How the ASPCA and Rokt Scaled Donor Volume with an Always-On Campaign

Summary

When it comes to attracting donors, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals® (ASPCA®), the nation’s first and leading animal welfare organization, saw opportunity beyond the holidays. By partnering with Rokt to focus on high-value donors and building lookalike audiences, the ASPCA boosted donor volume all year round, gaining 89% growth year-over-year.

About the ASPCA

For more than 150 years, the ASPCA has been on the frontlines to save, transform, and protect millions of lives in the fight against animal cruelty, revolutionizing the way society cares for animals. They surround the most critical issues from every angle including tackling the most challenging cases in the most challenging places with teams of experts working tirelessly to develop innovative solutions that improve the welfare of animals big and small. Through hands-on work and in collaboration with local partners nationwide, their collective impact is multiplied to give as many vulnerable animals as possible the second chance they deserve. The ASPCA is the voice for millions of animals across the country and their commitment to eliminating animal cruelty is unwavering. Until permanent change ensures all animals are treated with respect and kindness, their work to protect them will never stop.

The Challenge

Donations are a cornerstone of the ASPCA’s operating model, but most charitable giving occurs during the holidays. Historically, the ASPCA’s donor volume is 56% higher in December than the rest of the year. The organization wanted to attract donors all year round and address lagging volume in the early months of 2024. To scale donor growth, the ASPCA chose to partner with Rokt.

The Solutions 

Rokt helped the ASPCA develop an innovative donor acquisition channel. By running ASPCA ads on the confirmation pages of relevant ecommerce sites, the organization reached customers at their peak engagement — during the Transaction Moment™ when they are already spending. 

Audience targeting was a huge part of the ASPCA’s strategy. Initially running an evergreen campaign for all donation amounts, the ASPCA worked with Rokt to use value-based optimization to prioritize monthly customers with a high propensity to donate greater amounts. 

 And the ASPCA didn’t stop there. Using Rokt’s Lookalike Audience feature, the ASPCA expanded their reach in a new one-time donor campaign. By tapping into information about their previous high-value one-time donors, they were able to more efficiently find new donors with a similar likelihood of donating higher amounts.

“We outpaced our goals once we switched to Rokt’s value-optimization strategy,” said Emily Wong Harley, VP of Media at the ASPCA’s agency Laughlin Constable.

Lastly, Rokt provided a/b testing capabilities, empowering the ASPCA to experiment with different creatives and audience segments to drive greater efficiency. For example, the ASPCA tested personalization in their headline copy to mention Rokt users by their first name when showing the post-checkout unit.

The Results

Through running campaigns with Rokt, the ASPCA achieved success outside of its holiday peak season. Lookalike audiences played a pivotal role in the one-time donor campaign – By targeting people similar to their high-value donors, the ASPCA saw 413% greater conversion rates than their alternative audience targeting. 

Overall, donor volume increased 89% year-over-year from January to October of 2024, proving that a year-round campaign can drive donations beyond the holidays. 

Harley said, “Rokt’s ability to target high-value users through first-party data and set up lookalike audiences has made it a huge acquisition channel for the ASPCA.”

The Learnings

• An always-on charity campaign can be a key driver of donation volume beyond the holiday peak season. Rokt provides the unique ability to run campaigns all year round to help charities maximize their donor reach.
• Experimentation drives cost efficiencies, conversions, and most importantly, customer-centricity.
• Stay focused on the customer when creating an ad strategy and tap into the power of lookalike audiences.
• Iterate on creatives to amplify emotional resonance and the impact of giving.
  

To learn more about how Rokt Ads can help you make the most of the Transaction Moment, schedule a consult.