The Pita Group Uses Online Gaming to Bring Additional Value to Holiday Giving

Game challenges players to collect virtual boxes of food for Foodshare;
Each box collected increases Pita’s donation

(Rocky Hill, Conn. – December 2011) – It’s the most wonderful time of the year … when nonprofits are busy doing a last-minute push to engage donors, attract younger demographics and entice sponsor involvement. So how can these organizations break through the holiday clutter and gain the attention they deserve? The Pita Group, a Rocky Hill-based marketing, interactive and video production agency, recently helped the local nonprofit Foodshare achieve this goal by developing an online, Facebook-based game called “Gather & Give” in lieu of its typical holiday card to clients and friends.

The game, free to all users, takes players on a whimsical journey though a snow-covered land. Along the way, players learn facts about Foodshare and collect boxes of virtual food to donate. At the end of the game, collected boxes are added to the grand total of boxes from all players. For every box of virtual food collected, The Pita Group increases its personal donation to Foodshare. The goal is to reach 3,000 boxes, or $1,000, by New Year’s Day. Players also have the opportunity to make their own donation.

“At The Pita Group, we donate dollars and resources to local nonprofits year-round. But this holiday season, we wanted to do more,” said Paul Pita, principal and executive creative director.

“We know nonprofits struggle with brand awareness and donor engagement, so we developed the concept of an online game to add additional value to our donation,” he said. “‘Gather & Give’ not only provides a donation, but also provides brand recognition and engagement through social media.”

Merging online giving with online gaming provides a huge opportunity for nonprofits looking for new avenues of fundraising and engagement. A recent Forrester Research survey found that 60 percent of consumers play a video game online in a typical week. Consumers (especially 18- to 34-year-old Gen Yers) are increasingly accessing games online and on mobile devices.

Games like “Gather & Give” that are free to players also provide valuable visibility to sponsors looking to get more out of their donations.

“We are very excited to be part of Pita’s ‘Gather & Give’ game,” said Gloria J. McAdam, Foodshare’s president and CEO. “It’s such a unique concept, and it has helped us broaden our reach to new and younger audiences.”

At time of release, 1,161 virtual boxes of food had been collected, bringing The Pita Group almost halfway to its donation goal.