Paraquad
Since 1970, Paraquad has been a champion of equity and independence for people with disabilities. Through services, partnerships, education and advocacy, they’ve created a welcoming community — all working toward an integrated society where disability is viewed as a natural part of human diversity.
Explore how we transformed into a nonprofit digital marketing agency for Paraquad’s purpose-driven marketing campaigns.
Role
- Campaign Ideation + Execution
- Social Media Strategy
- Search Engine Optimization
- Copywriting
- Design
Industry
- Nonprofit
- Disability Resource & Advocacy
Challenge
If you’ve driven down Highway 64 in St. Louis, you’ve probably seen a sign for “Paraquad” sticking out next to the Science Center. Countless people with disabilities regard this as a home away from home — where they find support, connection and strength. However, without a St. Louis content strategy, the brand was not experiencing the regional visibility it strived for.
Paraquad turned to Paradigm for help increasing brand awareness before they launched a major capital campaign in 2025. Luckily, with a range of services such as an accessible gym and employment assistance, there was plenty for us to share. As their nonprofit digital marketing agency, we devised a strategy for purpose-driven marketing campaigns that would reach people with disabilities where they search, scroll and travel.
Our Approach
Our team dove into discussions with Paraquad, identifying their long-term goals and uncovering what exactly makes the brand tick. One recurring sentiment was that independence was never one-size-fits-all — rather, independence carried a different definition for each person.
We chose to expand upon the concept of “All Paths Lead to Independence,” inspiring a St. Louis content strategy about how Paraquad’s services activate a world of possibilities.
Whether independence means strength, social connections or direction in life, the brand makes every goal attainable. Design elements emerged from this naturally, with line art showcasing that whatever path you choose to take, you’ll still reach independence in the end.
Search Engine Optimization
To kick the partnership off, our nonprofit digital marketing agency team assessed existing website content for optimization opportunities. Paraquad boasted a wide breadth of service pages, yet none were easily discoverable for users who had yet to hear of the brand.
Our strategists carefully researched keywords that were relevant yet easy to rank for — from there, our copywriters found natural ways to implement the search terms throughout its content. Using SEO best practices, we helped Paraquad’s website cast a wider net to reach more people with disabilities and their families.
To bolster our ongoing efforts, we established a robust St. Louis content strategy with four blogs a month. Each covered a different path to independence, allowing us to add more service-related keywords to the website, target additional traffic each month and emphasize the many opportunities available at Paraquad.
Social Media Content
One of Paraquad’s strongest referral sources is Facebook, with over 4 thousand followers engaging with its content. However, with multiple social media platforms in use, there was a need for more consistency in Paraquad’s content practices.
Our nonprofit digital marketing agency team redefined its content pillars to focus on individual services, including advocacy, peer support, information referral, skills training and transitional services. From there, our creative team devised new ways to engage Paraquad’s audience through purpose-driven marketing campaigns.
Our designers crafted high-quality, branded graphics for all post types — including campaign post formats. Meanwhile, our copywriters established a casual yet authentic tone of voice for messaging, keeping each post concise while incorporating clever calls to action. Together, our St. Louis content strategy unified Paraquad’s brand and reinforced the message of the ongoing campaign.
Out-of-Home Advertising
Our strategy acknowledged that not everyone with a disability is a digital native, and some may be more likely to engage with brands they see in their day-to-day lives. To broaden Paraquad’s reach, we designed and erected campaign billboards across the city. Location was the driving factor in our decision. Our nonprofit digital marketing agency placed each billboard near high-traffic locations or places similar to Paraquad, such as Goodwill. So far, the billboards boast an average engagement rate of 67.57%.
Landing Pages
To pair with each out-of-home tactic, our team created QR codes linked to campaign-specific landing pages. Each page contained simplified messaging that introduced the Paraquad brand, its mission and the services available. All elements, from the colors to the font sizes, were made ADA-compliant to ensure all Paraquad participants could access the content.
Through this St. Louis content strategy, we measured the effectiveness of each location, funneled traffic back to the original site and encouraged contact form submissions. Since the launch of the multi-channel campaign, total website users increased by 51.7%, new users increased by 18.6% and donation traffic increased by 22.3%.
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