At Concord Direct, we’ve got a lot to be proud of—including the work we’ve done for AARP Foundation. It’s a great feeling to know you’re helping older adults living on low income make ends meet.
Real-world impact, plus having our work recognized for outstanding achievement by our peers and industry leaders? Well, that feels great, too.
Concord Direct’s digital campaigns for AARP Foundation have earned two Hermes Creative Awards and three Communicator Awards. Our team used smart, data-driven advertising to connect vulnerable and underserved populations with resources that could meaningfully improve their lives.
Here’s how we delivered digital campaigns that made an impact.
Smart Retargeting Strategy: Connecting Vulnerable Adults with the Financial Relief They Deserve
Property taxes can be a serious burden for older adults on fixed incomes, and many eligible people simply don’t know that relief programs exist.
Our Property Tax-Aide campaign set out to change that, driving people to an eligibility screener so they could quickly find out whether they qualified for property tax relief in their state.
To reach this audience efficiently, we ran ads across Meta and Paid Search (Google and Microsoft), building a targeting strategy that adapted in real time. As each state’s property tax filing deadline passed, we removed that state from our targeting and redirected the budget toward where it could still make a difference.
It was a precise, deadline-aware approach that kept every dollar working as hard as possible. The results speak for themselves:
- 21,000 users completed the eligibility screener
- 20% reduction in cost per acquisition year-over-year
Multichannel Approach: Finding the Right People to Give Back in the Communities That Need it Most
AARP Foundation’s Tax-Aide provides free tax preparation services to people living with low incomes, and it runs entirely on the dedication of trained volunteer tax preparers. Our job was to find community-minded people who were ready to step up, and to inspire them to take the leap.
What made this campaign particularly meaningful was the geographic focus. Rather than casting a wide net, we concentrated our efforts on rural communities across the country where the need for volunteers was greatest and the pipeline thinnest.
We deployed a multichannel strategy across Meta, Paid Search, Display, Google Demand Gen, and Connected TV to reach this audience wherever they spent their time online.
Given that we were asking people to commit to volunteer training—not just click a link—conversions required real intent. That’s what made our results all the more impressive:
- 3,800 prospective volunteers completed a lengthy interest form
- 11% reduction in cost per acquisition year-over-year
Success Story Video: Sharing Free Job Hunting Resources—and Hope—for Older Adults
Finding work after 50 is harder than it should be. AARP Foundation’s BACK TO WORK 50+ addresses this head-on—offering free career coaching, interview practice, and strategies for overcoming age discrimination.
Concord Direct developed and produced a success story video to amplify the program’s reach. The strategy was rooted in social norming: watching someone who looks like you succeed is one of the most powerful confidence-builders there is.
- Lead with a relatable protagonist: The stronger the “that’s me” reaction, the more powerful the effect.
- Show the struggle, not just the win: Acknowledging fear and doubt before success makes the story feel true, not like an ad.
- Let people speak naturally: Unscripted delivery builds trust that polished language can’t.
- Get specific: “I got an offer in six weeks” beats “it changed my life” every time.
- Address the barrier directly: Have your storyteller say what your audience is thinking: “I didn’t think anyone would hire me at 58.”
Making a Big Impact with Digital Marketing Know-How
Winning these awards is an honor, but what matters most is what these campaigns accomplished: tens of thousands of vulnerable adults connected with financial benefits, thousands of new volunteers stepping forward to serve their neighbors, and thousands of unemployed people over 50 were able to earn income again.
Digital advertising is often measured in clicks and conversions, and we’re proud of those numbers. But the real metric here is impact. We’re grateful to AARP Foundation for trusting us with this meaningful work, and we’re proud of the team who made it happen.
If you’re a nonprofit looking for a partner who can meet your audience wherever they are—from digital advertising to direct mail—explore the full range of services Concord Direct offers and let’s talk about what we can accomplish together.
