YCore Project Spotlight: Product and Footprint Digitalization with 826 Valencia
- Project Lead: Michelle Bui
- Fellows: Charles Zhang, David Ongchoco, Johnny Lee
- In Partnership With: Byron Weiss at 826 Valencia
826 Valencia is a nonprofit organization that strives to inspire and support underprivileged youth from age six to eighteen in their writing endeavors. Their programs are based around one-on-one attention and the belief that strong writing skills are essential to future success. 826 Valencia’s services are offered to kids in the Bay Area absolutely free of charge. They also have a separate organization, 826 National, that boasts nine official chapters across the U.S.
As a partner with 826 Valencia, YCore’s team — project lead Michelle Bui and fellows Charles Zhang, David Ongchoco, and Johnny Lee — dedicated themselves to two objectives in the hopes of increasing the nonprofit’s visibility online:
- Ebook go-to-market strategy (launch plan, eCommerce positioning, distribution channel, SEO, target market segmentation)
- Increase digital footprint within Yelp/Google Map (discovery, customer reviews, content)
The team’s solution involved ideating through double diamond design approach, arranging in-person meetings with partner to share milestones, receive feedback, and gauge feasibility of project, and using workshops to re-evaluate project progress and relate back to a greater theme of social impact. Ultimately, they hoped that these methods would aid in increasing foot traffic to the Mission Bay store by helping them and their partner identify and optimize their target market and marketing levers.
Impact of COVID-19:
Though with the recent developments of COVID-19, 826 Valencia’s physical store operations and programs are indefinitely on halt, the nonprofit remains dedicated to their mission. 826 Valencia is currently seeking to open virtual tutors/workshops for their existing user, as well as invest more resources into their digital presence.
In line with the nonprofit’s current objectives, YCore’s team will similarly dedicate more focus towards developing better digital strategy and presence to capture digital traffic. You can also do your part — donate to 826 Valencia at https://826valencia.org/donate/ or directly to YCore at https://ycore.org/donate/ and help support 826 Valencia’s students in this challenging time.
