ASPIRE T.R.P.

Media Plan

May 2, 2015
1

Media Planning Group

Taylor Conger
Bethany Pals
Parker Wolfe
Nick Lorenzen

Table of Contents
Media Contacts.........................4
Executive Summary.....5
Company History...6
Media Objectives and
strategies......8
The Target Audience....10
Media Selections........11
The Plan.......17
Budget...........18
Evaluation...18
Closing Statement.........19

Aspire Therapeutic Riding Program Media Contacts

Marilyn Moore, Executive Director

Phone: 319-296-0964
Fax: 319-296-0964
Email: Marilyn@aspiretrp.org
For General Information:
info@aspiretrp.org
Aspire TRP website:
www.aspiretrp.org
Location:
8100 Kimball Avenue
Waterloo, Iowa 50701

Executive Summary

Aspire Therapeutic Riding Program is hosting its 16th annual Trotting Towards the
Future event on May 2nd, 2015. With the help of many sponsors and volunteers, prepurchased tickets to the event will cost $20, and tickets at the door will cost $25. The
event will take place at the Grout Museum of History and Science in Waterloo, Iowa.
The doors open for the general public at 7:00pm with an hors doeuvres buffet open
from 7:00-9:00pm. The silent auction runs from 7:15-8:30, and the live auction starts at
8:30pm. Live music will be provided by Milk and Honey, a local band that specializes in
performing old school rock and roll hits.

The primary target audience for this event will be adults ages 25-70. Alcoholic
beverages will be served at the event, so children are allowed but not encouraged to
attend.

The media plan is going to run a month before the event, starting in April, 2015.
Promotion strategies will include radio and television broadcasts, newspaper
advertisements, and flyers.

Company History

Slogan: A smile on the kids face is worth it all!

ASPIRE Therapeutic Riding Program (TRP) is a nonprofit organization that benefits

individuals with disabilities through animal assisted activities and outreach. Aspires
primary clients are individuals with disabilities who benefit physically, emotionally, and
cognitively through animal-assisted activities, primarily through interaction with horses.

Aspire provides programming to over 800 students a year. The benefits to the students
include, self-esteem, balance, mobility, strength, self-confidence, and flexibility.
Therapeutic Riding utilizes every muscle to ride a horse. Individuals can walk better,
talk more, and laugh more. Riders feel a sense of independence and freedom while
riding the horse.

Aspire Therapeutic Riding Program has a fully certified and trained staff, including a fulltime Executive Director, a Program Director, certified instructors, a volunteer
coordinator, a horse trainer, barn manager, development director, administrative
assistant, and has access to professional occupational therapists, physical therapists,
and speech language pathologists. Staff maintains professional training and affiliation in
all their fields.

The organization has a fully functional facility with center-owned horses, and outdoor
working arenas, stables and barns, offices, equipment, and pastures. Aspires
community support includes a large variety and number of volunteers, sponsors, and
donors. Successful annual fundraisers and activities contribute to program support and
community awareness. Aspires horses come from rescue situations, donations and
purchases. The horses work for the program 1 to 5 days a week to serve the riders.

Media Objectives
Media Objectives for the May 2, 2015 Trotting Towards the Future Event:
Our main objective for this event is to have a minimum of 200 in attendance at
the event.
Create more hype about the event by distributing information about the event in
creative ways that will be remembered by the targeted audience.
Target wealthy citizens with income exceeding $50,000.
Target adults between the ages of 25 and 70, as well as horse lovers and
students.

Media Strategies
Hang flyers in hot spots in the Cedar Valley such as but not limited to:
University of Northern Iowa campus
Crossroads Mall
College Square Mall
Sidecar Coffee Shop
Cup of Joe
Other frequently visited establishments.
Utilize fellow horse lovers to volunteer and mass distribute fliers to high-end
businesses throughout the Cedar Valley.

 Create a newspaper advertisement including information of the event.

Use local radio platforms to advertise event, informing them of the information
regarding the event.
A feature story on the KWWL News Station about the event.
Disperse flyers and pamphlets on horseback the three days leading up to the
event.
Provide hayrides the night of the event.

Other Media considered, but not recommended:

Send personal invites to local horse ranches in surrounding counties,
Direct phone calls to the owners of horse ranches who received invitations to the
event.

Primary Target Audience

The primary audience for the Trotting Towards the Future event will be wealthy men
and women who want to support the nonprofit organization by attending and making
purchases at a silent and live auctions. The primary focus of the event is to raise the
attendance level of the targeted audience to a minimum of 200 in attendance. The event
will also target publics living in the Cedar Valley area since the event will be held in
Waterloo, Iowa.
Age: 25-70
Income: Exceeding $50,000
Geographical Location: Cedar Valley

Secondary Target Audience

The secondary target audience for the Trotting Toward the Future event includes local
horse lovers who want to attend, support, and volunteer their time and resources to the
event. Targeting college and high school students who need volunteer hours or
internship opportunities would help with getting the event set up, while also promoting
the nonprofit for free.
Age: 21-60
Geographical Location: Cedar Valley and surrounding counties

10

Media Selections

Newspapers
Newspapers are a great way to reach audience members in nearby communities. Local
newspapers will include the Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier and college newspaper the
Northern Iowan. For our event, we are targeting individuals up to 70 years old. Baby
Boomers read the newspaper more often for news updates, information, and daily
reading. 55 percent of people aged 65 and older read the newspaper daily. A
newspaper advertisement will
be sent out to all surrounding
counties of Waterloo, Iowa.
The advertisement will display
the date, location, and time,
admission costs, entertainment
and activities.

11

Flyers
Flyers are a great way to reach a large, diverse audience quickly. Flyers can be
displayed in hot spots around the Cedar Valley. Flyers can be displayed around the
University of Northern Iowa campus, Crossroads and College Square Mall, local coffee
shops, along with other frequently visited establishments. Volunteers will distribute
fliers around the community and utilize the horses to draw attention to the event.

12

Radio Broadcast
A 30-second radio commercial will be sent out to the five radio stations in the Cedar
Valley, including the University of Northern Iowas college radio. The stations will
include:
KOEL 98.5 FM - Country - Cedar Falls, Iowa
KZIA 102.9 FM - Top 40 - Cedar Rapids, Iowa
KULT 94.5 FM - College Radio - Cedar Falls, Iowa
KKHQ 92.3 FM - Pop Radio - Oelwein, Iowa
KWAY 99.3 FM - Classic Hits - Waverly, Iowa
These five stations were utilized because we think they will reach a wide variety of
audiences. The commercial will be 30 seconds long and will run on the each radio
station two weeks in advance.
RADIO RELEASE
:30 Second Spot - TROTTING TOWARDS THE FUTURE

WOULD YOU LIKE TO WIN A FREE LUXURIOUS VACATION FOR YOU AND YOUR
FAMILY? THEN COME JOIN US AT ASPIRE T-R-PS ANNUAL TROTTING TOWARDS
THE FUTURE EVENT. IT WILL TAKE PLACE ON MAY 2ND AT 7 P.M. AT THE GROUT
MUSEUM IN WATERLOO. THE SILENT AUCTION WILL BEGIN AT 7:15. THERE WILL BE
LIVE ENTERTAINMENT PROVIDED BY THE LOCAL COVER BAND MILK AND HONEY.
JOIN US FOR A NIGHT OF PRIZES, PARTYING, AND HORS D'OEUVRES. WE LOOK
FORWARD TO SEEING YOU THERE.
- 30 -

Social Media

13

Facebook is an important way to generate awareness and gain attention quickly and
effectively. Aside from other medias being used, Facebook is free of charge and targets
the younger demographics of our audience. The Aspire T.R.P Facebook page will be
utilized for the Trotting Towards the Future event. A Facebook event will be created
and and invites will be sent to media contacts, volunteers, sponsors, and horse lovers
who would be interested in attending the event. The Facebook event would primarily be
targeting our secondary audience of horse lovers and horse owners who have an
interest in supporting an organization that has similar interests.

14

Television Broadcast
The television broadcast will target audiences in the Cedar Valley who watch the
nighttime news. KWWL will be the main station where the event will be advertised and
is planning on doing a short feature story on Aspires Trotting Toward the Future event.
KWWL will visit Aspires farm in Waterloo and feature executive director, Marilyn Moore,
with her horses talking about the event and the details of the event. The television
broadcast will air 1 week before the event, and target audiences during the evening
news. The theme of the broadcast will be heartfelt, with a down on the farm feel,
encouraging our primary and secondary audiences to attend the event on May 2nd.
KWWL is one of the main sponsors for this event, so they will also mention the event on
Saturday May 2 as a last minute reminder to those attending.

Logo
The Trotting Towards the Future logo will be displayed on many printed materials to
help promote the event.

15

News Release
We will send out news releases to all of our media contacts in the Cedar Valley area,
alerting them of the event.

Contact: Marilyn Moore

319-296-0964
Marilyn@aspiretrp.org
Aspire T.R.P. Trotting Towards the Future
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WATERLOO, Iowa-- Aspire Therapeutic Riding Program is hosting Trotting Towards

the Future, a classy affair featuring live music, hors doeuvres and a silent auction on
May 2nd, 2014. This event will be take place Saturday evening, starting at 7 p.m. in
hopes of raising money to support the therapeutic riding program.
This event will take place at the Grout Museum of History & Science. All ages are
invited to this event, although it is catered towards ages 21 and up, and will include live
music from the band, Milk and Honey. The ticket price per person is $20 before the
event, and $25 at the door.
All proceeds will go towards taking care of the horses, purchasing equipment, and
seeing through that our therapeutic riding can continue to improve the quality of life
physically and emotionally, for those who need it most.
If you are interested in becoming a sponsor or donating items for auction, go online to
www.aspiretrp.org/support and fill out the donation form. Special thanks to our 2014
sponsors, KWWL News Channel 7, VGM Member Service Organization, and Dickeys
Printing.
If you have any questions contact Marilyn Moore at Marilyn@aspiretrp.org.
###

16

The Plan
We have decided to utilize four main mediums to spread our message such as radio,
print, television, and social media. The two most important mediums that require vast
preparation are radio advertisements and print.
We are trying to reach a variety of people from the middle to upper class, from horse
lovers, to people who are passionate about helping others around the community. Radio is an
excellent way to reach a number of different types of people. Through radio we can reach
college students driving to work or school. We can also reach middle aged or older workers,
driving to jobs in the mornings, and home in the afternoon, or parents dropping off and picking
up their children from school. Focusing on an older, working class group, with mix of parents in
the community, will provide us with caring people that might attend the event.
Another form of media we will use to create awareness of Trotting Towards the Future is
through print. Using print media we will distribute fliers. These fliers will be sent out to College
Square Mall, UNI campus, a few local businesses, and other hotspots within the Cedar Valley.
With the 300 fliers that we are sending out, we hope to reach a wide variety of people and
spread the word.
Another media form that we will use is social media. We will create the event in a
Facebook group and then send out invites to our Facebook friends and potential sponsors. This
will enable a large amount of contacts to see the future event. This could lead to a trickle down
effect when you see that your friends are going which would increase attendance.
Our final form of media is television. We will use a feature story which will be shown on
KWWL during the news. This will reach an older demographic and increase awareness for the
event.

17

Budget
Materials

Cost

Posters for businesses (25)

$60

Flyers (300)

$50

Catering Fee

$500

Radio Advertisements (5 stations)

$300

Newspaper Advertisements (2)

$200

Facility Rental Fee

$350

Total

$1,460

Evaluation
To evaluate the Trotting Towards the Future event we plan to send out surveys to people who
attended the event, volunteered, and made purchases at the silent and live auctions. The
surveys will ask attendees if they were satisfied with the event and their purchases. This will be
beneficial for future events in preparation of similar events or activities. Another way to evaluate
the effectiveness of the event is to see how much coverage our advertisements had, the reach,
and to evaluate who saw the ads and promotions versus the amount of people who attended. If
the number of attendees increased since previous events in the past years, it is clear that our
reach was further than before. Therefore, our advertisements were effective, causing more
people to attend the Trotting Towards the Future event and raising more money for the ASPIRE
nonprofit organization.

18

Closing Statement
By using all of our available media outlets, we hope to effectively reach our primary and
secondary audiences. We will create excitement about the event through all of the previously
explained media resources. The number of people that attend the event and the evaluation of
their surveys will determine the success of the event. We strongly believe that our media tactics
will enable Trotting Towards the Future to be a great success.

19