The Challenge
Faced with the challenge of testing the viability of an organisation, which is dedicated to assisting and supporting child care organisations in the South West, thebox developed a study, which further extended the viability with a business plan, recommendations and implementation.
The original concept was created by three experienced and committed ladies under the banner of ‘The Pod’.
The Pod’s antecedents originated from a project team tasked with developing a strategy for the delivery of support services to childcare centres as part of the ‘Investing In Our Youth’ organisation. Following the ‘Viability Study’ which was funded by the Department of Local Government and Communities’ Regional Community Child Care Development Fund and Royalties for Regions, a government grant further enabled the project team to seek assistance in formulating a research program and developing a communication strategy. thebox was then commissioned to implement the findings.
The Idea
Using a myriad of research methods, the thebox Viability Study identified that in 2050 the projected size of the South West population would exceed 500,000 supported by 200,000 new jobs, which translates to almost a 300% population increase over 35 years. By extrapolating the current adult to child ratio, the population of children under 14 would then be some 34,425. On this analysis, the need for child care today and into the future was a serious economic issue which had to be addressed immediately.
The Solution
The Study recommended a communication plan to apply the strategies. Consequently, thebox created a new brand for The Pod, which was compatible with childcare businesses, donors and parents. It positioned ‘The Pod’ as professional and caring, and conveyed a sense of protection.
A complete communication kit was created which included: all livery items, info-graphics, merchandise, presentations and a website. Careful to maintain continuity the designers developed a style guide to maintain faithful discipline of the organisation’s projection and worked with the team to perfect specific service packages which offered the organisation’s clients an attractive ‘knowledge base’.
The Last Word
By using the Viability Study, Business Plan and the Strategic Report to guide the way for the communication implementation, The Pod has not only garnered memberships from child care centres but have received support from the South West Development Commission and State Government by way of some $150,000 of grants and the acquisition of further grants for its child care centre members. The Pod is now an active and vibrant support mechanism for Child Care Centres in the South West and may become the catalyst for a state based program.
What They Said
“There was throughout our beginnings, a great deal of uncertainty and caution as to the mechanics of developing the ‘shopfront’ of our social enterprise model. The Jack in the box team at every turn, stepped us through what we felt like were some of the biggest risks in developing a website, memberships, branding, marketing collateral and communications. The team have been charitable in their time supporting our efforts to raise the profile of our core business and by virtue, that of our clients too. It has been thus far, an incredible journey with Jack in the box!”
Louise Fischer – Executive Officer
What we’ve done
- Strategic Planning
- Facilitation
- Brand Development
- Corporate Style
- Stationery Suite
- Design
- Printing
- Merchandise
- Collateral
- Templates
- Signage Solutions
- Copywriting
- Website