Modernising Tradition – How Bravand Helped The Catenians Attract a New Generation

In March 2022, Bravand teamed up with The Catenian Association, a global network of Catholic laymen dedicated to building brotherhood and supporting charitable causes. Fresh market research had shown that to attract modern Catholic men, The Catenians needed a fresher, more engaging approach to communications and digital channels. That’s where we stepped in.

The project unfolded in three key phases:

1. Branding Refresh

We kicked things off by reworking The Catenians' brand identity. We took a deep dive into their core values, ensuring they stayed true to their traditions while making them more appealing to a modern audience. The result? A fresh new look, a whole new tone of voice, a bank of creative assets, and an entire collection of versatile templates that brought consistency to all their communication channels.

2. A New Recruitment Website

Next up was designing a sleek, user-friendly recruitment website aimed at potential new members. We focused on making it easy to navigate with a clear and engaging user experience. Every process flow was carefully designed to guide visitors smoothly through the site, and we wrapped it all up in a fresh, modern UI that truly reflected the brand’s new direction.

3. 12-Month Social Media Campaign

To get the word out, we ran a full-scale social media campaign for a year. We started with a solid strategy, built around key content pillars and the best channels to reach the right audience. From engaging blog content to organic posts on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, and Instagram, we kept the conversation flowing. Halfway through the campaign, we also brought LinkedIn into the mix to reach professional networks. Alongside organic content, we launched targeted paid campaigns across Meta channels to maximise reach and engagement.

The Results

Bravand’s approach led to an explosion in digital engagement, with social media performance exceeding expectations.

On Facebook: 

• 136 posts reached 54,952 people which sparked 5,589 engagements
• We saw a 109% increase in new followers
• Profile visits jumped by 216% and profile reach soared by 1,500%
• Content interactions skyrocketed by an incredible 595,000%
• and link clicks surged by a jaw-dropping 25,600%.

Instagram also saw massive growth. 

• Starting from scratch we rolled out 124 posts that reached 27,520 people and gained 1,140 engagements
• Profile visits were up 374% and profile reach shot up by 6,200%
• Content interactions, which started at zero, climbed to 873. 
• The campaign also drove 3,263 link clicks - again, from an initial baseline of zero.

Paid social media campaigns took things even further, delivering exceptional results on a small budget. With just £2,000 for the year we achieved some pretty impressive ROI:

• Facebook results included:
  
  • 169,041 impressions
  • 47,607 engagements
  • and 3,936 link clicks
• Over on Instagram, paid content brought in
  
  • 102,000 impressions
  • 27,164 engagements
  • and 3,253 link clicks.

What We Learned

Throughout the campaign, we uncovered some key insights that will shape future strategies:

• People love real stories. Content that highlighted individuals and their passion for The Catenians performed best.
• Social media sprints worked wonders. Focusing on short, high-impact projects—like covering the September pilgrimage and a trip to Malta—drove a surge in attention and engagement.
• Women were a surprisingly valuable audience. A £33 ad campaign targeting women outperformed many other targeted efforts, proving that female supporters play a crucial role in growing the community.

This project didn’t just modernise The Catenians' digital presence; it set them up to engage a whole new generation of members, ensuring their legacy continues in today’s fast-moving digital world.

While the social results were fantastic, we wrapped up the campaign in January 2025, passing all templates, site editing access, and content decks back to the in-house team. We left them equipped with a much stronger understanding of social media management and a beautifully consistent brand voice to carry forward with confidence.

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Know that you should be "doing digital" but don't know where to start? Want to get massive results like this?

Give this project's PM Jilly a shout via jilly@bravand.com and she can book in a chat.