The quiet phase of a campaign involves setting the stage for what is to come. This means creating a campaign brand identity, crafting a pre-campaign case for support, and developing a strategy for implementing marketing communications. At every level, campaign communications need to be an extension of a school’s institutional messaging. Working deliberately to make important connections through focused messaging and storytelling, communicators educate and engage prospective donors so fundraisers can comfortably make the ask.
A published strategic plan, impact reports, and a quiet-phase case statement are just a few powerful pre-campaign communication tools that any school can use to create excitement for the future of the institution and lay the groundwork for a successful campaign.
St. Joseph’s Preparatory School, best known in its Philadelphia home as “The Prep,” is an independent Catholic high school that utilized all of these tactics to build momentum for their “For Others Forever” campaign. All of their publications were used to reiterate the strategic direction of the school and introduce the areas for investment during the campaign’s quiet phase.
