FIRST BOOK

Organizational Vision
Citizen Base Strategy
How It's Working
Lessons Learned

Organizational Vision

First Book provides children of low-income families an opportunity to read and own their first new book. The organization supplies new books to children participating in community-based mentoring, tutoring, and family literacy programs, a model developed to leverage the work of existing literacy programs in a variety of settings, such as Head Start centers, libraries, soup kitchens, churches, housing projects, and after-school initiatives. Working through this vast network of organizations, First Book plays a critical role in transforming the quality of preschool and after-school programs nationwide. First Book's model is national in scope and local in impact. In its first year, First Book distributed approximately 12,000 books in three communities. Since that time, First Book has distributed more than 50 million books to children in over 3,000 communities around the country. Fast Company magazine and the Monitor Group selected First Book to receive the 2007 Social Capitalist Award for the fourth straight year in the category of education and literacy. First Book is currently expanding its programs to an international reach.

Citizen Base Strategy

Leverage local, like-minded champions

Prior to entering a community, First Book selects targeted low-income communities and contacts existing local organizations that work to promote literacy for children. These local organizations already working within their communities typically include libraries, shelters for homeless and abused children, housing project initiatives, clinics, migrant worker camps, and faith-based service programs. First Book also contacts local leaders such as teachers, retailers, lawyers, school representatives, parents, local business owners, caregivers, and public officials who typically serve as champions for bringing First Book to their community. Together, this network of leaders and organizations—all dedicated to ending illiteracy—comprise the Local Advisory Board (LAB) and act as the First Book field office on the ground, feeding First Book information about the children whom First Book aims to serve. LABs then have inside knowledge to identify the most effective community-based literacy programs, such as libraries and homeless and abused children shelters. In addition, First Book uses the contacts of the Local Advisory Boards, to solicits corporate partnerships and develop the capacity to support its programs.

First Book’s success depends not only on their creative ability to draw in sponsors, but also on their ability to successfully organize on the local level. First Book builds strong relationships with its LAB members and coordinates its national initiatives effectively with each of its 275 local boards; in turn, the LABs are able to handle local advertising and generate the turnout to these events that make them such a success and keep corporations interested in working with First Book. First Book’s local organizing efforts also provide key data on target communities—numbers—that they employ alongside their innovative marketing pitches to help bring credibility to their proposals.

Design cause-based marketing campaigns

First Book’s assertive mission statement (“...to end [illiteracy]”) sends the clear message that the organization intends to accomplish great things, making First Book an attractive partner to both communities as well as corporations. In addition, First Book emphasizes the importance of mutually beneficial partnerships. According to Zimmer, “First Book doesn’t ask corporations for donations and hand-outs. Instead, we design and implement marketing campaigns that are good for the company and good for First Book. Our success is based on creative ideas and multi-dimensional strategies that integrate print, broadcast, and online media with a range of retail, manufacturing, and technology corporations.”

For three consecutive years, First Book has partnered with ice cream company Baskin-Robbins to promote the “lick illiteracy” campaign. On a designated night each spring, Baskin-Robbins offers a free scoop of ice-cream to customers across the country. For each scoop given away, Baskin-Robbins makes a donation to First Book. The campaign has been gaining great momentum and is a good example of local integration of a national campaign. The Local Advisory Boards’ use of the campaign helps to increase their visibility in the community and also to recruit new members to the Boards.

First Book has also teamed with a division of the Ford Motor Company, Mercury, to create a campaign to bring new books to needy children. The Mercury Mountaineer Drive For Literacy was funded by a $1 million donation from Mercury which was matched with books from Random House Children’s books. To celebrate the partnership, events were held in more than 61 communities where dozens of new Local Advisory Boards were launched to ensure children nationwide will continue to receive an ongoing supply of books.

The Coca-Cola Company and Scholastic, Inc. partnered with First Book to launch a national initiative that results in the distribution of tens of thousands of books in communities across the country. Their initiative, The Gift of Reading Tour, reached out to children in five cities during the fall of 2001. The largest book was created, standing at 12ft tall by 15 ft wide, which was taken on the road across the United States. Community members were invited to add their signatures to the book. For each signature collected, The Coca-Cola Company and Scholastic donated a new book to First Book to distribute.

How It’s Working

• Research indicates that the number of children showing a high interest in reading nearly triples after receiving books from First Book

• First Book has distributed more than 50 million new books to children from low-income families across the United States.

• First Book works in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, serving more than 3,000 communities nationwide.

• At the local level, First Book has nearly 275 volunteer Advisory Boards that raise funds and select the most effective programs in their community as First Book grantees.

• First Book is the signature charity of the U.S. Coast Guard. The Coast Guard provides volunteer support and warehouse space around the nation.

• First Book has established a series of subsidiaries to provide creative arts supplies and computer software to pre-school and after school programs to create confidence within children to help express themselves through arts, technology, and written word.

Lessons Learned

• Plan multiple marketing methods. Engage multiple methods of promoting and raising funds for the cause will steer the organization from dependency on traditional funding sources. Incorporate creative ideas into print, broadcast, and online media, where feasible.

• Reach sustainability by spreading the message. Sustainability means more than financial security; sustainability involves spreading the organization’s message along with engaging others to help with the mission.

• Allow for organic growth. Let the organization expand into various locations and/or programs. As long as the organization’s movement is towards reaching the goal, having numerous similar programs in practice increases success.