Our Work | Minnesota Public Radio
Uplifting the importance of public media for modern listeners.
Overview
American Public Media & Minnesota Public Radio tapped Venn to help launch a four‑year, $210M campaign to shape the future of public media. We defined the core message and content roadmap, then delivered 25+ assets—print, video, photography, and audio—backed by cohesive visual wayfinding to unify every touchpoint. Finally, we built a practical toolkit that trains campaign teams on how to deploy each piece of content.
Deliverables
Content Strategy
Design
Video & Photo
Audio
Writing
T H E O P P O R T U N I T Y
Connecting people through local news, culture, and shared stories.
As the media landscape fragments, public media can deliver journalism, music, and cultural programming that informs, includes, and inspires across geographies and generations. We helped MPR | APM frame this opportunity—structuring narrative assets, brand design, and donor experiences to show how the campaign vision comes alive in practice.
E A R L Y O U T C O M E S
152%
OF CAMPAIGN GOAL
80%
DONOR CONVERSION
10+ MO
OF CAMPAIGN ACTIVITY
108%
SURPASSED F.Y. GOAL
Design Approach
MPR|APM wanted the campaign to sit within their existing ecosystem, so we drew from the master brand’s palette and typography to creating an iconic visual system that felt instantly “of the family” yet distinctly elevated for the campaign.
Campaign Toolkit
We developed a campaign toolkit that guided gift officers and campaign volunteers on the goals and strategy of the campaign, as well as when and how to deploy each piece of campaign collateral.
Using sound to deepen donor connection:
We edited a thematic library of short, intimate audio clips designed to bring MPR|APM’s mission to life during on-site studio tours. Each clip is crafted to evoke emotion, engage imagination, and create a personal connection with the work. Here are several samples:
Impact & Reach Infographic
The large-scale impact and reach infographics to anchor storytelling during donor tours at the MPR|APM headquarters. These visuals help gift officers and volunteers contextualizing the mission and vision in an immediate, visual way. The donor experience is further reinforced by thematic wayfinding elements throughout the building, creating a cohesive, mission-aligned environment for visitors.
Extending the campaign across brands.
Our work with American Public Media spans multiple brands. We tailored storytelling to each audience and editorial voice—including Marketplace, their flagship program reaching more than 20 million listeners. This video was designed to engage high–net worth donors across the country to sustains the program’s mission of building economic intelligence for people navigating an increasingly complex economy.
Image Library
Rooted in a strong sense of place, the image library reflects the campaign’s core themes—Inform, Include, Inspire—with portraits and scenes that feel personal, grounded, and unmistakably Minnesotan.
