The apology that Susan G. Komen for the Cure issued on Friday was the first step. The obligatory resignations are next. But if Komen is going to repair the damage done by its behavior last week, they have quite a few more steps in the process.

“What should Komen do next?” That’s the question many of you have asked me, and it was certainly the top question asked of me in my role as nonprofit marketing pundit last week.

Here’s what I think they need to do next:

Diversify the staff and board

The decision to defund Planned Parenthood ended up being extremely political — the topic itself is highly politically charged, not to mention the actual individuals involved. Even though Komen has apologized, supporters have little reason to trust that the current leadership team won’t make another political decision down the road, whether it involves Planned Parenthood or not (stem cell research, anyone?).

One way to help rebuild that trust, and to keep the promise about keeping politics out of it, is to openly and publicly diversify the board and senior staff so that politically progressive voices are represented, and supporters see those right-leaning and left-leaning people working together to find a cure. Except for a few leaks here and there, the Komen board has been conspicuously silent. Adding a well-known progressive (or two, or three) with some name recognition to the board (the real board, not all those advisory boards), would be a smart move.

Same goes for senior staff. This has largely been the Nancy Brinker Show, and I don’t think people are particularly fond of it right now. Might be time to switch up some of the voices, and maybe people will tune back in.

Listen to the substance of the backlash and “change your evil ways”

This isn’t Komen’s first brouhaha. If you look at all those social media comments (and Komen should be paying someone to read and categorize it all), you will see that was simply the last straw for a lot of people. They are tired of Komen bullying smaller charities and making every consumer product available pink (the pink handgun deal wasn’t sanctioned, apparently, but the fact that everyone believed it could be tells you all you need to know).

This ended up being about much more than just Planned Parenthood. And going back to the “old” Komen isn’t an option. So why not really learn from the substance of the backlash, and use it to create the “new” Komen — one that demonstrates that it can really listen to and learn from its supporters? That’s what good marketers do — they listen to supporters and critics alike, and bringing that knowledge back into the organization to make the services it provides even more valuable.

Learn how to use social media, especially Twitter

Whoever is managing the official @komenforthecure Twitter account doesn’t really get it. They keep doing these run-on tweets where they take a longer statement and break into a bunch of tweets that they send out all at once. If you read some of them independently, they don’t really make sense. Tweets need to stand on their own.

The majority of Komen’s tweets over the last week have been versions of the above, or @replies with corrections of what others are saying (No, we didn’t endorse the handgun. No, she doesn’t make that much.)  It’s a very old-school PR approach to Twitter, and it doesn’t really work. Get conversational, Komen! And make a clear point in 140 characters without requiring surrounding tweets to be read.

One of my biggest criticisms of Komen at the height of the controversy was their complete silence on social media for almost 24 hours (longer on Twitter), followed by official statements only. Even if they had simply posted something like, “We are listening. We hear you. We are talking internally about our next steps, and will get back to you soon” it would have been infinitely better than the nothing, followed by official-speak, that we got.

Twitter and Facebook aren’t just fun and games anymore. I think that should be pretty obvious given what happened the past week. We all need to know how to use social media in various situations, including a crisis.

What else should Komen do?

What else should Komen be doing now, especially on the marketing/communications side, to rebuild trust with supporters?

Would love to hear your comments!

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Erica Mills

Last week on the main Nonprofit Marketing Guide site (you are reading the blog now), I published an article called, “Blah, Blah, Blah: What to Do When You Write Too Much.” In today’s guest post, Erica Mills of Claxon Marketing takes it to the next step by showing how specific words can actually debilitate your messaging.  ~Kivi

Guest Post by Erica Mills of Claxon Marketing

We all crave an awesomely compelling way to talk and write about our organizations. But finding the right words is hard. It’s easy to convince yourself that your messaging is ‘good enough’ and move on. Alas, if your words miss the mark, you miss the opportunity to connect with people passionate about your cause. No people, no progress. So you’ve got to make your words work.

Every year, we get help in our efforts at messaging awesomeness from Words to Avoid Lists. These are pure gold. They include words that become so trendy and overused that they end up on Lake Superior State University’s List of Banished Words or Big Duck’s Words to Avoid list.

The following is a little different. It includes five words you must forever avoid you want to create compelling, action-inspiring (a.k.a. awesome) messaging. Not just this year, but every year.

Use this list as a filter: Look at what you have and if you see any of these words, get rid of them. Not saying it’ll be easy (and you might want to dust off your thesaurus), but it will definitely be worthwhile.

1. ‘Provide’: If you have the word ‘provide’ in your tagline, top-level message or elevator pitch, you’re being lazy. Sorry to be harsh, but it’s true. There’s always a better word. Wondering how to find those words? Ask the people you serve what you do for them. They will naturally use verbs that speak to the impact you are having, rather than the actions you are taking to have the impact.

2. ‘Just’: The word ‘just’ downplays your work and your impact. “We’re just eradicating extreme global poverty.” “Our organization just helped 5, 462 elementary school students learn to read last year.” Really? You just did that?! You did it and you’re doing it. Own it! People are energized by your passion for what you do. The word ‘just’ is a passion-killer. Just stop using the word ‘just’. Eradicate it. You won’t miss it.

3. ‘Trying’: This word lets you hedge. Stop it! Compare:

“We’re trying to get junk food out of schools.”
and
“We’re getting junk food out of schools.”

Sure, you might not have gotten 100% of the junk food out of the schools yet, but that’s the goal, right? That’s what will be different because of your work. People want to be involved in making a difference. Not in trying to perhaps, kinda sorta make a difference. (Note: Substituting ‘striving’, ‘endeavoring’ or any other synonym for trying isn’t going to help. The point is to avoid this whole category of words.)

4. ‘Self-sufficiency’: Gasp! How can there be something wrong with this word? Let me share a quick story: I was board chair for an organization that helped low-income women become self-sufficient through business training and loans. One day, a group of clients came and asked us the following: “Is your personal goal to be self-sufficient or to be successful?” You see their point. Self-sufficiency is a step on the success ladder. It’s not the top rung. When re-working your messaging (which all of you using ‘self-sufficiency’ will now hustle out and do, right?), the question is: What’s the top rung of your ladder? For inspiration, the organization mentioned above switched up their messaging to be: “We help low-income women become successful entrepreneurs”. See the difference?

5. ‘Thriving communities’: Okay, this is two words. They’re fine on their own, but not together. Why? Because every nonprofit is “building thriving communities”. (Do you know of any organizations who want to build withering communities? No.) It doesn’t distinguish you in any way from other organizations. You want your words to help you stand out, not blend in.

If you diligently avoid the words above, you’ll be well on your way to Messaging Awesomeness!

Erica Mills heads up Claxon, where they craft messaging that connects people who care with causes that matter. She has spoken about nonprofit marketing and communications across North America and is an Instructor at the University of Washington. Visit her blog for more on using the power of words to advance your mission.

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(Updates to this post can be found at the bottom.)

Yesterday afternoon, and continuing into today, I believe we are witnessing the accidental rebranding of what is surely one of America’s biggest and most well-known, and even well-loved, nonprofit brands.

Komen for the Cure, it seems, is no longer a breast cancer charity, but a pro-life breast cancer charity.

Let me stop right here and say this post is not about abortion per se, one way or the other, other than the fact that it is the single most divisive issue in American politics today. My personal beliefs are very clear and public. But how you feel about abortion is really irrelevant to this communications debacle unfolding before us.

This post is about what happens when a leading nonprofit jumps into a highly controversial area of public debate without a communications strategy, stays silent, and therefore lets others take over the public dialogue, perhaps permanently redefining the organization and its brand. Watch and learn, so you don’t make the same mistake on whatever hot button issues your organization might be wading into.

Here’s what happened yesterday afternoon:

The AP reported that Komen for the Cure has decided to halt grants to Planned Parenthood that were used for breast cancer screening for low-income women. According to the reports, this decision was made in December and communicated to Planned Parenthood, which urged Komen to reconsider. Komen, citing a new policy that prevents grants to organizations under investigation, said because Rep. Cliff Stearns, R-FL, is investigating whether government money was improperly spent on abortions, the  decision to pull the funding was final.

The AP story broke yesterday, and within hours, Planned Parenthood sent a fundraising email out to its network, asking supporters to replace the money that Komen had pulled for breast cancer screenings for low-income women.

Within minutes, both Facebook and Twitter were swamped with pro-Planned Parenthood, anti-Komen comments.  At one point last night, I did a quick count and found the ratio of anti-Komen’s decision to pro-Komen’s decision to be about 80 to 1 on Twitter.

Some typical anti-Komen tweets:

Some typical pro-Komen tweets:

Adding another twist to the story, it seems that Karen Handel, Komen’s senior vice president for public policy, who was hired in April 2011, is a pro-life advocate who, when running for the Republican nomination for governor in Georgia, made her opposition to Planned Parenthood quite clear.

Now let’s look at Komen’s response . . .  which is no response (until about 90 minutes ago). As one person on Twitter put it, just crickets.

Komen didn’t post on its Twitter or Facebook feeds last night, or first thing this morning. The only Komen action on their Facebook page had been to delete anti-Komen comments, so the ratio of negative to positive looks more like 10 – 1 instead of the 80 – 1 (and even higher this morning) on Twitter.

Komen’s most recent tweet was about prostate cancer in a mummy.

On Facebook, the most recent update was about a new sponsor, Energizer.

Take a quick look at the wall posts on Energizer’s page, and I suspect Komen has one unhappy sponsor right now (how unfortunate for Energizer to be the last update on the Komen page — it would have happened to any company in that position when the news broke):

Then around 10 am Eastern today, Komen finally updated its Facebook page. As of this moment (11:30 am ET), still no update on Twitter:

So What the Heck is Going on Here?

Let’s give Komen the benefit of the doubt and assume that they made this decision to stop funding Planned Parenthood very thoughtfully and deliberately. In that case, they would surely have realized that the likelihood of the story going public was high. They may not have counted on Planned Parenthood being so aggressive in turning the Komen decision into a fundraising campaign, but even without that, it’s still a big news story because of how high-profile Planned Parenthood funding of any kind is right now. And that’s all about abortion, which is about as divisive an issue as you can get in American politics right now.

The “Try to Rise Above It and Pretend This Decision Isn’t about the Most Divisive Social Issue in America” Strategy

Yet it appears that Komen wants to desperately pretend that this decision is being made in some completely different context. By not responding at all to the overwhelming negativity being thrown their way, and continuing to pretend that this has nothing to do with a red-hot social issue, they are alienating a big part of their constituency.

It seems like they are hoping this will just blow over. It won’t. This isn’t Komen’s first branding debacle: See the Kentucky Fried Chicken incident and suing smaller charities for using “for the cure” but I’d say it’s the biggest one yet.

What Should Komen Do Next?

Earlier this month, I urged nonprofits to decide how they are different, to embrace that, and forget the rest. Previously Komen stood out as a tremendous organizer and mobilizer of women across the political spectrum who would raise money like crazy for them. They kept it nice and simple, and non-controversial. Wear that pink ribbon and raise money to fight breast cancer.   The abortion debate was nowhere in sight. It was all about the breasts, and not about the uterus. And I think that’s one thing that made them different — Komen was an organization that dealt with women’s health issues without getting caught up in the abortion debate, like most women’s organizations end up doing.

No more. They took a deep dive into the hot swirling waters head first (but apparently eyes shut). No matter what they do from here on out, they will be forced to pick sides, and that’s just awful for the Komen brand.

If they stick by their decision, they will endear themselves to pro-life women, and lose the pro-choice. If they give in to the pressure and petitions, they will win back the pro-choice women, but anger the pro-life. It’s a no-win situation that could have been avoided had they developed a communications strategy on this decision at the start. Sure, they would have still angered many of their supporters, but I believe they could have avoided this huge rift had they communicated upfront, and honestly, about the decision. They should have released it, instead of letting Planned Parenthood own the messaging.

The Branding Challenge, Part II

Now that they are full on into the abortion debate, Komen (I think) must now come out and say whether they think abortion causes breast cancer. If you look through the comment stream now, that particular question is what pro-life and pro-choice commenters are arguing with each other about. And as an organization with a mission to prevent breast cancer, I think it’s reasonable for supporters to expect Komen to make a statement about various theories on what causes it, including this one.

Let’s see how they handle that question, and whether they use it as a second chance to mend their brand, or if they fall deeper into the non-communicative abyss.

Can Komen Heal the Rift?

Regardless of how you feel about abortion, what do you think Komen could do to bring pro-choice and pro-life women back together to fight breast cancer hand in hand?

Or do you think this will all blow over with little long-term affect on Komen?

Share your ideas, and your thoughts on these communications questions in the comments.

UPDATE at 5:30 pm Eastern, 2/1/2012:

I’m quoted in this Politico story on the Komen mess.  As the day went on, and Komen continued to say nothing, I got even more annoyed with how awful they are handling all this. They still haven’t tweeted anything (and that stupid mummy prostate tweet is what people see when they check their profile). So my criticism got a bit harsher . . .   ~Kivi

UPDATE at 6:30 pm Eastern, 2/1/2012

Check out this analysis of the social media commentary by PoliPulse:

UPDATE at 9:00 am Eastern, 2/2/2012

Last night around 10 pm, after declining interviews with network news and major newspapers, Komen finally started tweeting and released this video response:

Contrast this response to what Planned Parenthood’s Cecile Richards did: interviews with all the major networks and this MSNBC interview:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

This morning, Beth Kanter published a post including a description of my process for creating this post (if you are interested in how content gets developed and the concept of newsjacking).

UPDATE at 5:30 pm Eastern, 2/2/2012

Nancy Brinker, founder of Komen, is interviewed by Andrea Mitchell.  Do you think it helped or hurt?

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

UPDATE at 8:00 am Eastern, 2/3/12

Komen board member speaks to the New York Times in Outcry Grows Fiercer After Funding Cut by Cancer Group. He says this really was specifically about Planned Parenthood and not overall “grant excellence” as Brinker has claimed. The article states, “John D. Raffaelli said Komen had become increasingly worried that an investigation of Planned Parenthood by Representative Cliff Stearns, Republican of Florida, would damage Komen’s credibility with donors.”

UPDATE at 1:23 pm Eastern, 2/3/12

Komen releases an apology and states they have amended their policy that the investigation must be “criminal and conclusive in nature and not political.”

Planned Parenthood’s response to the policy reversal.

Do you think this changes anything or is the damage done to the Komen brand irreversible?

UPDATE at 9:15 pm Eastern, 2/6/2012

THANK YOU everyone for such a lively conversation in the comments! But since the majority of new comments on this post are about religious arguments instead of nonprofit communications and management, I am closing comments. I will blog more about the Komen communications issues later this week and invite you to comment on that post.

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Hating statistics and other cold hard facts, and loving stories instead, is very popular in our field right now. I’m mostly on that bandwagon too.

But what if you could use a good statistic to help tell your story?

I saw this Austim Speaks PSA with Toni Braxton on TV recently, and it caught my attention, even before I realized it was for a nonprofit.

The Toni Braxton ad is from 2009. Some newer versions feature NASCAR driver Jamie McMurray and fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger and they follow the same basic “the odds of . . .” script. While there is some criticism of the ads in the autism community, I think they do a good job of conveying how common autism is.

The basic stat in all of the ads is that the odds of having a child diagnosed with autism are 1 in 110.  In other words, this is really pretty common. But just saying, “Hey, autism is common, so you better learn about it” isn’t very compelling.

To drive home how common it is, the ads juxtapose the “1 in 110″  against much rarer events (the chance of being discovered, or winning a NASCAR race) as they tell a person’s life story. The life story and the odds of other events within that story are what put the autism statistic in a context that is now much more interesting and memorable. Of course, the star power of those featured in ads helps too, because that’s what really sucks us into the commercial — seeing how the life story of these people we already know is unfolding, and then landing on that much more common event of having a child with autism.

Now that we understand how common it is, Austim Speaks hopes we will want to learn about the early signs of autism, which is the call to action of each video.

Where have you seen statistics and other cold hard facts work in nonprofit marketing?

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Nancy Schwartz asked, “What are your dreams for nonprofits?”

My dream for your nonprofit is that you decide what you are really all about — what makes you different — and that you be that organization, and forget the rest.

Consider this excerpt from Peter Bregman’s  book, 18 Minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distraction, and Get the Right Things Done, which I blogged about earlier this week. The inline editing is mine:

“In any highly competitive field—and these days every field is highly competitive—being different is the only way to win. Nobody wants to sell a commodity, and nobody wants to be a commodity. Yet even though we all know that, most of us spend a tremendous amount of effort trying not to be different.

We model ourselves and our businesses nonprofits after other successful people and businesses nonprofits spending considerable money and energy discovering and replicating best practices, looking for that one recipe for success. Here’s the thing: If you look like other people, and if your business nonprofit looks like other businesses nonprofits, then all you’ve done is increase your pool of competition.

Face it: You’re different. And the sooner you appreciate it, the sooner you embrace and assert it, the more successful you’ll be. The same goes for your business nonprofit.”

Yes, I share a lot of “better” practices with you at Nonprofit Marketing Guide. But I don’t do that so you can try to make your nonprofit look like someone else’s. I do that to get you going in the right direction when you are totally directionless, and when you do know where you are going, to inspire you to think more creatively about what you do along that path.

But everything you learn here is ultimately useless if your organization isn’t any different from those around you.

Let me give you two examples of nonprofits with fairly plain Jane missions that could have done things the same old way. But they choose to be different, to own those differences, and to be wildly successful as a result of being different.

What’s Different about Charity: Water

Wanting poor people to have access to clean water isn’t new or different. Organizations have been working on it forever. But what’s different about Charity: Water is how they have focused on connecting donations to a specific well, showing that well under construction, and showing the actual human beings who benefit from that well.

Here’s what founder Scott Harrison advises other nonprofits to do:

“Simplicity is key. Be able to tell your story simply. I can’t tell you how many nonprofits I meet and after three minutes talking to them, I still have no idea what they do. Show. Don’t tell. And do it visually. Use the Web to tell people where their money has gone and let them see what it has done.”

Charity: Water uses the technology available today to broadcast real images and stories, often in real-time, creating a direct connection between supporters and the people around the world drilling the wells and drinking from them. It’s the showing that is so different. Like Scott said, it’s so simple, and yet so brilliant, because no one else did it this way before.  It’s different, and that’s why they are raising a ton of new money for what’s really an old cause.

What’s Different about PETA

Lots of organizations want to protect animals, and are passionate about it. Nothing particularly new or different about that. But everyone knows PETA, right? You may love them, you may hate them, but when you say “animal rights activists,”  most people think PETA.

How did they do that? By being different, and specifically by using sex and celebrity like no other nonprofit I can think of in order to make headlines, gaining millions of dollars worth of publicity.

Sure, they get complaints about nudity. But they explain clearly and convincingly why it works for them, and why controversial tactics are part of who they are. They know what makes them different, they own it like no one else, and they put it to work. They do mainstream “family friendly” stuff too, but they don’t shy away from what makes them different, even if it bothers some people.

Tactical Decisions Can Help You Find Your Voice

Not ready to deal with your overall “brand” or “personality” as an organization? Sometimes it’s easier to let your tactical decisions get you there. Charity: Water wanted to use online tools to show people the impact they have, and the personality of the organization grew from there. Same thing with PETA. It didn’t start with naked celebrities; it started with the need to make headlines in major newspapers.

Be willing to experiment and play with your own communications tactics and you might find yourself stumbling upon what really makes you special.

How Are You Different?

What’s different about your nonprofit? How do you stand out? Share your thoughts here, and make my dream come true!

P.S. Here’s what’s coming up next in the Webinar Series . . .

Jan 26: Nonprofit Writing Stinks! How to Bring Your Writing Back to Life

Feb 8: Help! My Logo Sucks! (featuring Julia Reich)

Feb 16: Helping Your Staff and Board Become Great Nonprofit Marketers

Feb 23: Building Your Credibility as an Expert

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Melinda McKee

Does your audience understand what you’re telling them? Melinda McKee shares her tips for making sure your message is understood by the people you are trying to reach in today’s guest post.  ~Kivi

Guest Post by Melinda McKee, Public Relations and Communications Director for NCGives

Ever feel like your nonprofit’s communications are playing out like a game of telephone? (Or maybe an episode of Fawlty Towers?) You put out a statement of some sort, and it makes sense to you, but your audience doesn’t seem to be getting it. You realize they’re walking away confused (or worse — thinking that they understood you, but in reality are way off the mark).

In my experience as a nonprofit communicator, I’ve found that one of the biggest barriers to good communication is actually pretty basic: it’s the very words we’re using, and how we use them.

Clear, audience-specific rhetoric is important for any nonprofit with a message to share, regardless of how simple or complex that message may be. And it’s not just important for formal speeches or official documents; it also matters in our everyday communications, from a casual elevator pitch to an individual email.

To help bring consistency and clarity to NCGives’ rhetoric, I led our staff in a training-and-brainstorming session. First, I talked about the role of jargon, going a little more in-depth than the “just don’t do it” rule of thumb. Next, we put our heads together to evaluate the actual words and phrases in our organization’s lexicon.

That session resulted in a “Rhetoric Guidelines” document that is now part of our marketing bank. Each staff member is encouraged to review these guidelines on three types of occasions:

1. Before public speaking engagements
2. Before meetings (especially with new or new-ish contacts)
3. As we write significant emails or other documents

So, what exactly should you be looking for? Here are the six main questions that got to the heart of my organization’s rhetoric issues (represented by six different flip chart pages during our brainstorming session):

• When is it okay for us to use jargon?
• When is it NOT okay to use jargon?
• What are our most frequently used jargon words?
• Which words/phrases should we use MORE?
• Which words/phrases should we use CAREFULLY?
• Which words/phrases do we need to PURGE from our vocabulary altogether?

I’ve elaborated on these six questions in a handy-dandy cheat sheet, taken from our own document: Rhetoric Guidelines. Feel free to adapt this template to fit your own organization (especially the examples).

Quick reality check! If at this point you’re thinking, “our staff would never remember to use this”…you’re probably right. Most likely it will be up to you to offer friendly reminders before important events, during staff meetings, etc. Make it easy for staff to find your Rhetoric Guidelines, and take advantage of opportunities to quickly reiterate why clear, consistent word choice is genuinely important to furthering your nonprofit’s mission.

(This is also why the brainstorming session needs to be a group effort. Getting buy-in at the beginning will, hopefully, help everyone take the words they use more seriously…making your message that much clearer.)

Melinda McKee is the Public Relations & Communications Director for NCGives, a statewide nonprofit on a mission to celebrate and strengthen North Carolina’s culture of giving. As a one-woman department, she oversees the organization’s strategic communications planning, print and new media content creation, brand management and everything in between; she’s also the office [Reluctantly Accidental] Techie. For more marketing and nonprofit geekery, you can follow Melinda on Twitter.

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I have to admit that I am a little depressed thinking about the upcoming fall fundraising season. I’m expecting a lot of doom and gloom from nonprofits. I know it can work, but I’m really hoping that I will see more orgs taking Katya Andresen’s advice about how fundraising is really about giving people a sense of happiness and joy.

I came across what I think is a perfect example of a nonprofit screaming JOY! JOY! JOY! — to the tune of Abba. Watching this video made me so happy that I actually cried. I’m a sucker for kittens and puppies, sure, but I think the real reason I cried was because I could see how much PURE FUN the staff, volunteers and visitors at the SPCA of Wake County were having. While staying on message about the desperate need for animals to find homes. Look at the comments on the video, like this one, which sums it up perfectly:

“This is SUPER!!!!! Much better than all of those depressing commercials you see about abandoned and negelected animals. I know they have a purpose, but seeing something that demonstrates the joy a pet can bring is truly a blessing. Thanks keep up the good work.”

(10/13 update: uh-oh, the video has been pulled for a copyright issue . . . hope they can get it back online because it’s so great!)

Where can you add some joy to your marketing and fundraising this fall? I’ll give you some suggestions in our upcoming webinars, Telling Powerful Stories about Everyday People and Your End-of-Year Email Fundraising Plan.

Special thanks to my friend and SPCA of Wake County volunteer Christy Agner who shared this on her Facebook wall, where I first saw it.

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On Tuesday, September 13, I’m teaching a webinar called “Making the Ask: Getting People to Give, Volunteer, and More” where you’ll learn ways to avoid sabotaging your nonprofit’s communications with wimpy, confusing asks.  Here are five frequent problems with the way nonprofits ask for support, whether it’s donating money or time or some other valuable.

1. Assuming One Size Fits All. There is no such thing as the general public. Know your supporters, donors, participants or whoever you are talking to, and customize the way you ask for support to that group.  You should talk to your long-time volunteers differently than you talk to someone you just met. Your major donors have different expectations of you than someone who just clicked “like” on your Facebook page.

2. Being Too Vague. Don’t ask for “support” or “help” or use any of these other weak calls to action. People don’t know what you are asking for. Be specific.

3. Failing to Make It Relevant. What’s in for them? Why should they care? What good will it do? You have to answer these questions or people won’t follow through.

4. Not Making It Super Easy to Do It. Put yourself in their shoes and walk through the exact process you are asking others to follow. How can you make it easier and faster? Is donating online super easy? Is getting the right person on the phone super easy? (Think nonprofits are pretty good at this? Think again.)

5. Asking Sheepishly. If you seem embarrassed or guilty when asking, that’s a clear sign to your volunteers or donors that they might feel embarrassed or guilty themselves by following through. Remember, asking is about giving people an opportunity, not about taking something away from them.

To learn more about getting past these hurdles and how to structure your calls to action, join us for the webinar on Tuesday!

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Jubi Headley

I met Jubi Headley via my other website, Writing for Nonprofits. Jubi is direct, witty, and savvy — all qualities I admire in both writers and friends, so I’m happy to introduce him to you as both, and as today’s guest blogger.   ~Kivi

Guest Post by Jubi Headley, WriteNow Communications

Whether you call them clients, customers, consumers, or something entirely different, your organization will benefit if you, dear organizational leader/employee/volunteer, get out of your own way (as Mama loves to say) and let the constituency you serve tell your story for you.  No matter how well you write, no matter how much you know, nothing you as an individual who works for an organization can say will ever be as convincing to the outside world as a testimonial from someone who has benefitted from your product or service.

Case in point:  Recently I attended the open house of an organization run by a friend of mine – an organization that teaches young African-American and Latino youth how to use the Google Android platform to develop “apps,” as they’re called.  A young boy (I’d say he was 8 or nine years old) came up to me – he wanted to show me the app he’d developed.  He pulled out his smart phone (and yes, he actually had a smart phone) and proceeded to show me an app which lets you type in any number from zero to nine – what we think of as European numbers – and converts them to the Arabic equivalent. (I should mention that this young man is Muslim and as such chose to create an app that spoke to his own experience.)

Friends, I was flabbergasted – flabbergasted that an eight-year-old could be so technologically savvy, as well as create something that had such practical applications.  (Whether you’re a technological illiterate like myself, or you’re poised to launch the next Microsoft , Facebook or Google, you gotta be a little impressed by this kid.  Who in ten years will probably develop something that trumps what you’re working on anyhow.  Did I mention that after his “product demo” he asked for my business card?)

Two weeks later, I received an e-mail from this organization, asking for financial support.  The ask was modest – only $25.  I immediately (as in, within ten minutes of receiving the e-mail) gave $50.  I didn’t give simply because I was asked to give, or because I had the means to do so. I gave because I was so impressed by what I saw as the potential of this program, I was compelled to do more than the minimum.  I’m not rich, by any means, but I figured I could at least double the ask.

THAT, dear friends, is how you want your potential supporters to feel.

Though as a writer I am of course assured of the power of the written word, I am going to, at this time, commit a teeny blasphemy and suggest to you that the written word isn’t always the best way to communicate your clients’ experiences.  Hold an open house, like my friend did.  Take clients with you to meetings with media folks, funders, and community leaders.  If you have the resources, get them to tell their story on video and post it on your website, Facebook page, YouTube channel, and anywhere else you can think of.  E-mail the video link to your prospective supporters.

Even when you do need to make use of the written word, you can STILL let your clients tell the story.  Be the editor, if it’s needed, not the writer.  Whether they write the piece themselves, or tell it to you for you to transcribe, tread lightly upon their words, I beseech you.  Chances are their authentic voice is what might move someone like me – a potential donor – to give to your cause.

Case in point #2:  I get many, MANY fundraising letters from organizational executive directors, presidents, and worker bees with such esteemed titles.  In the past year, let’s say that, estimating conservatively, I’ve received fifty.  Of those, ONE – exactly one – was from someone who herself was a client of the organization sending the letter.  Did I give to the organization?  No – at least, not yet.  BUT—of all the fundraising letters I’ve received this year, that’s the only one that hasn’t gone into the recycling bin.  I received it months ago and it’s still sitting on my kitchen counter.  I almost feel guilty throwing it away, so intimately did the letter communicate the organization’s need.

THAT, dear friends, is how you want your potential supporters to feel.

Jubi Headley is President of WriteNow Communications, and is also a freelance writer based in Houston, Texas.  You can e-mail Jubi at jubi@write-now.org.

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A few weeks ago, I asked you to describe your nonprofit’s personality in three words and I got some interesting responses. Several of you emailed me privately to say that you really didn’t think your nonprofit had much of a personality at all. If you are in that boat, here are 7 ways to show more personality.

1. Write in the first and second person as much as possible.

When you refer to yourself and your organization as I and We, and your readers as You, you’ll naturally write in a much more friendly, personable tone.

2. Let us know who’s doing the writing.

Faceless nonprofits aren’t much fun to support. Let us see the real staff behind the nonprofit, who are doing the work we all care so much about. It’s as simple as including a byline (where possible) on your articles and blog and identifying who is updating your Twitter feed and Facebook pages.

3. Express an opinion.

Don’t be afraid to take a stand. Point out what and who is right, and what and who is wrong (or at least heading in the right or wrong direction, if you need to be more diplomatic about it). People look to nonprofits as trustworthy leaders, so show some leadership by pointing the way.

4. Share some of the downs along with the ups.

Sure, you should focus on successes more than failures, but it’s those downs that often reveal the most about our character and values — in other words the real personalities of our organizations. Nobody likes a perfect know-it-all, so why should your organization pretend to be one?

5. Make us laugh (or at least smile).

Humor is one of the quickest ways to bond people together. Next week, Kerri Karvetski and I are presenting a webinar called Funny Ha Ha! Using Humor in Nonprofit Marketing and Fundraising. Humor is a fabulous way to let your personality shine through.

6. Tell more stories.

Storytelling is an inherently human and personal experience. So when you tell more stories about the real people involved in your organization, whether as beneficiaries or supporters, your organization feels more personable too.

7. Decide who you want to be when you grow up.

Even if you don’t feel you have a clear organizational personality now, pick a few characteristics to aspire to. Let those drive your marketing (more on how to do that in tomorrow’s blog post).

I had to reschedule tomorrow’s webinar on nonprofit personalities to June 14 due to some family scheduling conflicts, so if you want to learn more about building a nonprofit personality, join us on June 14th!

Get all of our webinars and e-books for one price with the All-Access Pass! Get a full year for $465, or 90 days for $145.