CAPSLO needs to raise awareness and support for its homeless shelter. A proposed public awareness campaign is an open mic night event at a local park to bring the community together. The event aims to raise funds, gain new volunteers, and improve public opinion of CAPSLO and the homeless population. A flyer will advertise the event on social media and local publications. Partnerships with Cal Poly and local businesses can help obtain equipment and increase turnout. An evaluation survey after the event will measure changes in public opinion and interest in volunteering.

1. Zoe Wilcocks
Jour 312
10 March 2020

2. Executive Summary
This PR proposal gives Community Action Partners of San Luis Obispo the opportunity to reach
the community through a new local event. The goal of this event is to raise awareness, new
volunteers, and financial support for CAPSLO’s Homeless Shelter, as well as create a stronger
bond in the community.
CAPSLO needs to further reach the public because potential donors and/or volunteers may not
be educated about the 40 Prado Homeless Shelter. The facilities need physical and financial
assistance to continue operating, as well as outside partnerships to raise public
awareness/involvement.

3. PR Campaign:
Public Awareness Campaign
CAPSLO runs a homeless shelter on 40 Prado that needs volunteers and donations to survive.
The public’s awareness of CAPSLO could help their volunteer sign ups increase as well as help
CAPSLO remain financially stable through donations and fundraising.
PR Campaign Planning:
Background Information:
Campaign Client: Community Action Partnership of San Luis Obispo’s 40 Prado
Homeless Shelter
Contact Person: Jasmine Smith, Volunteer Coordinator, jsmith@capslo.org, 8054406531
Mission Statement: Community Action Partnership of San Luis Obispo County addresses
the causes of poverty, empowering low-income people to achieve self-sufficiency
through community-based collaborations and programs.
Vision Statement: Creating communities where all people have equal opportunities to
achieve self-sufficiency.
Value Statement: Over the past year and a half, the Agency embarked on an employee
initiative to define a set of core values to guide our decisions and behaviors, and more
clearly define how we interact with one another, our partners, and those we serve. This
process was employee-driven and input came from multiple sessions where employees
engaged in lengthy discussions and exercises to suggest what should be the core values
for CAPSLO. The outcome of this effort was suggestions and ideas from 850 employees!
Campaign goal: To raise awareness for CAPSLO’s shelter to prospective donors and
volunteers, as well as change the public’s opinion.
Company objectives:
1) Get endorsed / covered by at least two outside groups (Cal Poly, local shops, media,
etc.) before the day of the event
2) Receive at least 25 sign-ups before the event begins

4. 3) Gain at least 5 new volunteers after the event concludes
Needs of Company: CAPSLO’s needs at the moment are volunteers and donors. The
shelter is often at capacity, and there usually around 2/3 volunteers for every 75 people.
This can get overwhelming at times. Donors are also in high demand because they can
cover large expenses that CAPSLO does not have funds for.
Publics: The largest public for CAPSLO’s Homeless Shelter are the homeless.
Volunteers, coordinators, and donors are the next largest publics. The public can also
include any potential partnerships with Cal Poly or any local businesses.
Needs of Publics: Some homeless people that may attend the event could need
transportation. Volunteers and coordinators will need help obtaining equipment and
managing the budget. Donors will need to be communicated with to ensure their support.
Potential partnerships need to be handled promptly and with care. Specific duties to
satisfy potential partnerships must be communicated clearly.
SWOT Analysis:
Strengths Weaknesses
• Helping struggling
individuals
• Has dedicated volunteers
• Keeping people off the streets
• A place to feel secure
• A free meal and bed
• Making a change in the world
• Need to raise more money to
keep people safe/healthy
• The workload is overwhelming,
not enough volunteers
• Not enough awareness in San Luis
Obispo County
• Need more public support
Opportunities Threats
• More chances to bring people
together, events that raise
awareness, gain volunteers &
possible donors
• Work with more local partnerships
• Other nonprofits gaining
support that could have helped
CAPSLO
• The public and homeless not
having a great relationship

5. SWOT Recommendations: CAPSLO’s weaknesses are largely caused by a lower number
of volunteers, a low number of donors, not enough fundraising, and low public
interaction/interest. To solve these problems, CAPSLO should take a look at their
opportunities. If more fundraising events like this were to occur, the number of
volunteers and donors may increase. These events will also raise money through the
public, changing their opinion of the homeless through genuine interaction. Working with
local partnerships also increases awareness, attendance, and public opinion.
PR Campaign Proposal:
Section 1:
Introduction: CAPSLO needs a way to gain volunteers and raise public awareness.
Through an Open Mic Night, the community can unite in a way they usually don’t. This
can help CAPSLO financially, increase volunteers, and positively change the public
opinion.
Foreseeable Complications: Because it is planned to be outside, the weather could cancel
this event. In that case, the event will be moved to the following week and/or moved to
40 Prado’s facilities. This issue will be monitored closely, and a decision will be made 14
days before the event date.
Section 2:
Discussion: The Open Mic Night needs help from sponsors to gather all equipment, an
online sign-up sheet for measurable success, and event coverage through the media for a
large turnout and any unintentional absences.
Requirements: The event will take place at Santa Rosa Park, with cones set up to protect
the stage. Tents will be covering the main area, with a microphone and speaker ready to
go. People will be able to reserve a spot with a small donation, or they can wait in line for
free. The open mic night is available for everyone to use between 5-8pm, and snacks will
be sold for fundraising.
Detailed Analysis: The first step is contacting the City of SLO to get permission to use
Santa Rosa Park during this fundraising event. Then, the budget must be well established,
and two volunteers will be directed to search for the lowest cost décor. After that, three

6. people must coordinate the oversight of equipment, the sign-up sheet, and possible food
donations from local shops. A flyer must be created, and shortly after sign-ups can be
released. This way, staff can figure out how many people are expecting to attend, and to
make sure no money will be lost. The day of, staff must load cars with all the set-up items
can work together to begin the event. This will hopefully raise money for CAPSLO,
spark interest in new volunteers, and create a bond between community members.
Approach: The flyer will be physically posted throughout SLO, as well as put up on
social media (Instagram, Twitter, Facebook). The information will also be sent to all
accessible media, like the radio, TV, magazines, and papers to raise the public’s
excitement. This information will be sent out right after the sign-ups begin to start raising
money and gain a headcount on estimated number of attendees.
Strategies: Financially, CAPSLO will not have much funds to spend in preparation to this
event. Instead, flyers will be sent out to all existing volunteers about the need of
equipment. This way, CAPSLO may be able to borrow a majority of supplies instead of
renting them. If help is still needed, an email will be sent out to sponsors if there are any
expensive items CAPSLO cannot obtain.
Tactics: CAPSLO can build relationships with Cal Poly as well as some other businesses
around SLO. Cal Poly already works with CAPSLO to supply volunteers, so
communicating with Mustang News to send out a flyer could help immensely. Also,
CAPSLO can partner with local businesses for awareness. Fattoush, for example, is a
food truck that may want exposure in CAPSLO’s flyer if a portion of the proceeds go to
the shelter. Establishing local relationships is very important.

7. Section 3:
Draft Outline: Below is a timeline for the open night mic and all tasks that must be
completed before execution.
April May June
Event planning x x x
Location permission x
Budgeting x x x
Reach out to donors x x
Find equipment x x
Create flyer x
Create sign-up sheet x
Advertise x x
Registration open x
Open Mic Night x
Section 4:
Summative & Formative Evaluation: For CAPSLO’s purposes, the summative evaluation
should be held within 24 hours of the event concluding. Everyone who attended the event
was told to sign-in with their email, so now CAPSLO has a record of the number of
attendees, as well as a way to communicate with them. A survey will be sent out through
Qualtrics about people’s preconceived ideas of CAPSLO, if any, versus their opinions
after the event. This will gauge the change in public opinion strictly based on the open
mic night. Another question will ask if anyone is interested in volunteering or learning
more about CAPSLO. The survey can see the impact the event had on public opinion as
well as the increase number of potential volunteers.