designed to do more than present information — it invites visitors to explore the Seabees’ ingenuity before ever asking them to give. Prospective donors learn who the Seabees were, what the museum represents, and specifically how their contribution will transform the visitor experience. The site gives every audience segment — veterans, industry leaders, educators, and first-time visitors — a reason to care.

A Brochure Built on Action Design Principles

The campaign brochure was crafted using Action Design — a framework for moving readers from awareness to commitment. Rather than leading with need, it leads with identity: the pride military families feel in service, the relevance of Seabee skills to today’s workforce, and the power of the museum to inspire the next generation of engineers and builders. It makes the case that preserving the Seabees’ story isn’t nostalgia — it’s an investment in the future of American innovation.

A Legacy Preserved. A New Generation of Supporters Engaged.

The 75 Years of Ingenuity at Work campaign gave the Foundation the tools to tell a story that had never been told quite this way — and to tell it to audiences who had never heard it. By anchoring the campaign in the Seabees’ defining trait rather than their military history alone, we helped the Foundation move beyond its traditional donor base and make the case for a museum that belongs not just to veterans but to anyone who believes in American ingenuity, skilled labor, and the people who build things that matter.

To give the campaign lasting momentum, we built a communications strategy around the voices of core donors — Seabee veterans and their families, alongside business and industry leaders who connected with the mission. Their stories became the campaign’s most powerful fundraising tool, demonstrating the breadth of the Seabee legacy and the range of people it inspired.

The campaign website anchored the ongoing storytelling with a blog that kept the campaign alive between solicitations, featuring new Seabee stories, donor spotlights, and updates on the museum’s progress. It gave supporters a reason to stay engaged, share the campaign with their networks, and see themselves as part of something larger than a single gift.

New Message & Brochure Positions Disabilities Organization for Success

Positioning a Disability Organization for Success

Heaven’s Hands Community Services had grown to encompass a full spectrum of services for the developmentally disabled. It needed to tell its story better in order to reach more families and attract new funding. Red Rooster Group developed a brand strategy and message that highlighted the agency’s uniqueness. We developed a new website, created a suite of brochures, and trained staff to connect with their audience on a deeper level. The result was a shift in the way the agency markets itself and a new standard for marketing services for people with disabilities.

Visit Heaven’s Hands website.

“When I hired Red Rooster Group, I thought we would have a meeting and talk about our mission, vision, and what we wanted, and then a month and a half later, we’d get the product. Instead, you drilled down, asking questions to learn more about all aspects of our services. The process has been time-consuming, but now I understand why. It has resulted in brochures and a website that I’m very proud of — it is really, really good stuff!”

— Lorenzo Brown, Executive Director

New Name, Logo & Brochure Launches New Venture

Client: Annie E. Casey Foundation

To help child welfare agencies implement best practices for youth aging out of the child welfare system, the Annie E. Casey Foundation started a project to help organizations learn from their peers.

Red Rooster Group helped to launch the initiative with research to identity insights for its success, messaging to describe this new model, naming the venture Provider Exchange, and creating the visual identity and marketing materials to appeal to audiences.

After a successful first year, the program is now serving a new cohort of organizations, including member agencies of Lutheran Services in America.

“Our partnership with the Provider Exchange® provides technical assistance on models of care and strategies that truly make a difference in the lives of older youth. We are excited about the learnings that will come from this group and the opportunity to share these findings more broadly with our members and the Harvard Kennedy School.”

— Charlotte Haberaecker, President, Lutheran Services in America

Elegant Brochure Helps Contractor Appeal to Architects

Client: Monmouth Custom Builders

Over the past 7 years, Red Rooster Group has been the marketing partner for this high end residential contractor, developing their brand, marketing, and website that helped the company grow from $7 million to more than $20 million in sales through recession years. So when it came time to reach widen their scope, they turned to Red Rooster Group to determine how they could target architects and designers.

Our interviews with 20 architects and interior designers revealed that they were most concerned about having their designs executed properly and maintaining a good relationship with the homeowner during the construction process.

We developed theme of “Partners in Perfection” and used the brochure to describe all the ways in which Monmouth Custom Builders helps make architects look good to the homeowner through sound practices that deliver a great experience. The brochure’s engraved cover and die cut hole which lines up perfectly to reveal the logo demonstrates the firm’s attention to detail.

Brochure for Architect Showcases Interplay of Light & Space

Client: D.A. Hall Architect

This fold-out brochure for an architect printed on transparent vellum conveys the architect’s values around space, light and sustainability. The brochure holds a series of cards that serve as an adaptable mini-portfolio.