Project Overview
Self Help, Inc. enjoyed high local awareness of the Head Start name, but understanding of eligibility, costs, benefits, and the enrollment process had fallen off. Local parents often confused Head Start with general daycare or assumed they did not qualify. Self Help wanted to increase inquiries for Head Start enrollment within a tight timeframe to boost enrollment across the service area.
Our Solution
Self Help’s Head Start website pages were strong on child and parent benefits, but required new messaging and the Agency needed more marketplace awareness to drive enrollment sign-ups within a very tight timeframe. Rather than a broad “brand awareness” push, Self Help turned to Human Service Solutions to create a precision digital marketing creative campaign that would get parents’ attention quickly, clarify program eligibility, and accelerate response in the form of enrollment sign-ups.
Website Landing Page • Social Media Advertising
The Strategy & Tactics
We applied three key tactics:
- Revised messaging for public outreach to emphasize key benefits of Head Start to appeal to families within the service area, including:
- Age qualification: 3-to-5 years old.
- Cost to enroll: NO COST for parents who qualify.
- What it is: Preschool 4-6 hours a day, 5 days a week, including meals.
- Placed targeted creative ads on Facebook designed to grab the attention of parents (ages 22–40) in the service area and send them to landing pages or the phone number for more details. Strong emphasis on “NO COST” and a clear “Check to see if you qualify” CTA.
- Worked with Agency staff to update Head Start pages with revised content that more clearly highlighted key benefits and requirements, along with stronger calls-to-action and inquiry forms to drive interest.
The Results
Despite it being a quick-turnaround solution, our campaign delivered measurable outcomes fast in the form of new, in-time enrollments as well as sustained improvements, such as:
- An Immediate Surge in Inquiries: During the 4-week organic + paid ad flight, program inquiries more than doubled compared to the prior month, driving over 100 new inquiries.
- “Halo Effect” on Applications: While enrollment applications surged at the time of the campaign, inquiries also remained high in the months afterward, even after paid ads were discontinued, with consistent program interest from the community continuing months after the campaign ended.
Staff Testimonial
“This targeted digital enrollment campaign helped raise awareness about the Self Help Head Start program with the aim of quickly boosting inquiries and application submissions. The inquiries started coming in almost immediately following the start of the campaign, and our team received a notable increase in enrollment applications in the weeks that followed. Even better, the website updates are still helping to drive new inquiries on a continuing basis, even without spending more on ads.”
– Head Start Enrollment Coordinator, Self Help, Inc.
Conclusion
By pairing benefit-driven, creative messaging and design with precise ad placement and an easy conversion path, we were able to solve Self Help’s immediate enrollment gap, as well as building a durable digital asset that continues to perform. The campaign demonstrates that for Community Action Agencies, a small investment in targeted digital tactics can yield outsized, lasting returns in engagement and program sustainability.