DesignGood and PetGiving Win at Petco Innovation Showdown

The 3rd Annual PetCo Innovation Showdown — We Were There!

In mid-April, the Petco Foundation and The Jackson Galaxy Project held their 3rd Annual Innovation Showdown in New Orleans, Louisiana. The competition is designed to spark creative solutions to reduce the number of shelter animals euthanized in the U.S. — a cause close to our heart here at DesignGood. This year, three animal welfare organizations were selected as finalists to pitch their ideas and compete for a total of $450,000 — and DesignGood was there.

In fact, we had been preparing for weeks with our beloved client Pam Siedler, founder of Day of the Dogs and PetGiving. Back in 2015, Pam began working as a weekly volunteer with the Harris County Animal Shelter, where the live release rate for cats and dogs was low. (Meaning, a lot of animals were being euthanized.) To help give the animals at the shelter much-needed exposure and a chance at being rescued, Pam started a Facebook group to raise funds in support of the shelter’s most urgent cases — and to fund the path from shelter to home.

Success in Year One

Even with just a few volunteers, Pam had amazing success. In her first year, she sent $147,000 to rescue groups to help the animals at the Harris County shelter. In 2018, her work helped save 3,042 cats and dogs.

But using Facebook as a primary platform for promoting animals and collecting money is less than ideal. It doesn’t allow for donor management or for the transfer of collected funds directly to rescue partners — which means Pam has a lot of extra work to do to on the back end. And existing crowdfunding tools don’t fit the ongoing needs of the animal welfare space because they focus on a one-time need or event.

That’s why Pam contacted us at DesignGood. She wanted to build a centralized fundraising platform that could unify her efforts and allow for fundraising for multiple animals at once. As we began research and branding for her new organization, PetGiving, we discovered there was an even bigger opportunity in front of us. Pam had pitched her idea to the Petco Foundation and had been selected as one of the three competition finalists for this year’s Innovation Showdown.

Prepared to Pitch — Shark Tank-Style

With $450,000 to share among three competing organizations, we knew our team had a great chance of funding a purpose-designed solution that could help not only Pam’s efforts in Houston, but shelters and rescues across the country.

With the showdown on the horizon, the DesignGood team got to work planning the PetGiving website flow and functionality, and designing the big pitch. Of course, Pam also needed a pro video to tell the story and explain how the tool would work. We developed the concept, script, VO and visuals all in house and in record time.

As the brand design and web development partner on the project, Pam asked us to take part in the pitch presentation. Just like on Shark Tank, we had to prepare for the live competition ready to answer all the hard questions about how we would build, scale and market the PetGiving tool.

On the day of the event, we were the first to take the stage to make our case. (The Showdown was broadcast live on Facebook; you’ll find our pitch beginning at 18:40.) One short hour later (1:22), we were presented with a check for $175,000. It was a big win for all of us — and an even bigger win for shelter animals across the country.

Making Design...Good

We’re always talking about how much we love working with high-vibe clients who are doing great things. With PetGiving and Day of the Dogs, we get to take part in an even more meaningful way. Thanks to Pam and the folks at the Petco Foundation, we’re creating an innovative donation platform dedicated to helping save animals from euthanasia. With projects like this one, we know we chose the right name.

How can we help your high-vibe business make an impact? Schedule a call with Kristin to get the conversation started.