On October 17, 2017, over 5,400 individuals joined together for On the Table MKE, a coordinated effort by the Greater Milwaukee Foundation (GMF, or the Foundation) to inspire as many people as possible in Milwaukee, Washington, Waukesha and Ozaukee Counties to gather in small groups, all on the same day, to share a meal and engage in meaningful conversation about what we must do — individually and collectively — to improve the quality of life in our community. Mueller Communications (Mueller) was proud to be the Foundation’s communications partner for the inaugural initiative.

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Mueller worked with GMF to develop and execute a comprehensive outreach strategy designed to reach the Foundation’s target audiences. Mueller also helped expand the Foundation’s reach and impact by leveraging existing relationships and connections to drive engagement and participation. In total, Mueller compiled and managed a database of almost 2,000 contacts spanning a range of demographics, psychographics, work industries and zip codes. Mueller conducted regular outreach to these contacts through social media, e-newsletters and personal appeals in order to recruit table hosts and participants.

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To help drive general awareness of the initiative and encourage individuals to learn more and sign up to host a table, Mueller organized a “soft” launch of the initiative during the Foundation’s annual meeting. Soon thereafter, Mueller planned and executed a highly successful, large-scale public launch media event on the rooftop of 88Nine.

Mueller also assisted the Foundation in creating two videos to help introduce the On the Table concept and attract participants. The first video was an illustrated “how-to-host” video, and the other was a montage video featuring community influencers posing with the On the Table “logo” — a thought bubble. The illustrated video was the Foundation’s most-watched video of all time.

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Mueller’s promotion strategy for On the Table far exceeded goals, involving nearly 5,400 participants (against a stretch target of 3,000) and dramatically increasing GMF’s presence in the community by generating 29,377,899 impressions through print and broadcast coverage as well as a total of 30,538,395 social media impressions across all channels. Following the event, Mueller helped conduct a post-event survey. The results of this survey were then compiled into a Mueller-designed Community Impact Report for GMF’s board.