University of California, Irvine - Shaping the Future

THE CHALLENGE

The Challenge – Transforming a Fundraising Goal into a Winning Campaign

In 2008, UC Irvine launched its "Shaping the Future" Campaign with the goal of raising $1 billion to fund four major research initiatives through which they hope to change the world:

• Smart Energy and a Sustainable Environment
• Your Health
• Training Leaders for the Global Community
• Frontiers in Learning and the Mind

In this endeavor, UCI faced a daunting challenge.  How do you take dry and somewhat esoteric research projects and translate them into impactful stories that connect with donors to raise the needed funds?

THE SOLUTION

Developing a Microsite for each Initiative that Conveys the Scope and Goals of the Program Each of the four initiatives included in the UCI "Shaping the Future" campaign represents a complex, multifaceted project in its own right.  In order to fully communicate the goals and benefits of the initiatives, we created a unique microsite for each, ensuring it tied together both visually and thematically with the others. Coupling a Compelling Story with a Flash Presentation to Create an Emotional Response At Web Advanced, we believe that successful websites start with crafting a compelling story that clearly communicates the benefits your customers receive by buying your products, or in the case of UCI, by donating to your cause.  By adding a Flash presentation to each microsite homepage, we were able to create a sense of drama in our storytelling to elicit the biggest emotional response.  Utilizing Flash in a website design is an art unto itself.  Too much, and you risk overwhelming the message with the graphics; too little, and your intended visual appeal may undershoot the mark.  The creative designers at Web Advanced understand this balance, and used it to great effect in creating each of the four microsites for the UCI "Shaping the Future" campaign.