Omni-channel marketing campaign
River Days 2026
Turning 37 events into one cohesive regional campaign that inspired more than 1,500 people to experience and protect the San Diego River.
1.37 M
IMPRESSIONS
37
EVENTS
1,500+
PARTICIPANTS
31
PARTNERS
The Challenge
One campaign.
Dozens of experiences.
The goal of the River Days marketing campaign was to raise awareness of the San Diego River watershed as a natural treasure while elevating the work of The San Diego River Park Foundation (SDRPF) and its 31 partner organizations. The campaign objectives were to promote 37 events over nine days, drive registrations, engage at least 1,200 participants, and equip partners with consistent, easy-to-share campaign materials.
With activities ranging from volunteer projects and hikes to outdoor recreation, wildlife education, and family programming, the challenge was to make a large and varied event calendar easy to explore while uniting the entire initiative under one recognizable identity.
The campaign needed to reach a diverse array of target audiences, including environmentalists, families, outdoor recreation enthusiasts, students, and wildlife and art lovers in the communities of Ocean Beach, Mission Valley, Linda Vista, City Heights, Santee, La Mesa, El Cajon, and Julian.
MY ROLE & APPROACH
A connected, multi-channel strategy
I developed and implemented the 6-month marketing and communications campaign from initial messaging through final reporting.
Developed messaging and cohesive branding
Designed logo and branded materials
Created content for email, social media, web, and print
Delivered and managed paid social, web, and radio advertising
Wrote press release and pitched media stories
Created and shared a partner promotional toolkit
Engaged diverse government, nonprofit, and corporate partners in partner marketing initiatives and co-branding
Coordinated with the Volunteer Manager on an in-person outreach campaign, aligning messaging and tracking promotion at community events, farmers markets, and presentations
Managed Special Events Intern to help with design and content creation
Tracked performance and refined campaign strategies and messaging based on digital metrics
Content that drove awareness of River Days and event registrations
CAMPAIGN IN ACTION
I created social media posts, promotional emails, and event listings that engaged target audiences and drove event registrations.
Instagram Post
1274 views ~ 46 interactions ~ 3.6% engagement rate
Instagram Carousel Post
4258 views ~ 91 interactions ~ 2.1% engagement rate
Copywriting for River Days Event Listing
30 participants registered ~ Achieved 100% of the registration goal
Copywriting & Design of Promotional River Days Email
14,533 sends ~ 37% open rate ~ 1.3% click-through-rate
THE RESULTS
Impact For the San Diego River Through Awareness, Engagement, and Participation
The campaign met or exceeded its goals, inspiring more San Diegans to steward, explore, and learn about the San Diego River watershed while increasing awareness of the organizations working to protect it.
1,541 community members participated, exceeding the goal of 1,200. Attendees stewarded the river through cleanups and habitat restoration, explored it through hikes and recreation, and learned about its wildlife through hands-on nature and art activities.
37 events were hosted by SDRPF and 31 partner organizations along all 52 miles of the watershed, from the mountains to the sea.
At least 1,371,343 measurable impressions were generated through tracked marketing, communications, and media channels
27 organic social media posts generated 43,085 views, with engagement rates of 4.7% on Instagram and 1.9% on Facebook.
Paid social media campaigns generated 44,525 impressions and 1,326 clicks, achieving click-through rates of 2.52% and 4.6% at an efficient cost per click of $0.13–$0.25.
The social media and email channels I managed contributed significantly to event discovery, with social media ranking as the second-largest reported attribution channel at 21%, behind only word of mouth at 32%.
Campaign emails achieved a 43% average open rate and a 10.5% average click-through rate, demonstrating outstanding audience interest and engagement.
The campaign period resulted in significant audience growth, with 1,000 new e-newsletter sign-ups and 567 new followers across Instagram and Facebook.
Press release and media outreach efforts secured five news stories from leading San Diego outlets, including FOX 5, ABC 10, NBC 7, the San Diego Union-Tribune, and East County Magazine.