Crafting a campaign that builds donor confidence
Donors believe in the vision faster when you demonstrate why they should trust you.
Trust fuels transformation
Every major fundraising campaign tests an organization’s ability to communicate trust. The larger the goal, the greater the need for clarity and consistency. Donors aren’t only asked to give, they’re asked to believe in the organization’s readiness to deliver on its promise.
For many nonprofits, that belief hinges on communication. Campaigns that feel underdeveloped can raise doubt, while campaigns that aligned and confident build momentum. The difference often lies in the materials themselves: not just what they say, but how they work together to demonstrate quality and discipline. Are the materials communicating thoughtfully and clearly? Are they easy to read and understand? Do they feel unified and trustworthy?
Equipping every voice for success
Kinship Community Food Center’s challenge was the same one that many nonprofits face in a capital campaign: to communicate a large, transformative ask in a way that built trust, understanding, and confidence among donors.
When they embarked on a significant fundraising effort for their new home, the campaign called on staff, board members, and volunteers to represent the effort in whatever way they could best reach potential donors: meetings, presentations, and one-on-one conversations. To succeed, everyone needed tools that built and reinforced trust, telling the same story in the same way, across any form of media that was called for; digital presentations, printed materials, and written communications.
Ravenwood Design Group joined a collaborative team that included Kinship’s fundraising consultant, development director, communications associate, and executive leadership. RDG led the visual design, shaping a system that made the campaign’s organization and preparedness visible. The end result was campaign materials that made the message easy to deliver and hard to doubt.
A short-term sub-brand with long-term alignment
The campaign drew from Kinship’s most recognizable brand assets—its typography, tone, and core visual cues—to create a dedicated campaign logo and palette. The result felt like Kinship, but carried the focus and polish of a major fundraising effort.
By investing care and attention in the campaign materials, Kinship demonstrated the same readiness it was asking donors to support. Consistent design gave the campaign continuity across presentations, print materials, and communications. Each piece was organized, clear, and consistent, reflecting the discipline behind the campaign itself.
RDG also encouraged a narrative structure that followed one person’s experience through Kinship’s ecosystem. That single story helped donors understand the depth of the organization without flattening it, translating complexity into clarity.
Making an ambitious goal feel achievable
The campaign’s strength came from its clarity. Every element, visual, structural, and narrative, worked together to make Kinship’s vision feel tangible and within reach. The materials gave everyone involved a shared foundation for telling the story with confidence. In the end, preparation itself became proof of readiness.
Special thanks to HGA, McDonald Schaefer, and the Kinship team.
Creative Direction & Strategy
Lydia Ravenwood
McDonald Schaefer
Art Direction
Lydia Ravenwood
Graphic Design
Lydia Ravenwood
Quyen Tonnu
Meghan Polzin
Sarah Schauf