Faxon Animal Care & Adoption Center Public Relations Plan

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Fly Together PR
Contact Information
Account Manager
Amy Urso is a Public Relations major with minors in Creative Writing and Marketing. Urso is
driven by creativity and passionate about launching a future in the PR/marketing field.
Ausro280@g.rwu.edu
Public Relation Practitioners
Samuel Lugo is a Public Relations major with minors in Marketing and Graphic Design.
Lugo is passionate when working in a team environment as well as when it comes to furthering
his education.
Slugo799@g.rwu.edu
Madison Mastriani is a Public Relations major with minors in Marketing and Economics.
Mastriani is energetic and passionate with her work and enjoys helping others in need.
Mmastriani564@g.rwu.edu

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Cover Letter
This plan is designed to help Faxon Animal Care & Adoption Center increase awareness and
improve their public image in a way that effectively communicates who they are, what they stand
for, and why the public should care about it. The plan is designed to increase donations as well as
increase adoptions, ultimately working toward the client’s main passion: helping the animals find
homes.
This plan was executed by Fly Together PR, located in Bristol, Rhode Island 02809. Fly
Together PR has been together since 2004 and works diligently to promote each and every client
they work with.

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Table of Contents
Contact Information 2
Cover Letter 3
Table of Contents 4
Executive Summary 5
Situational Analysis 6
Target Audiences 9
Research 11
Program Goal 16
Objectives 17
Strategies 18
Communication Methods 19
Channels and Target Audiences
Message Per Platform
Tactics 25
Recommendations
Timeline 28
Evaluation Methods 30
Budget 31
Creatives 32
Appendix 41
References 50

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Executive Summary
Client
Faxon Animal Care & Adoption Center is a 501 (C) (3) non-profit organization that has been
committed to helping formerly mistreated animals in their no-kill shelter since 1914. Attached to
the animal shelter is an animal clinic called Sylvan Animal Clinic. This clinic financially
supports the shelter. Faxon Animal Care & Adoption Center is located at 474 Durfee Street in
Fall River, Massachusetts.
Awareness and Action
Faxon Animal Care & Adoption Center has maintained a relatively positive reputation, however
they have done little to develop a specific public image that communicates exactly who they are
and how they want to be seen in the public eye. Additionally, they currently receive little
attention in the media. While they have made efforts to establish a digital presence, their website
and social media pages do not have consistent names and their Facebook events are organized in
a fashion that is likely to confuse the public. Faxon Animal Care & Adoption Center also
requires more funding and an increase in adoptions so that animals find homes.
Summary of PR Plan
This plan is designed to help Faxon Animal Care & Adoption Center increase awareness of the
organization and communicate what they stand for in a way that persuades the public to care
about animals in shelters. The plan is also designed to help position the shelter as a
compassionate organization and a convenient outlet for the public to exercise charitable
activities. Finally, the plan is designed to help increase donations and increase adoptions of the
animals they care for.
Approach
Utilizing social media will help the shelter immensely. Through promoting their desired image
and messages via social media post, they will be able to show the public the values they stand for
and motivate them to care about them. This will help persuade the public to donate to the shelter
as well as adopt the animals. Social media campaigns will also be important to the plan. Getting
the public involved in the organization through interactive social media campaigns will get the
public talking and posting about them, ultimately increasing awareness. Establishing
relationships with potential corporate sponsors will also help increase donations.

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Situational Analysis
Background
Faxon Animal Care & Adoption Center (Faxon) is a 501 (C) (3) non-profit organization that has
been dedicated to nurturing formerly abused and neglected animals since 1914. This no-kill
shelter receives no Federal, State, or local funding, relying primarily on private donations for
support. They host a gala each year from which they obtain the majority of their donations.
Additionally supporting the shelter is the Sylvan Animal Clinic, an animal hospital that serves
approximately 11,000 families in the Fall River area. Sylvan Animal Clinic is physically
attached to the shelter, making it convenient for adopted animals to receive health care in the
same location they were adopted. Faxon sends nearly 600 cats and dogs to adoptive homes
annually. Renee Dumont serves as the shelter’s manager as well as Fly Together PR’s main
contact. Mark Gendreau is the shelter’s president and John Panarese is the executive director.
Faxon is located at 474 Durfee Street, Fall River, MA.
Situation
Faxon faces a few issues which have lead to forming their main objectives. Firstly, their public
image and accessibility are not strong. They have done minimal image branding to show who
they are and how they want the public to view them. In terms of accessibility, their digital media
is not very user-friendly. Rather than creating event pages for their events and linking them to a
main social media page, they create entirely new pages for each event, which can be very
confusing for the public. They will need to strengthen their image and social media presence and
accessibility. Additionally, their Facebook page refers to the shelter as Faxon Animal Care &
Adoption Center while the website is called Animal Rescue League; it has different names on the
social media page and the website, potentially confusing the public with the inconsistency.
Secondly, they are looking to increase adoptions. For this to occur, the shelter must communicate
the value of rescuing animals rather than purchasing from pet stores or breeders with their PR
efforts. Finally, they need more donations. Faxon fears that many people would rather donate to
a trend or movement rather than donate to a nonprofit for animals whose stories are not
perceived to be as monumental as those supported by other nonprofits. To increase donations,
relationships with potential sponsors must be built and the importance of giving to an
animal-related nonprofit must be heightened in the eyes of the public.
Competitive Analysis
Faxon’s largest competitor is the Forever Paws Animal Shelter located between Tiverton and
Fall River. Forever Paws sits slightly closer to the Rhode Island border, giving them

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geographically closer access to potential Rhode Island adopters and donors than
Animal League Rescue which is on the other side of Fall River. Forever Paws
utilizes various PR tactics that are effective for them. Their website boasts a professional
aesthetic, containing videos and intriguing images to gain viewers’ attention as well as a colorful
list of all their upcoming events. Forever Paws posts their events for the upcoming year so
people have advanced notice and can plan ahead of time. They hold events in the major months
where people would be willing to attend whether it is because of warm weather or getting in the
holiday spirit. Events by this shelter include Spring Fling and Wellness Fair in April, Clam Boil
in May, Paws for Brunch in June, Celebration of Giving in September, Festival of Trees I in
November, and Festival of Trees II in December. They have even held an exciting Pet Parade in
the past. Admission prices for the events vary from two dollars to 45 dollars depending on the
event, with proceeds supporting the shelter. Forever Paws also has ongoing fundraising items for
sale such as car and refrigerator magnets, license plate covers, bricks for brick pathway, and
benches for the memorial walkway. Additionally, they have the Forever Paws Original TV Show
which is locally broadcasted on channel 95, allowing them the potential of reaching the entire
Fall River community. Clips from the episodes are posted on the shelter’s website. Based on
social media attention, Forever Paws is more successful than Faxon. They have over eight
thousand followers on Facebook while Faxon only has three thousand. Based on this, Forever
Paws’ PR tactics have been more successful than Faxon’s when it comes to gaining the attention
of the public.
A competitor for Faxon’s animal hospital, Sylvan Animal Clinic is Pet Partners Incorporated,
located on the opposite side of Fall River. This clinic also sponsors an animal shelter in Aruba
and makes it very evident on their website and through other promotional materials such as event
flyers. However, Faxon and Sylvan Animal Clinic remain the only shelter and clinic in the
general vicinity that are physically attached to one another. Pet Partners Incorporated’s website is
very similar to Sylvan Clinic’s. Pet Partners Incorporated’s website lists the medical procedures
it offers as well as upcoming events such as Paint Your Pet Night; customers can pay 40 dollars
to bring a picture of their pet to an art studio and create a painting of their animal, with all
proceeds going to Aruba Dog Rescue. Pet Partners Incorporated accepts monetary donations of
any amount and customers can shop online for pet supplies through the Amazon link on their
website and a portion of their total cost will go to the shelter.
Another animal hospital competitor for Faxon’s clinic is Somerset Animal Hospital. Their
location allows them to have potential customers from Somerset, Swansea, Fall River and New
Bedford. Somerset Animal Hospital is not, however, partnered with an animal shelter. Their
Website is much more professional in appearance compared to Sylvan Animal Clinic and lists
their offered services which include routine examinations, vaccinations, general surgery, and dog

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grooming. They do not have any events or donations listed on their website,
however they do post pictures of all their furry animal clients in an online
gallery.
Why People Donate
Fly Together PR conducted secondary research about why people donate to nonprofit
organizations or other causes. There are three main reasons that people give. First, people donate
because they believe there is value and good in the cause. Second, people donate because they
feel better about themselves when they give to a social good. Finally, people donate because they
want to show off that they are “rich” and have extra money to donate. To help Faxon increase
donations, the PR team will need to capitalize on these motivations for donating in their PR plan.
By showing the public that helping animals in shelters is a good cause, they will touch upon the
value in giving to the social good. They will also show those that want to feel good about
themselves through giving that donating to a shelter is a good way to do so.
Popular Causes
The PR team also conducted secondary research about where people commonly donate their
money. The information is depicted in Appendix 1. The number one cause people donate to or
are motivated by relates to the religion they practice. Environment and animal donations are
grouped as one and are the second to least donated cause at three percent of all donations in
2015. Between the two they garnered 10.68 billion dollars in donations for the year. However,
further research indicates that there has been a 6.5 percent increase in donations for environment
and animal related causes in more recent years, thus the popularity of the category is growing.

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Target Audiences
Primary Audience
Faxon’s primary and secondary audiences are both found within Bristol county as those who live
closer to the shelter are more likely to adopt or donate. The primary audience for the shelter is
Bristol county citizens with an income consistent with or above the area’s median annual income
of $56,842. They will more narrowly target those who are already pet owners with the hope that
those who own pets themselves have a predisposition to caring about animals, thus they are more
likely to adopt another or give to the shelter monetarily. Additionally, those who own pets can
also bring them to Sylvan Animal Clinic, knowing that each dollar they spend on their own pet’s
healthcare is also benefitting those in the shelter. As found in Appendix 2, national statistics
show that on average, those with a higher income are more likely to have a pet. Similarly, those
with more money are more financially capable of donating to nonprofits, thus Faxon will target
citizens with incomes in this range.
Secondary Audiences
Faxon’s secondary audience is those ages 18 to 29 as a whopping 90 percent of this demographic
reportedly uses social media. The shelter will secondarily target this group for the benefit of their
social media campaigns that will be included in the PR plan. If these young people are most
frequently using social media, they will be the ones who share and repost content such as
promotional videos and photographs, allowing them to gain mass attention online. Regardless of
if these people meet the characteristics of the primary audience, they most likely have friends
and relatives checking their social media pages who do. If citizens ages 18 to 29 are sharing
Faxon’s content online, they will be circulating awareness and allowing the shelter the
opportunity to make a positive impression on multiple publics, including their primary audience.
This secondary audience is also important in regards to increasing adoptions. Since many people
in this age group are newly entering the working world and buying their first home, they are
more likely to rescue an animal from a shelter when looking for their first pet rather than
spending the lofty prices of pet shops or breeders.
The other secondary audience is pet supply stores in Bristol county. Many animal-related
businesses in the area may also be looking to improve their public image and sponsoring a
nonprofit is a good way to do so. These businesses include Mellisa's Pet Depot in Dartmouth,
MA, KATZ Pet Supplies in Somerset, MA, and Animal Instincts Aquarium and Pet Center in
Fall River, MA. Businesses such as these will be targeted because they deal with animals and are
located in Bristol county. If Faxon can gain donations from local businesses that deal with a

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similar topic, they will not only meet their objective of increasing donations but
will also receive additional publicity from those businesses; since the stores will
want the public to know that they are a generous company, they will advertise their support for
Faxon, thus furthering the awareness of the shelter.

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Research
Content Analysis
Fly Together PR conducted a content analysis to see how Faxon has been portrayed in the media.
When searched for on Google, the only media portrayals that appear are two articles from the
Fall River Herald News.
Article one is titled, “Faxon Animal Centers Hopes Donations Rain Down Like Cats and Dogs”
and was published in September of 2016. The tone begins negative, talking about how the shelter
lost power and needs money to buy a generator, but takes a positive spin and mentions how
people can donate to the organization at their seventh annual gala. The purpose of the article is to
inform the reader about how important it is for the shelter to raise money and how the public can
donate.
Article two is titled, “ Faxon Animal Care & Adoption Center Reopens with Updated Facilities”
and was published in January of 2015. The overall tone of the article is positive and the purpose
is to announce that the new parts of the shelter will be opened after the damage from the storm
that took place in 2013. “I love the new space. It’ll be exciting to have dogs back in the
building.” said shelter manager Renee Dumont. The article gives information about what the
improvements were and how they will be beneficial to any new animals that come into the
shelter.
From the Fall River Herald News’ website, four additional articles about the shelter were
discovered. Article three is titled, “Pledge Will Match Donations to Faxon Pet Shelter” and was
published in May of 2016. The article’s tone is positive and heartwarming. Its purpose is to
entice the public to donate to the shelter, informing them that any donation given will be doubled
by one of the shelter’s sponsors.
Article four is titled, “Vandals Spray Paint Inside of Faxon Animal Shelter; Steal Syringes” and
was published in May of 2016.The tone of the article is negative and reports a break-in and
vandalization that occurred in the shelter and clinic. The article did not mention any positive
aspects of the shelter such as donations and focused on the fact that people chose to vandalize a
nonprofit.
Article five is titled, “Faxon Welcomes Canine Residents” and was published in February of
2015. The article has a positive tone and is intended to inform the public that the dog shelter has

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been reopened after a year and a half and has taken in its first two dogs since the
shelter had closed.
Article six is titled, “Faxon Animal League Celebrates 100 Years of Helping Animals Find
Homes” and was published in June of 2014. The tone of the article is very positive, genuine, and
heartwarming. Its purpose is to acknowledge that the organization has been around for 100 years
and still needs donations. It also mentions that they have an upcoming gala to help celebrate and
raise money.
The overall tone of Faxon’s media portrayal seems to be very positive regarding both the shelter
and the animals who stay there. The articles push for donations for the organization by tugging
on the heartstrings of the reader as well as informing what the donations will be used for and any
upcoming events in which people can make donations. Also, if the Sylvan Clinic is searched for,
the same articles pop up. Therefore, the media has been combining the two places as one, which
is positive because it means the public is being made aware of their partnership and connection.
Though for the most part the shelter has maintained a relatively positive image in the media, the
amount of coverage they receive is quite low and lacks any specific branding of the shelter. As
previously stated, when Faxon is searched for on Google news, only two articles appear from the
Fall River Herald and the other four articles can only be found by searching the Fall River
Herald website. The shelter has only received media attention six times within a four year period.
The media portrayals also do not communicate any specific messages that Faxon wants to
communicate about who they are as a shelter; no image building has been done to tell the public
what Faxon is all about.
Communication Audit
Fly Together PR conducted a communication audit to analyze the type of content that Faxon has
been putting out to the public. Their main manner of publishing media is through Facebook.
They currently advertise their events as separate Facebook pages rather than as events linked to
their Facebook page, making it harder for people to link the two together. The website also states
that the shelter has a Twitter account, however that account is no longer in use. A past PR tactic
used by Faxon was the 24 Days of Christmas campaign on their Facebook page that ran for the
24 days leading to Christmas. On each day, the shelter posted a picture of an animal in their
shelter and told their story regarding how they ended up in the shelter. Concluding the 24 days,
people who donated to the clinic during the course of the campaign had the opportunity to get a
tax reduction. To determine the results of the campaign’s success, the PR team plans to research
further as well as discuss with the shelter to see if similar tactics would be valuable to the PR
plan. The shelter also holds various events throughout the year such as an annual gala. The gala
is hosted at the White's of Westport in Westport, Massachusetts and tickets are 55 dollars. It is

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supposedly their biggest event of the year, though there is not extensive
information available on it.
Survey
The PR team has conducted primary research in the form of surveys to obtain more information
about their audiences.The first survey was distributed to Faxon’s current Facebook followers.
The fact that these people already follow the shelter on Facebook indicates that they are aware of
the shelter and that many have likely had some prior involvement with them. The information
obtained from this survey is very valuable when it comes to supporting the efforts of the PR plan.
For instance, as depicted in Appendix 4, 89.25 percent of respondents said that they use
Facebook the most out of every social media platform. This is important because it shows that
Facebook is an effective option for the shelter to communicate with the public via social media.
As depicted in Appendix 3, 86.17 percent of respondents said that a video they see online would
influence them to adopt a pet from a shelter rather than purchasing one. Meanwhile, as depicted
in Appendix 5, there were more mixed results about whether an online video would influence
them to donate to a shelter. The results show that 52.13 percent of respondents would be
influenced, 27.66 percent might be influenced, and the rest were unsure or did not think they
would be influenced. This indicates that while online videos of animals will likely be effective in
terms of convincing the public to adopt, extra persuasive effort must be put into social media
content to motivate people to donate.
Additionally, as depicted in Appendix 8, 90.43 percent of respondents said that they chose to
adopt a pet rather than purchase one because they wanted to give an animal a loving home. This
information is important to the PR plan because it indicates that the public respond to the idea of
compassion toward animals, which is the basis of the public image Faxon will present through
the efforts of the plan. Furthermore, as seen in Appendix 6, 93.62 percent of respondents said
that they would adopt another animal. This is also crucial information because it means that
those who have previously adopted are still likely to be influenced by Faxon’s communication
efforts even though they already have an animal. Overall the information obtained from this
survey was very valuable.
Fly Together PR also conducted a survey to obtain information about their secondary target
audience: millennials. This age group is one of the targeted audiences because their frequent
social media use will help share the content Faxon posts on social media, ultimately assisting in
getting the word out. As seen in Appendix 7, 41.49 percent of millennial respondents reportedly
agree that social media influences their everyday lives. Furthermore, as depicted in Appendix 3,
86.17 percent of respondents said that a video or photograph on social media would definitely or
possibly influence them to adopt an animal. This information supports the idea that this

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secondary target audience is heavily influenced by and involved in social media
activities. If the millennials that see Faxon’s posts are impacted by them, they
are likely to share the content, thus circulating it to more people and gaining more exposure and
awareness for the shelter. Additionally, the secondary audience may adopt animals themselves as
well. However, as shown in Appendix 10, respondents reported using Instagram and Snapchat
more frequently than Facebook. Based on this information, the PR team decided to additionally
incorporate an Instagram page into the plan rather than just Facebook in order to expand
outreach to the secondary audience. This information helps aid in the further development of the
social media aspect of the PR plan.
Copy Testing
Fly Together PR executed copy testing to obtain information about how the Faxon staff feels
about the new website design. To do so, the team asked the shelter staff a few questions about
the new design. As depicted in Appendix 11, all respondents said that their initial reaction to the
design is either positive or extremely positive. As depicted in Appendix 12, 66.66 percent of
respondents said that compared to the old website they felt better or much better about presenting
the new design to the public. Additionally, there were no respondents that felt the new design
was not as good as the old one. As depicted in Appendix 13, the majority of respondents said that
the new website design appeared to be very easy to navigate and there were no respondents that
said it would not be easy to navigate. All of this information is useful to the PR plan because it
shows that overall the shelter staff has positive feelings toward the website, indicating that the
new design would be beneficial to implement.
Viral Video Characteristics
The PR team additionally conducted secondary research online about what makes a video go
viral. This information was gathered to further potential social media tactics to include in the PR
plan. The results of the research indicate that there are six major factors of viral videos. First, the
video should be short and sweet; one should include the most interesting, fascinating, funny or
surprising information first and foremost in the video and the length itself should not be long
enough to lose the attention of viewers. Second, the video should be timely; jumping in on an
important topic that is currently trending gives a video a better chance of going viral because
more people will find it relevant. Third, the video should incite a reaction; the content should
strike an emotional chord in viewers, getting them to remember the video by making an
impression on them. Fourth, the video should be engaging; viewers want to be involved with
trends and movements and always want to know and learn what is new in the community. Fifth,
the video should be informative; the public is often looking to grow their knowledge, thus
providing information that one may have not heard before can really bring a simple video or
picture to the next level. Finally, the video should be inspiring; having a story that people are
likely to remember will not only make them keep coming back to look at the content, but it will

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also allow more and more people to share the video. This information is
valuable to the development of the shelter’s social media pages because it
provides information about what garners mass attention online, which will be helpful when
generating video or photo posts on Facebook or Instagram.

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Program Goal
Overall, the goal of the PR plan is to help Faxon improve their public image and ultimately help
the animals they care about so passionately. This animal aid will be accomplished through
gaining donations to improve the quality of care the animals receive and increasing adoptions,
thus finding animals the loving homes they deserve. The PR plan will be designed to increase
awareness for the shelter while communicating their desired public image of compassion, as well
as motivate the public to care about and act on helping animals both financially and through
adoptions. Collectively, the efforts of the PR plan will work toward achieving Faxon’s
informational, motivational, and behavioral objectives.

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Objectives
Informational Objectives
Faxon’s first objective is straightforward and informational: increase awareness. Before they can
begin to build their public image or achieve any behavioral objectives, the public must first know
who they are. Furthermore, the shelter aims to increase awareness of Sylvan Animal Clinic and
the ways in which its proceeds aid the shelter; in order for the public to recognize the value of
bringing their pet to Sylvan Animal Clinic, they must first be informed about the benefits the
shelter will receive from doing so. Another informational objective is to reform their
accessibility to the public. Due to the fact that the shelter’s social media pages and website are
not linked and are confusing to navigate, they desire to make their digital presence more
user-friendly in the hope that it will cause the public to view them in a more positive light.
Motivational Objectives
Faxon’s main motivational objective is to position themselves in a way that communicates
compassion as well as being a convenient way to partake in charity. The shelter upholds values
of benevolence and respect toward each animal they house, recognizing that each creature has
value and has a story. In turn, they aim to communicate these ideals to present themselves to the
public in a favorable fashion. Additionally, Faxon desires to position themselves as an easy way
to give back to the community. Because Sylvan Animal Clinic helps financially support the
shelter, when one brings their pet there to receive care, they are not only helping their own
animal but also those in the shelter. Being seen as a convenient way to be charitable will also
contribute toward improving the public’s attitudes toward the shelter.
Behavioral Objectives
Faxon’s first behavioral objective is to increase donations. The more money they have to support
the shelter, the better care they can provide for the animals living there. Their second behavioral
objective is to increase adoptions. The more adoptions that take place, the more animals that are
finding loving homes. Both of the behavioral objectives tie back into Faxon’s main value of
compassion. If they achieve their behavioral goals, they will be accomplishing what is most
important to them: helping the animals.

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Strategies
Fly Together PR’s main strategy for reaching the client’s objectives is to utilize social media.
This online form of communication will help further aspects of all objectives. It will be used to
reach multiple audiences by first being shared by millennials who frequently use and are
influenced by social media as shown in the primary research.
Social media campaigns will help circulate and boost awareness of the shelter and clinic,
position the shelter as a compassionate organization, and show people why they should donate or
adopt. These social media efforts will also be tied to events held by the shelter. Faxon will add
photo-taking elements to their fundraising events to incorporate in social media campaigns that
work toward achieving informational, motivational, and behavioral objectives. Along with
utilizing social media, the PR team will organize and improve the shelter’s social media pages
and website to make Faxon more accessible to the public.
Another strategy that the PR team will use in the PR plan is building relationships with potential
sponsors. These potential sponsors include local businesses that may be interested in
cause-related marketing. This strategy will work toward achieving both informational and
behavioral goals.

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Communication Methods
Social Media
The first medium that will be used to reach the shelter’s audience is social media. This is an
effective channel to communicate with the public because it is a constantly growing form of
media. In fact, it is estimated that 2.44 billion people will be using social networks 2018. Every
day there are 4.5 billion likes on Facebook and 95 million photos on Instagram. Social media is
also an effective way to engage the public and gain insight into their feelings about the brand due
to the two-way communicative nature of the medium. Additionally, social media is a rapid and
effortless way to share content and communicate an image in a way that can be very low cost.
While the option to utilize paid promotions on social media is available, it is not absolutely
necessary, which is important for a nonprofit that does not have a large budget.
The first social media site used will be Facebook. As depicted in Appendix 14, Facebook is the
most popular social media platform among US citizens. Furthermore, the primary audience,
which is Bristol county citizens with an income consistent with or above the area’s median
annual income of $56,842, use it most heavily out of each annual income and prefer it over other
social media platforms. The audience of 18 to 29 year-olds also use Facebook more than other
platforms as well as use it more than any other age group. Thus, Facebook is a very effective
channel to reach these audiences from when it comes to social media. Based on a primary survey
of millennials, Instagram and Snapchat are the more popular social media sites among the
respondents as depicted in Appendix 10. Taking this into account, an Instagram account will also
be included in Faxon’s PR plan. The shelter will additionally create an Instagram account and all
of the content posted on the Facebook page, such as photos and videos, will be posted to
Instagram with the goal of expanding the outreach.
Both social media accounts will be operated through Hootsuite, which is a social media
scheduling website. Hootsuite gives users the capability to schedule social media posts in
advance so that one does not have to manually post them at the moment they desire to post. With
this website, Faxon will be able to plan all their social media posts in advance and schedule them
to post automatically at the times with the highest engagement, ultimately making social media
usage more convenient.
Website
The second medium that will be used is a new website design. Websites are important to any
nonprofit because they allow the opportunity to establish credibility and show the public who

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they are in further detail. While social media has the ability to communicate
similar messages through a digital channel, having a website communicates a
more established and trustworthy image; it serves as a more official home base for the nonprofit.
Websites also have the capability to include more extensive information than social media. They
give the public a more sound background on the nonprofit and are able to go into more detail
about specific aspects of the nonprofit.
Media Alerts
The third media channel that will be used are media alerts. Because some of the social media
campaigns in the PR plan are designed to take place at events held by Faxon, it will be beneficial
to heighten the influence of the events themselves by earning media coverage. Media alerts are
an effective way to convince the media to attend an event because they simply give the necessary
details such as where the event is, who is holding it, and when it will take place. This offers the
media personnel a convenient way to put the information into their calendar, making them more
likely to attend and cover the event.
Emails and Meetings
The fourth and fifth channels that will be used are emails and in-person meetings. These
channels will specifically be used to reach local businesses that will potentially sponsor Faxon.
Because Faxon is an animal shelter, the businesses that deal with pets will be targeted. Emails
will be used to begin a dialogue between the shelter and the businesses, piquing their interest.
They will also be used to establish a time to meet in person about the potential sponsorship.
While in-person meetings are not a form of media, they serve as an important part of the
communication methods when it comes to engaging with potential sponsors.The in-person
meetings will be used to build a more sound and authentic relationship with each business before
fully getting into the details of the sponsorship. This is important because if the businesses feel a
connection to the shelter, they are more likely to decide to sponsor them. Furthermore, a study
conducted by Constant Contact, an email marketing company, discovered that 48 percent of its
respondents believe that a face-to-face meeting is the “most effective driver of business.”
Therefore, in-person meetings will be an efficient channel for this aspect of the PR plan.
PSAs
The final medium that will be used are PSAs broadcasted via radio. For a nonprofit, PSAs are
important in terms of communicating the values they stand for. They also increase web traffic by
putting the website address in the minds of those listening. If web traffic is increased, the
customer base is likely to expand along with it.

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Channels and Target Audiences
Social Media
Social media will be an effective means of reaching the primary audience.. As depicted in
Appendix 14, a study of US adults’ social media usage, the larger one’s income is the more
likely they are to use social media. Since Faxon needs donations, they will want to reach those
with the money to do so. Additionally, as depicted in Appendix 2, the more money one has the
more likely they are to own a pet, thus care about adopting or donating. Therefore, social media
is a valid option to reach the primary audience. Social media will also be effective in reaching
the first secondary audience, which is those ages 18 to 29. Due to the fact that 90 percent of this
demographic reportedly uses social media, this channel is an efficient way to target them.
Website
The new website will target the primary audience because it will depict an image of class and
quality through the aesthetics of the site. Considering the primary audience is those with average
and above average income, they are likely to have higher standards, especially for the quality of
the clinic; they will want a clean and high quality place to bring their pets for healthcare. The
accessibility and user-friendliness aspect of the new design will target an even wider audience
because the average person will find it easy to use.
Emails
The emails sent to the local businesses will target them because email is a highly utilized
platform for communication among businesses. Once they become intrigued and set up a
meeting, the in-person style of communicating will well-reach them because they will feel they
are able to engage with the shelter in a genuine and personable way.
Media Alerts
Media alerts will first be effective in reaching the media stations because they are the primary
means through which media stations receive information about possible events to cover. In this
case, stations from Bristol county will be sent the media alerts. Going further, once the media
covers the shelter’s event, the audiences will be reached because they are likely to watch the
news local to their area. The stations that will be sent media alerts are NBC 10, WPRI 12 (CBS),
CBS 4 Boston, and WCVB-TV Channel 5 Boston. These stations will be contacted because they
cover news within the geographical area of the primary audience.

22
PSAs
The PSAs will reach the primary audience because they will be sent to radio stations that
broadcast to the geographical location of the primary audience. The radio stations that will be
sent the PSAs are WBRU 95.5 (Providence, RI), WMRC 1490 AM, WCTK Country 98.1, Kiss
108, WBZ News Radio 1030 AM, 98.5 The Sports Hub. These radio stations will be focused on
because they have been rated by Cision as part of the top ten radio stations broadcasted to the
area. These stations will also be focused on because they broadcast to the geographical area of
the primary audience and they also encompass a variety of music genres and radio station types.
This will be helpful because it will help the PSA reach the target audience regardless of their
preferred radio station type.
Message Per Platform
Social Media
The key message that Faxon will communicate to through Facebook and Instagram is centered
around the idea of compassion. The shelter genuinely cares about all animals and finding them
loving homes and good healthcare, which will become a major part of their public image through
the efforts of the PR plan. They believe that like people, every pet has a story to tell, and by
adopting them, one is letting that pet become a part of their own story. If the public, particularly
those with money, view Faxon as a foundation that truly sees the value of animal lives, they are
more likely to strike an emotional chord that motivates them to donate to the shelter or adopt
another pet. Furthermore, the shelter will share messages about the importance of pets and
animal lives, persuading the public to care even more about the cause itself. The idea that Sylvan
Animal Clinic financially supports Faxon will also be very clearly communicated through social
media so that those who already own pets are aware that bringing them there aids more than just
the fury friend they have at home, but a greater cause relating to animals. This idea will also be
driven by the theme of compassion for animals. These messages will be communicated through
videos on the Facebook and Instagram pages as well as social media campaigns that involve the
engagement of the public. The videos will be created about various animals in the shelter, telling
the stories of how they got to the shelter. The videos will be engaging, emotionally inciting, and
depict how much Faxon cares about the animals. Each video will end with the phrase, “Make
their story part of yours,” showing how the shelter values the animals and desires for them to be
seen as important friends. The videos will be created with guidance from the research done on
viral videos with the goal of garnering a mass amount of Facebook shares. While the videos are
intended to be shared so that increasing numbers of people are exposed to them, they will be
shared on Instagram as well. Though the videos cannot be shared on Instagram, including them
on the account will still help reach a wider audience.

23
The Facebook and Instagram accounts will also include engaging social media campaigns. The
first will be a pet bandana campaign; when one brings their pet to Sylvan Animal Clinic the staff
will put a colorful bandana on them that reads “Paw Pal - I helped a friend today!” Pet owners
will then be encouraged to share a picture of their pet on social media, tagging the shelter’s
social media accounts.The second social media campaign will be one that is tied to the shelter’s
events throughout the year. It will involve a face painting booth to be painted like a cat or dog.
The children will then be allowed the opportunity to take photos with various animals from the
shelter and parents will be encouraged to take photos of their children painted like pets next to
the animals and share them on social media, tagging the shelter’s Facebook and/or Instagram
page and using the hashtags #FindAFriend and #CompassionForPets. Both social media
campaigns will have incentives of various prizes that participants can potentially win. These
campaigns will further the message that Faxon cares about the animals and that bringing one’s
pet to the clinic helps other animals as well.
The Facebook page specifically will additionally communicate when the shelter will be holding
events. The Instagram will announce said events as well, however the Facebook will include
links to event pages that have further information and RSVP capabilities.
Website
The primary purpose of the new website design is to communicate a more user-friendly message;
the site will be easy to navigate and use the same name, Faxon Animal Care & Adoption Center,
as the one on the social media pages. The consistency of shelter names will help the client to be
more accessible to the public and to avoid confusing the public. The aesthetics of the new
website will also communicate a cleaner and classier image for the shelter, sending the message
that it is a quality place for animals. This cleaner image is additionally important in persuading
the public to bring their pets to Sylvan Animal Clinic because pet owners will likely want to feel
they are bringing their pet to a well-kept facility.
Emails and Meetings
The message that the email will send is that sponsoring Faxon could potentially be a very smart
business decision. The email is intended to capture the attention of the businesses and draw them
to the idea of meeting with the shelter about further details.
The main message of the meetings will be that sponsoring Faxon would be a fantastic way to
improve the business’s public image; it will show business owners that sponsoring their
nonprofit would help the public view them in a positive light, ultimately driving customer traffic.
The meeting will communicate the importance of public image, especially for small businesses.

24
It will explain that maintaining heightened approval of the community is vital to
customers choosing to shop at their local business over larger chain companies.
Overall, the goal of the meeting is to convince small businesses to sponsor Faxon.
PSAs
The main message of the PSA will be that animals all have their own stories, just like human
beings and that they all deserve loving homes. It will also communicate that one way to help
these animals is by taking one’s current pet to Sylvan Animal Clinic because it financially
supports the shelter. The PSA is designed to make the public care about the animals as well as
make them aware that they can help them by simply taking their pet to the clinic. Overall, the
PSA will communicate the shelter’s image of compassion while showing the public an easy way
they can contribute to the cause.

25
Tactics
Informational Objectives
Fly Together PR’s tactics to execute their strategy for informational objectives involve social
media and sponsorships. In order to promote the connection between Faxon and Sylvan Animal
Clinic, the clinic staff will distribute colorful bandanas at each appointment to tie around each
animal’s neck. The bandanas will read “Paw Pal — I helped a friend today” with further
information about the clinic/shelter connection below in smaller print. Pet owners will be
encouraged to take pictures of their pet when they pick them up from their appointment and
share them on social media, tagging the shelter’s social media pages and hopefully sharing their
good deed. Those who do so will be entered into a raffle to win 50 percent off their next
check-up appointment. This social media campaign will raise awareness of the shelter itself and
the benefits of going to Sylvan Animal Clinic as well as help with the motivational goal of being
positioned as a convenient way to give back.
The second tactic for accomplishing the informational objective is direct communication with
local pet supply businesses in hopes of establishing sponsorships. This will be executed through
calling and meeting with business owners in person. The sponsorship concept will be pitched in a
way that shows the businesses how sponsoring a local and relevant nonprofit can improve their
own public image and benefit their business. In turn, this will raise awareness for the shelter
because the businesses will publicize their philanthropic activities, thus getting the shelter’s
name out to the public more and more. The final informational objective involves the
improvement of digital accessibility. This will require the reorganization of the shelter’s social
media pages and website. Currently, each event the shelter holds has its own Facebook page
rather than an event page simply linked to their main Facebook page. Fly Together PR will
correct this so as to make navigating the shelter’s social media less confusing. The PR team will
also design and create a new primary website that is more aesthetically pleasing and easier to
operate than the current site. It also refers to the shelter as Faxon Animal Care & Adoption
Center instead of Animal Rescue League in order to keep the name consistent between all digital
channels
Motivational Objectives
Tactics for motivational objectives will also include social media campaigns. The first social
media campaign will be executed at the various fundraising events Faxon holds throughout the
year. At each event they will have a booth that offers face painting for children in which they
will be painted to look like cats or dogs. Along with it, a few select animals from the shelter that

26
are known to be good with strangers will be available to take photographs with.
Parents will be encouraged to take photos of their children painted like pets next
to the animals and share them on social media, tagging the shelter’s Facebook page and using the
hashtags #FindAFriend and #CompassionForPets. Those who do so will be entered in a raffle to
win a grand prize determined by the shelter staff. The implementation of these hashtags will
communicate that Faxon genuinely cares about the animals and views them as valued friends. It
will also further aid in achieving the informational goal of awareness. The second social media
tactic that will help achieve the motivational objectives is Facebook videos. Videos will be
created about various animals in the shelter, telling the story of how they got to the shelter. The
videos will be engaging, emotionally inciting, and depict how much Faxon cares about the
animals. Each video will end with the phrase, “Make their story part of yours,” showing how the
shelter values the animals and desires for them to be seen as important friends. The videos will
be created with guidance from the research done on viral videos with the goal of garnering a
mass amount of Facebook shares. Not only will this tactic help position the shelter as being
compassionate toward animals, but it will also help with the informational goal of raising
awareness and the behavioral goal of increasing adoptions.
Behavioral Objectives
Social media tactics will also play a large role in working toward the behavioral goals. Through
the Facebook page, people will be encouraged to share posts of the animals they have adopted,
telling of how the animal has positively impacted their lives. Sharing these posts will show the
public why they should adopt from an animal shelter, in hopes that they will do so. As previously
mentioned, the goal of increasing donations will be targeted through direct communication
efforts with local businesses. The pet bandana social media campaign will also help increase
donations by showing the public that they can give back simply by taking their own pet to
Sylvan Animal Clinic.
Recommendations
Social Media
Along with each tactic comes specific suggestions regarding the manner in which to execute
them. Social media content must be posted at times with the highest engagement and
effectiveness for that specific platform in order to maximize the benefits of their social media
efforts. As previously mentioned, they should also utilize social media scheduling websites such
as Hootsuite to make posting more convenient. For a more in depth discussion of effective
posting times, refer to Timeline on page 28.

27
Sponsorships
Faxon must execute the seeking of sponsorships in a strategic way as well. According to Amy
Ludwigson of Pure Citizen, when it comes to building professional relationships one should “let
people see who you are. It builds trust and respect. Being too professional is a bore and well you
are not going to enjoy yourself.” With that in mind, the shelter will communicate who they are
and their message of compassion in a genuine way in order to capture their sponsors. They will
tell each business about their values and how much helping the shelter financially means to them
on a personal level; this will help build a foundation for a business relationship that is rooted in
respect and authenticity. Then, Faxon must clearly communicate and emphasize what sponsoring
them will do to help the businesses. They will explain in a persuasive fashion the ways in which
showing the public that they care about the community and are a generous company will
improve their public image and ultimately their customer traffic. With a foundation of
authenticity previously laid out between the shelter and each business, the companies are more
likely to buy into the idea that sponsoring the shelter is both important and beneficial to their
own business.
PSAs and Media Alerts
PSAs and media alerts should be sent out to stations that cover the geographical area of the target
audience. Media alerts should be sent at the proper time to ensure the media personnel have
sufficient time to plan to attend but also not forget about the event. For more in depth
explanations on times to send media alerts, Timeline on page 28.

28
Timeline
Social Media
As previously suggested, social media content will be posted at times with the highest
engagement and effectiveness for that specific platform. For instance, as depicted in Appendix
16, Facebook posts receive 32 percent higher engagement on Saturdays and Sundays. Also,
posting at nine a.m., one p.m., and three p.m. ensures maximum exposure for the content. On the
other hand, as depicted in Appendix 17, the most effective times to post for Instagram are two
a.m., eight to nine a.m., and five p.m. Furthermore, videos posted on Instagram at nine p.m. have
been found to receive 34 percent more engagement. Based on these secondary research findings,
Animal Rescue League will align their posting schedule with these times in order to maximize
the benefits of their social media efforts.
Emails and Meetings
Emails will be sent at at strategic times to reach the local businesses and begin the conversation
about sponsorships. According to Kevin Gao, CEO of email marketing company Comm100,
sending emails to businesses in the early morning is not effective because many people will
delete emails from their inbox to get rid of clutter when they first arrive at work. Gao further
explains that the best time to send an email is around lunchtime because the content will reach
them while they are in a more relaxed state of mind and have already worked through the initial
digital clutter of the morning. Based on this, the emails will be sent to businesses between noon
and one p.m. They will also be sent midweek so that the businesses have time to catch up on
work that has piled up over the weekend and will not miss the shelter’s email when it is sent. The
in-person meeting times will be determined by the businesses.
Media Alerts
Media alerts will be sent to based off of the same date and time guidelines as the emails. They
will be sent three to five days before each event so that the media personnel have enough time to
plan to attend but not so much notice that they forget about it. The top sellers for newspapers in
Fall River include The Herald News and The Anchor which would be most beneficial for media
alerts.
Calendar Overview
Listed on the calendar there are several biweekly postings. The fist is a biweekly Facebook post
referring to the recommended posts about the pets at the animal shelter and their stories. The
second biweekly post is for Instagram posts. These will also be postings of their animals or small

29
video clips of something intriguing or cute that they were able to catch on film.
In some cases there are Facebook and Instagram posts that do not relate to the
biweekly postings because they are affiliated with the events rather than the animals.
This specific PR plan is designed to be executed throughout April, May, and June, however
many aspects of it can be used year-round. Social media tactics can and should be utilized
throughout the entire year to keep up continual engagement with the public and to constantly
increase awareness of the shelter. Sponsorships from local businesses can be sought out
continually as well. PSAs can be sent out at any time and new ones should be written when there
is new information to share. Media alerts also should be sent before any event regardless of if it
takes place within the timeline of the specific PR plan. Finally, the website of course will be kept
up continually year-round.
Evaluation Methods
Evaluation methods will be executed throughout and after the PR plan timeline ends. Surveys
will be distributed in the beginning of July right after the plan finishes. Meanwhile, website and
social media analytics as well as manual records will take place throughout the duration of the
plan. For more on evaluation methods, refer to Evaluation Methods on page 30.

30
Evaluation Methods
The first main method of evaluation that will be used to measure the success of the PR tactics is
surveys. These surveys will be distributed to each person who adopts, donates, or goes to Sylvan
Animal Clinic. The surveys will ask how they heard about Faxon and what prompted them to
adopt, donate, or attend the clinic.
The second form of evaluation will be page click-throughs and website analytics. Website traffic
will be monitored, compared, and contrasted between the old website and the new one to
determine if the public is visiting online more frequently. The same method will be executed for
the Facebook and Instagram pages. Additionally, likes, shares, and comments will be tracked
through Facebook analytics, comparing the current information to prior analytics accessed from
Facebook; this will allow Fly Together PR to see the growth following the implementation of the
PR tactics.
Finally, the last method of evaluation will be manual records. The PR team will keep track of
how many sponsorships are gained from the local businesses, including how much money has
been raised from each business. The amount of engagement in social media campaigns will also
be monitored manually, keeping a count of how many people submit photos to each campaign.
Collectively, these evaluation methods will help measure the success of the PR plan efforts.

31
Budget
The Goal for creating a PR plan for Faxon is to spend the least amount of money as possible
since they are currently limited with the amount of funds they have and receive. Ultimately, it is
nearly impossible to create a PR campaign that does not cost any money. With this campaign, we
provide the lowest possible cost options for carrying out our strategic plan.
WIX Website
A new and improved website was created through WIX to replace the old website. This website
will use templates through the website as well as have enough storage to incorporate everything
that is needed in a website. This payment plan will be good for two years.
$22.00 per month
$264.00 Per Year
Bandanas
On PlanetApparel.com, triangle animal doggie bandanas in either blue or pink with a logo and
text ranges from $1.65 to $9.74 per unit depending on the quantity ordered. Therefore as an
example we will order 100 bandanas at $350.00. The more one orders, the less each unit costs.
$350.00
Hootsuite
Through the social media managing website Hootsuite, this service will allow Faxon to run all of
their social media pages at one time on one computer. They will have access to manage up to 10
social media accounts at once. This service will allow the Faxon team to schedule posts in
advance for each social media account each month, automatically posting at the time and date of
their choice. They will also have the ability to view the live analytics of each account. This will
allow for them to see when people are on each social media account and how many people are
viewing and searching their page.
$19.00 Per Month
$228.00 Per Year
Total $842.00

32
Creatives
Facebook
Instagram

39
PSA
FAXON ANIMAL CARE & ADOPTION CENTER PSA (:30)
THE ANIMALS OF FALL RIVER NEED YOUR HELP.
EACH ANIMAL IN AN ANIMAL SHELTER HAS A
STORY TO TELL JUST LIKE YOU. BY BRINGING
YOUR PET TO SYLVAN ANIMAL CLINIC
YOU ARE SUPPORTING THE ANIMALS IN
FAXON ANIMAL CARE AND ADOPTION
CENTER AS WELL, HELPING THEM RECEIVE
BETTER CARE AND FIND LOVING HOMES.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON HOW TO HELP
THE ANIMALS IN NEED, CALL 508 676 1061
OR VISIT ARLFR.COM
Bandana

41
Appendix
Appendix 1
Appendix 2

50
References
Alejandra Guzman(n.d.). 6 ways social media is changing the world. Retrieved April 20, 2017, from
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/04/6-ways-social-media-is-changing-the-world/
Animal Vaccinations & Veterinary Surgery in Somerset, Massachusetts. (n.d.). Retrieved March 08, 2017, from
http://www.somersetanimal.net/Services_Vaccinations_General_Surgery_Somerset_MA.html
Cision Staff. (2016, January 28). Top 10 Radio Stations in Boston. Retrieved April 20, 2017, from
http://www.cision.com/us/2012/10/top-10-radio-stations-in-boston/
Dahl, D. (2011, January 25). How to Build Better Business Relationships. Retrieved April 17, 2017, from
https://www.inc.com/guides/201101/how-to-build-better-business-relationships.html
Duncan, K. (2014, October 27). 3 Benefits of Meeting Face to Face. Retrieved April 20, 2017, from
https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/237929
Ellering, N. (2017, January 25). Best Times To Post On Social Media According To 16 Studies. Retrieved April 17, 2017, from
https://coschedule.com/blog/best-times-to-post-on-social-media/#facebook
Emily CoppEmily is a Copywriter at Hootsuite. Chat with her about content marketing, digital strategy, and cooking without
dairy. (2017, February 10). 10 Benefits of Social Media for Business. Retrieved April 20, 2017, from
https://blog.hootsuite.com/social-media-for-business/
Forever Paws Animal Shelter Fall River Ma. (n.d.). Retrieved March 08, 2017, from http://
www.foreverpaws.com/
Gao, K. (n.d.). Timing is Everything: What is the Best Day to Send Email to Your Customers? Retrieved April 20, 2017, from
https://emailmarketing.comm100.com/email-marketing-tutorial/best-day-to-send-email.aspx
Giving Statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved March 08, 2017, from https://www.charitynavigator.org/
index.cfm/bay/content.view/cpid/42
Grover, H. (n.d.). 10 Benefits of having a good website. Retrieved from
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/10-benefits-having-good-website-hardeep-grover
Pet Partners Veterinary Clinic. (n.d.). Retrieved March 08, 2017, from http://
www.petpartnersne.org/Index.html
Pet Statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved March 07, 2017, from http://www.aspca.org/animal-
homelessness/shelter-intake-and-surrender/pet-statistics
Pozin, I. (2014, August 07). 6 Qualities To Make Your Videos Go Viral. Retrieved March 08, 2017, from
https://www.forbes.com/sites/ilyapozin/2014/08/07/6-qualities-to-make-your-videos-go-viral/#1c437866154e
The science behind why people give money to charity. (2015, March 23). Retrieved March 08, 2017, from
https://www.theguardian.com/voluntary-sector-network/2015/mar/23/the-
science-behind-why-people-give-money-to-charity
Social Media: A Powerful Tool. (n.d.). Retrieved April 20, 2017, from
https://www.psasecurity.com/about/newsroom/industry-blog/social-media-a-powerful-tool/
Social Media Fact Sheet. (2017, January 12). Retrieved March 30, 2017, from http://
www.pewinternet.org/fact-sheet/social-media/

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