The first big project undertaken by Sparks-based
Volunteer Appreciation Inc. will be hard to miss.
Charter Communications donated 1,000 commercial
spots for the effort on its northern Nevada cable television
system and will allow promotional stuffers to accompany its
subscriber bills.
KPTT, which carries ESPN Radio programming, donated
more spots.
Billboards and other promotional tools won't be far
behind.
Consumers will see displays of the compact disc produced
by Volunteer Appreciation everywhere from convenience
stores to major retailers.
Not bad for a tiny start-up, and the big push demonstrates
what can happen when a company aligns itself with
the right nonprofit effort.
In the case of Volunteer Appreciation, the right nonprofit
effort proved to be the campaign to bring the 2014 Winter
Olympics to the Reno-Tahoe area.
The compact disc produced by the company on behalf of
the Nevada Commission on Sports combines inspirational
stories from six Olympians with ties to the Reno area with
music and produced by Vinny Ribas, the president of
Volunteer Appreciation.
Four of the Olympians on the CD Wanita (Lynch)
Paul, Bill Hudson, Franz Weber and Lisa Odynski currently
live in the area. The other two, Shannon Bahrke and
Eva Twardokens, have personal ties to the area.
"Our goal is to sell 50,000 CDs," Ribas said a few days
ago between calls on retailers. "It sounds like a big number,
but it's not.With all the media, they're going to sell."
If Ribas' confidence is borne out, sales of the CD titled
"Bringing Home the Gold in Your Life" will generate
between $250,000 and $300,000 for the bid to bring the
Olympics to the region. About $125,000 would be available
for the feasibility study, and the remainder would pay architects
who will design an ice facility planned near the Reno
Hilton.
Another beneficiary will be Ribas' young firm, which
combines his 13 years of experience in working with nonprofit
agencies with the background he gained during two
decades as a musician touring the lounge circuit.
Ribas' brainchild is this: Nonprofit agencies always look
for memorable ways to thank their volunteers. A CD that
combines inspirational stories documenting the agency's
work with music composed and produced by Volunteer
Appreciation will cut through the clutter of coffee mugs
and pen-and-pencil sets often given to donors.
"Our goal is to create projects that have an emotional
appeal," he said.
Accompanying the emotional appeal of "Bringing Home
the Gold in Your Life" has been a lot of hard work.
Ribas' young company won the deal with the Nevada
Commission on Sports only in October, and Ribas devoted
many 15- and 16-hour days to getting the CD ready for its
Jan. 2 rollout.
He co-wrote the music that's interspersed with athletes'
stories.With Dave Krause of Volunteer Appreciation, Ribas
produced the CD and oversaw recording sessions in Reno
and Salt Lake City. He arranged for cover design by Bill
Cane of Greg Mason Advertising Arts. He found a broker
who could arrange the manufacturing of the CDs and
found a fulfillment house to handle the orders. He helped
line up corporate sponsors such as Wells Fargo.
And between all that, Ribas knocked on one door after
another to win shelf space from retailers.
"But it's worth it," Ribas is quick to add.
After all, a successful launch of the CD will provide a
boost to more than his company. It might bring the
Olympics' economic benefits to his hometown as well.
