Client Love: Featuring The Princess Ball
The Princess Ball is a celebration of a young, beautiful life that was cut short and the legacy that she has left behind. On April 14th, 500 guests attended the sold out event at the Liberty Grand. With the help of The Princess Ball guests, volunteers, and supporters, The Princess Ball raised $70,000 for Make-A-Wish® Foundation of Canada, giving 7 families some magic to get through difficult days. Jennifer White founded Wishes for Olivia after the sudden passing of her beautiful, spirited, 5-year-old daughter, Olivia Grace, in March 2013. She wished to honour her daughter and carry on her legacy by spreading magic and helping other children realize their dreams.
Inspired by her daughter, Jennifer started The Princess Ball, an annual charity gala for families ready to experience a bit of enchantment. All funds raised by Wishes for Olivia events are donated to the Make-A-Wish® Foundation of Canada.
WE BELIVE IN MAGIC
At SongBird Marketing Communications, we believe in magic, we believe in making dreams come true, and we believe in the power of stories and experiences. That’s why The Princess Ball feels like a natural fit. Jennifer’s desire and determination to share her daughter's legacy and spread happiness and magic to others, is a dream that resonates deeply with the SongBird team.
Since 2015, SongBird Marketing Communications has been working with Wishes of Olivia to continue generating buzz for the evergrowing Princess Ball. Although The Princess Ball sells out each year, it was important to us to challenge ourselves to build more awareness within the community in new ways. With more awareness, our goal was not necessarily to sell more tickets, but to help increase the annual donation to Make-A-Wish® so that we could help make more wishes could come true.
Just as Cinderella’s friends worked to prepare her for the ball, for months SongBird worked tirelessly as part of the Princess Ball team to prepare for the big day on April 14th.We created social media content, reached out to sponsors, coordinated with media and influencers, and worked on all the small but magical details that make The Princess Ball so enchanting.
SOCIAL MEDIA, MEDIA, AND INFLUENCERS… OH MY!
From features of inspiring kids and quotes, to announcements, crafts, and more, we had fun creating consistent, engaging content for social media. We posted several times a week and engaged with The Princess Ball audience through comments, likes, and retweets. We also created more hype and excitement by organizing social media contests that grew the online community.
In previous years we have worked with influencers on an individual basis, focusing more on traditional media. This year we put together a media and influencer strategy that focused on a larger influencer campaign. We worked with five influencers who we felt represented the Princess Ball demographic and reflected the magic of the Princess Ball. They shared photos and videos to help spread the word about ticket sales, getting ready for the event, and while having fun at The Princess Ball, which elevated the event’s visibility.
During the early hours of March 15th, guests, sponsors, and the CityTV team filled a designated area of The Hilton Hotel in Toronto for a morning of Breakfast Television Live Eye segments with new host Nicole Servinis. Our young guests sang and danced with Moana and the other princesses, got glammed by Glama Gals and got creative with DesignHer Co. Watching the tiny guests having a blast filled our hearts with joy and we just couldn’t wait for them to attend The Princess Ball in April, which would be bigger and better than ever.
THE MAGICAL DAY!
On April 13th and the morning of April 14th, we took over the Liberty Grand to begin setting up for the magical day.
There was an amazing team of volunteers who helped set up the candy bar, auction tables, and more. Balloons and the City worked from the early morning to the afternoon to create incredible balloon creations that had everyone gushing over them. As each area in the Liberty Grand was completed, we were all buzzing with more and more excitement. Visitors from a galaxy far, far away, under the sea, and from once upon a time settled in and were ready to meet all of the guests.
Although we were fundraising for Make-A-Wish®, it wasn’t the only way that we gave back to those who could use a bit of enchantment. It was important to also provide a magical, enchanting day to all of the families that attended.
Before the end of the afternoon, Jennifer gave a moving, heartfelt speech as guests held back tears. The speech and the event were a beautiful tribute to Olivia Grace White. Jennifer asked us to remember Olivia Grace, to include her in our stories, because she was, and still is, the Disney Princess, she’s the Katniss Everdeen. She’s all of the incredible heroines in the stories that we love and share. Olivia Grace inspired The Princess Ball and continues to inspire others so that other incredible children like her, can experience a moment they’ve dreamed of.
We can’t wait for next year!
Contact us to find out how you can get involved in this incredible initiative!