Case Studies
September + October: Overcoming Failed Ad Spend
Campaigns continue to post on the initial post date and then fail to reach the platform audience for more than 24 hours due to low cost per click and a minimized campaign budget. This issue is to be troubleshooted by the Financial Dept. and PFY Director. We see a tremendous growth in clicks to the webpage from these initial posts.
The continued use of previous campaign materials created a slump in community engagement. Staff continue to update older materials with innovative, tasteful, and creative layered contrasted designs, which counter the preconceived expectations of sexual imagery used on Grindr. Additionally, we find that Suffolk County underperforms in engagement and reach versus Nassau and Queens, which can be caused by differences in population size and the increased size of POC communities.
COC - Haunted Haus Party shook the expectations of platform success, bringing in a 157% conversion rate, bringing the average rate across all four placements to 57% conversion, which exceeds monthly engagement specializations by 825%, all within the first 24 hours of posting. If this were to run forward with a greater ad spend, we could have seen a tremendous upward shift in engagement and client procurement. Let this be the testament to all that we are capable of creating in worthy work when we let our staff shine.
PrEP DTF continues to outperform other enticements, reaching a 9% conversion rate. Within our constellation of adverts, we continue to see that the MpowerVida Promo receives an average conversion rate range of 5-7%. We are in search of better images to inspire a new adaptation of this campaign.
The continued use of previous campaign materials created a slump in community engagement. Staff continue to update older materials with innovative, tasteful, and creative layered contrasted designs, which counter the preconceived expectations of sexual imagery used on Grindr. Additionally, we find that Suffolk County underperforms in engagement and reach versus Nassau and Queens, which can be caused by differences in population size and the increased size of POC communities.
COC - Haunted Haus Party shook the expectations of platform success, bringing in a 157% conversion rate, bringing the average rate across all four placements to 57% conversion, which exceeds monthly engagement specializations by 825%, all within the first 24 hours of posting. If this were to run forward with a greater ad spend, we could have seen a tremendous upward shift in engagement and client procurement. Let this be the testament to all that we are capable of creating in worthy work when we let our staff shine.
PrEP DTF continues to outperform other enticements, reaching a 9% conversion rate. Within our constellation of adverts, we continue to see that the MpowerVida Promo receives an average conversion rate range of 5-7%. We are in search of better images to inspire a new adaptation of this campaign.
May-July: Comparative Analysis Utilizing Abstraction vs Figuration
Programming events at PFY Suffolk MpowermentLI and MpowermentVida are sluggish for several months after their initial start. We are seeing new attendants once per week, yet they are not retained into the following week's program. Ultimately, we are looking to develop connections to the LGBTQ community online through peer and staff outreach on Grindr, Instagram, and Facebook, and convert these newly engaged clientele into direct linkages to in-person sexual health services. Continually, we are reporting low engagement with the online community through company outreach on Grindr and are looking to increase the number of attendants that can fully utilize our network of services. Specifically, we are looking to increase engagement in HHS (Human Health Services: counseling, food pantry, gender-affirming care, and asylum letters) and stimulate growth and retention of clients for our weekly events under the RPSSI grant.
Data shows that across FB, Instagram, and Grindr, clients are slowly converting less when presented with our older marketing materials, which may be fatigue within a saturated advertisement space. Peak-performing content points towards a revamp of visual products and landing pages as the best means to re-engage the audience with PFY's services. Generally, local and national agencies hinge engagement on services through Grindr, using overt sexual images to tie to arousal centers in patrons of the app. Competitors Q-Care+, Blue Chew, Gilead, and Mistr have significantly larger budgets than PFY, yet our small scale, regionality, and specificity can be leveraged. Overwhelm from sexual adverts and sexual content within the app (Grindr) may be leading to audience fatigue, which leads to lower engagement overall; taking this exhaustion into effect, an oppositional or contrasting approach may lead to more success if considered.
In response to COC and RPSSI contract data, we have determined that the trend of user engagement is tilted towards aesthetic approaches that use abstraction, displaced/augmented figures, better quality stock images, humor, and contrast to develop conceptual marketing. Within these ads, "Take a Bite" leads with text and color, a lead-in engagement where shirtless torsos and muscled figures once led clicks and leads. In lieu of total website renovation and photography, we see that the data distribution carries high for images that rely on abstraction, artistry, and subversion of the body when placed on Grindr, as these new images contrast against competitor marketing campaigns. Within the RPSSI May-June Adverts, we see the emergence of a positive trend that demonstrates user engagement increases when presented with these subversive images that utilize macro and cropped photography, thus inverting the relationship with the subject in the campaign, giving prominence to imagination and exploration, whereas in previous images the presence of the face and naked torso reached more yet had a lower conversion rate. The new approach in image fidelity reduces the reach, yet yields a higher conversion rate increase of 0.3-1.5% over previous campaigns. This follows January's and March's, which focused on brand identity and expanding on authenticity.
Data shows that across FB, Instagram, and Grindr, clients are slowly converting less when presented with our older marketing materials, which may be fatigue within a saturated advertisement space. Peak-performing content points towards a revamp of visual products and landing pages as the best means to re-engage the audience with PFY's services. Generally, local and national agencies hinge engagement on services through Grindr, using overt sexual images to tie to arousal centers in patrons of the app. Competitors Q-Care+, Blue Chew, Gilead, and Mistr have significantly larger budgets than PFY, yet our small scale, regionality, and specificity can be leveraged. Overwhelm from sexual adverts and sexual content within the app (Grindr) may be leading to audience fatigue, which leads to lower engagement overall; taking this exhaustion into effect, an oppositional or contrasting approach may lead to more success if considered.
In response to COC and RPSSI contract data, we have determined that the trend of user engagement is tilted towards aesthetic approaches that use abstraction, displaced/augmented figures, better quality stock images, humor, and contrast to develop conceptual marketing. Within these ads, "Take a Bite" leads with text and color, a lead-in engagement where shirtless torsos and muscled figures once led clicks and leads. In lieu of total website renovation and photography, we see that the data distribution carries high for images that rely on abstraction, artistry, and subversion of the body when placed on Grindr, as these new images contrast against competitor marketing campaigns. Within the RPSSI May-June Adverts, we see the emergence of a positive trend that demonstrates user engagement increases when presented with these subversive images that utilize macro and cropped photography, thus inverting the relationship with the subject in the campaign, giving prominence to imagination and exploration, whereas in previous images the presence of the face and naked torso reached more yet had a lower conversion rate. The new approach in image fidelity reduces the reach, yet yields a higher conversion rate increase of 0.3-1.5% over previous campaigns. This follows January's and March's, which focused on brand identity and expanding on authenticity.
Continued:
After losing 100 followers on the main page in February 2025 we have been scaling posts and campaigns to entrance new and older account to increase engagement in our online pages.
Feb-June comparative analysis shows a steady increase in engagement with the inclusion of stabilizing monthly posts and themed content created by Social Media Assistant and Program Staff. Within we see four Instagram pages mpowerher, mpowervida, mpowermentli prideforyouth increasing their follow count and potential lead generation.
After losing 100 followers on the main page in February 2025 we have been scaling posts and campaigns to entrance new and older account to increase engagement in our online pages.
Feb-June comparative analysis shows a steady increase in engagement with the inclusion of stabilizing monthly posts and themed content created by Social Media Assistant and Program Staff. Within we see four Instagram pages mpowerher, mpowervida, mpowermentli prideforyouth increasing their follow count and potential lead generation.
February: Turnover Rates on Stale Imagery
Findings: PFY (Pride for Youth) main page stories and feed are analyzed, showcasing the interdependence of novelty and demographic specificity for community engagement. The continued utilization of humor to educate the audience on company products exceeded expectations. "Nothing is Harder to Climb" increased community engagement within the network by nearly 400% comparatively to the previous month's posts; from this cited example we can ascertain that the community is seeking real and authentic connection from the company page and wishes, or rather responds, to breaking the fourth wall, which increases exclusivity as we move forward. We see that the followers on the page are within our target ranges for programs and services. If this trend is followed correctly and with discretion, one would expect to see an increase in followers and increased engagement. One must consider the ideals and motivations of our client base and recognize that queer youth are in a post-AIDS reality; stigma and coming out are still apparent yet may not be at the forefront of their identity. This possibly post-gay identity separates the struggle and strife that was attributed to queer life in the 1970s-2000s and is not a part of the language that is used within these current demographics. Methods of instructive and demonstrative attempts fail to reach consumers within our network, which leads to lingering sluggish engagement across the platform. Considerations for branding need to be made for secondary and tertiary positioning, as brand-forward content may discourage genuine engagement, as direct confrontation with the audience may attempt to sell in an overt manner, thus losing the cool and approachability that could be better leveraged to increase leads on Instagram.
Additionally, we see that repetitive posts have little effect in increasing engagement for our community members, as they lose interest by upwards of 50% upon the 2nd post; engagement plummets further when the same content is reposted for the third and fourth time. It may be in the best interest to diversify images of event posts with secondary images for profile engagement.
In regard to INSTA stories, we see that the viewership is high yet fails to create conversion to other services; it is a means to connect on a visual touchpoint that is advantageously shared within peer groups. We would look to shares of the story as the greatest metric to measure a post's importance and worth to community members, as this gives us the chance to enter into external stories, which potentially may be outside of our network. These shares continue to increase as it increases visibility on the INSTA platform, which may turn into saves and comments.
Additionally, we see that repetitive posts have little effect in increasing engagement for our community members, as they lose interest by upwards of 50% upon the 2nd post; engagement plummets further when the same content is reposted for the third and fourth time. It may be in the best interest to diversify images of event posts with secondary images for profile engagement.
In regard to INSTA stories, we see that the viewership is high yet fails to create conversion to other services; it is a means to connect on a visual touchpoint that is advantageously shared within peer groups. We would look to shares of the story as the greatest metric to measure a post's importance and worth to community members, as this gives us the chance to enter into external stories, which potentially may be outside of our network. These shares continue to increase as it increases visibility on the INSTA platform, which may turn into saves and comments.