This blog is all about do-it-yourself nonprofit communications and marketing. I love helping small and medium-sized nonprofits communicate more effectively with their members, donors, volunteers and other supporters, so that together, we can all make the world a better place. I do that as a blogger, trainer, coach and consultant.
I believe that even the smallest nonprofit staffs with the most modest budgets can achieve tremendous results through savvy marketing and communications. I hope this blog and my online marketing training and other resources encourage you to do just that, while helping you grow personally as a nonprofit marketer and communications professional.
I hear great stories all the time from nonprofit staff who are using their All-Access Passes to Nonprofit Marketing Guide’s webinar series to get more support for their good causes and to develop their own careers. Here are stories from three people who are relatively new to the nonprofit sector . . .
“A group of fellow cancer patients and myself recently formed PMP Research Foundation to promote awareness and fund research for our rare form of cancer. Having only a for-profit business background, this whole nonprofit world has been a learning curve. Finding your site has been great. I’ve watched a couple of archived seminars and have attended two live webinars so far.
I like the format of the webinars — the slides are always excellent, the timing is perfect to glean the important details, and the briefing fits into my busy day. I’ve taken advantage of many suggestions which have been implemented via our new email and newsletter campaigns. I’m glad we purchased an All-Access Pass and feel the investment is well worth the money and time spent.”
“I just wanted to let you know how much I’m enjoying your webinars! I started in my very first non-profit in mid-January. I had so much to learn! So I’ve signed up for as many webinars and teleconferences as I can manage. Of the different ones I’m taking in, yours are hands-down the best. The information is right up to date, you lay everything out clearly and you’re so positive and encouraging. Thanks for all the help!
P.S. I was asked to put together a PowerPoint presentation for an upcoming board meeting. Even with compressed photos, it took forever to send in an email. But then I remembered that you recommend SlideShare. So I opened an account and uploaded it there. The Board members (scattered across the country) were told where they could view it - and we’ve had other traffic besides (free publicity!). So huge thank yous to you!”
“The webinars have been great for me, especially as I just started in this position last December (with no real direct experience in the non-profit world). I really appreciate what I consider my guaranteed weekly learning time!
The “4 page annual report” webinar was terrific, and I am using it as my template to put our report together. The organization of the information and detail included means that it’s pretty much a step-by-step guide I can use to piece it all together. The fact that the webinar included example layouts really helped me envision what I wanted our report to look like as well.
I feel that way with all the webinars I’ve attended - at the very least, it’s a great chance to sit and focus on one important topic, and I always get a minimum of one or two really great ideas that make it an hour very well spent.”
All-Access Pass Summer Special!
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We are offering 75 Summer Passes to the Nonprofit Marketing Guide webinar series for just $75. The pass will give you access to all of our live and recorded webinars from now through August 31, 2009. New pass holders only - no renewals, please!
Most media outlets don’t want to include event sponsors in the stories. So how do I get the word out and add value for them?
What are the low resource/cost options for discovering what is gripping or engaging to our market?
How do you pull the heart strings of prospective donors when your “good cause” is education versus humanitarian aid, animal rights or even art? What is a history museum to do?
How do you launch an effective campaign to restore the reputation of a nonprofit?
What are the two most important / effective things marketers can do to help promote their organization to the public, when we have very few dollar and people resources?
What is the best way to craft a marketing message in this hyper competitive market?
Are print materials passe?
When you grant funds, as well as seek funding, how do you balance the two?
How important do you feel it is to equip your board of directors with effective marketing tools such as a powerful case for support statement?
In an economic climate where critical needs are looming large, we’re finding it difficult to create a message of “compelling need” when our mission is to open the first dog parks in Birmingham.
How do you re-energize a longstanding nonprofit’s image in the community?
I’m going to NTEN’s NTC this year (that’s the Nonprofit Technology Network’s Nonprofit Technology Conference) in San Francisco in April. It will be my first time, and I can’t wait, because I know I’ll get to meet in person so many of the friends I’ve made online over the last few years.
I’m also excited because, though it may not look like it on the surface, I believe this conference has the potential to become the national event for nonprofit marketing staff at small nonprofits.
Why this technology conference rather than one of the more traditional marketing conferences? Three reasons:
1) Small nonprofits can afford online marketing. Using online tools and social media technology to market your organization is incredibly cheap compared to traditional print marketing. It just makes financial sense to take advantage of the technology and this conference is all about helping you learn how to do that.
2) Small nonprofits will feel comfortable at this conference. NTEN is a casual, fun group of mostly supportive, friendly people. I have no doubt that there will be a few speakers who look down their noses at small groups with little technical experience or tiny budgets, but I bet they will be in a very small minority. I’m not sure what the stats are these days, but when I asked NTEN Executive Director Holly Ross a year ago how many of NTEN’s members were techies who managed technology versus communications people who used the technology, she said it was something like half and half. In other words, there is a place for us within this organization and at this conference.
3) It’s where the cool kids in nonprofit marketing will be. I just quickly scanned the registration list, and many of the top bloggers who write about nonprofit communications will be there, including Nancy Schwartz, Maddie Grant, Mark Rovner, Britt Bravo, and Geoff Livingston. And that’s just the early bird registration. Nancy Schwartz is now on the NTEN board, which is another great sign.
I hope you’ll join us in San Francisco - and I hope you’ll help some nonprofits who can’t otherwise afford it by donating to NTEN’s scholarship fund. I just gave $25. Can you donate a few bucks? Click over to the blog to see the fundraising widget.
Last week, Lindy Dreyer (SocialFish.org) and I hosted a free half-hour webinar called “What’s the Buzz? Find Out Who’s Talking About Your Organization and Issues Online” - or what’s called “social media listening” by the Web 2.0 cool kids.
We talked about why you should be listening to online conversations and how you can use what you hear to improve your nonprofit’s programs and marketing. We also walked through how to set up several easy, free listening tools.
If you missed it, you can watch the recording: What’s the Buzz? (Windows Media Video .wmv)
This morning, the group was gathered in person at a conference and they used webinar technology to bring me in virtually. This afternoon, we used the same webinar technology I use every week for the Nonprofit Marketing Guide webinar series with participants logging in from across the United States. It was a cost-effective way to get training to members of an association in one case and to a foundation’s local advocacy partners and grantees in the other.
I’m available to give just about any of the webinars I teach through Nonprofit Marketing Guide as private webinars for your members, grantees, or partners and can customize the examples and talking points to be relevant to your cause or concerns. Give me a call at 336-499-5816 or send me an email to begin discussing how we can work together to provide some high-quality, affordable training for your groups.
I was at the annual conference of the North Carolina Center for Nonprofits late last week. Here are a few things I learned there.
1. Nonprofits are very excited about Web 2.0, but also completely freaked out by the idea of people saying bad things about them online.
I tweeted (used Twitter) from the conference, along with a handful of other people. Check out our coverage of the conference. Several people who had never heard of Twitter were fascinated by the idea, but also alarmed at the prospect that someone might actually tweet that a speaker was boring. While they know that everyone would say the same thing to each other in person, or in private text messages or email later, or in the conference evaluation survey, the thought of it going out live in real time in a more public forum really bothered several people.
I heard a similar fear about blogging. The questions were not about how best to use the tool to market a nonprofit’s activities or mission (which is what I’ll be talking about during next week’s webinar on nonprofit blogging), but more like “What if someone says something really awful about us in the comments?” and “What if someone puts something mean about our blog on their own blog?”
2. Nonprofits are very concerned about copyright and privacy issues.
Several speakers suggested using Flickr for group photo sharing and to easily integrate rotating photography into a nonprofit website. In just about every case, again, the first question was not about how to use the tool most effectively, but rather “Won’t we need model releases from everyone in every photo?” and “Won’t people steal our photos?”
3. Nonprofits find the array of Web 2.0 options overwhelming - before they’ve even tried to use them.
Even though people were genuinely excited about the potential they saw for using the tools in their own organizations, especially after seeing some great examples of what others were doing from Katya Andresen, Angela Connor and John Kenyon, that excitement quickly turned into anxiety about trying to figure out what would work best for their particular situations.
What this tells me is that it isn’t enough for trainers like me to talk about the benefits and how-to’s of Web 2.0; we also need to address the very practical and real fears that come with this major shift in how nonprofits relate to their supporters online.
And here is something I was reminded about . . . It is SO GREAT to meet people face-to-face who you have only known online previously, and to catch up with great friends you don’t get to see often enough. Two cases in point:
Leandra, a web designer, connected with me through a mutual contact on LinkedIn several months ago and Elizabeth, a fundraising specialist, has been reading my blog for awhile. They have worked on nonprofit projects together here in North Carolina and I was on their “must meet at the conference” list. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know them both in person and I hope I can find a project for the three of us to work on together in the coming year.
- Catching up Katya Andresen and Claire Meyerhoff
Katya is not only one of my favorite bloggers and an inspiration to all of us in nonprofit marketing, but she’s also a great friend. And even though media maven Claire Meyerhoff lives in NC and we email constantly, I don’t get to see her in person nearly enough either. Here we are getting ready to watch the presidential debate together the night before the conference got started.
While I’m certainly a huge advocate of online training, by all means, get to a conference when you can. There’s nothing like spending time with people face to face!
The Nonprofit Marketing Guide weekly webinar series is continuing this fall, with some great new topics and a few encores of popular topics from earlier this year. As always, registration for each webinar is $35, which includes everyone in your office who can fit around one speakerphone and computer monitor.
Even better — get the All-Access Pass for just $97 and you can attend all of these sessions at no additional charge. It’s the recession-proof way to get the training you need so you can build support and raise money for your good cause!
You’ll learn 10 different ways to start your fundraising letters and other marketing communications — all of which will engage your supporters and keep them reading. Leave writer’s block and boring letters behind forever! This Thursday, October 2, 1:00 p.m. Eastern (10:00 a.m. Pacific).
Light a fire and watch the good news about your nonprofit’s work spread with the creative publicity ideas you’ll get during this webinar. Thursday, October 9, 1:00 p.m. Eastern (10:00 a.m. Pacific).
During this webinar, you’ll learn how to write like the smart, passionate human being you are — instead of the dead-inside, jargon-loving droid you just might sound like now. Tuesday, October 14, 1:00 p.m. Eastern (10:00 a.m. Pacific).
Stop wasting time and money trying to reach the general public. They don’t care (and they don’t really exist!). Instead, learn how to identify your target audience and to speak directly to them. Thursday, October 23, 1:00 p.m. Eastern (10:00 a.m. Pacific).
Everybody’s doing it - should you? Learn how other nonprofits are using blogs and how your organization could use a blog to build an online community. Wednesday, October 29, 1:00 p.m. Eastern (10:00 a.m. Pacific).
Learn how to write an annual report that highlights your accomplishments, explains your financials, and appeals to both hearts and minds — all in four pages. Thursday, November 6, 1:00 p.m. Eastern (10:00 a.m. Pacific)
Learn the key differences between writing for print and for pixels, including the top three characteristics of good online writing. Make your online writing more appealing and improve your website or email’s performance. Wednesday, November 12, 1:00 p.m. Eastern (10:00 a.m. Pacific).
Inspire others by telling great stories about the people you meet and work with everyday, including donors, volunteers, and clients. Escape the boring bio syndrome and write engaging, dramatic profiles. Thursday, November 20, 1:00 p.m. Eastern (10:00 a.m. Pacific).
Like what you see? Get all of this training (and much more) for only $97, with the All-Access Pass.
My recent presentation on “Message & Media: Marketing for Small Community-Based Nonprofits” is featured on the homepage of Slideshare.net today. It’s the same presentation that I shared with you in a post on Monday.
I’ve been meaning to talk a little bit about the value of Slideshare to nonprofit communicators, so this is a good chance to return the love.
Just like LinkedIn Answers, Slideshare.net has become a really good source of current thinking on various issues, including nonprofit marketing and especially social media. While you certainly can’t get a speaker’s complete message from her slides alone, you can usually get the gist of it, allowing you to follow up with the speaker directly if you want more detail on her point of view. And Slideshare does allow you to add audio to your slides, although I haven’t done that yet.
When I’m researching something new, whether for a client, a blog post, or a webinar, I’ve added a search on Slideshare to my must-check list. Googling is usually the first thing I do, but I quickly move on to other favorite sources now like Slideshare. I highly recommend that you do the same when doing online research for your nonprofit.
Are you using Slideshare in any capacity? Share what you are doing with it and your Slideshare link by leaving a comment. You can find all of my presentations at slideshare.net/kivilm.
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Questions Answered
I'll gladly answer your questions (or try to anyway), but I prefer to do so in a public way, so others can benefit from our conversation and join in with their thoughts too. Here are the best ways to ask your questions and get free advice.
Live Office Hours on Fridays - Most Fridays, when I'm not on the road, you can either call in your question to Magic Keys Radio or chat with me live on this blog's homepage. Check the calendar for details.
See Your Q&A on the Blog - I'll post your question and my reply on this blog and/or in my e-newsletter when you submit your question at Ask Kivi.com.
For Webinar Participants Only - Ask a question in advance of the live webinar and see what others are curious about too (coming soon!)
Email Me Directly - Last resort for general questions, and probably the slowest, because I'm putting priority on answering questions in the places above first. Here's the contact form.
For questions about webinars, coaching or consulting, please feel free to email me or to call me at 336-499-5816 anytime and I'll get back to you promptly.
Magic Keys Radio/Podcast
A couple of times per month, Kivi Leroux Miller and Claire Meyerhoff host a live Internet radio show and podcast.
Looking for the 
“A group of fellow cancer patients and myself recently formed PMP Research Foundation to promote awareness and fund research for our rare form of cancer. Having only a for-profit business background, this whole nonprofit world has been a learning curve. Finding your site has been great. I’ve watched a couple of archived seminars and have attended two live webinars so far.
“I just wanted to let you know how much I’m enjoying your webinars! I started in my very first non-profit in mid-January. I had so much to learn! So I’ve signed up for as many webinars and teleconferences as I can manage. Of the different ones I’m taking in, yours are hands-down the best. The information is right up to date, you lay everything out clearly and you’re so positive and encouraging. Thanks for all the help!
Last week, Lindy Dreyer (
I was at the annual conference of the North Carolina Center for Nonprofits late last week. Here are a few things I learned there.
Katya is not only one of my favorite bloggers and an inspiration to all of us in nonprofit marketing, but she’s also a great friend. And even though media maven Claire Meyerhoff lives in NC and we email constantly, I don’t get to see her in person nearly enough either. Here we are getting ready to watch the presidential debate together the night before the conference got started.
Ten Captivating Ways to Start Fundraising Letters, Newsletter Articles & More
Nonprofit Publicity 101: Great PR Ideas that Get Attention
Nonprofit Writing Stinks! Bring Your Writing Back to Life
Forget the General Public! How to Define and Reach Your Target Audience
Blogging for Nonprofits: Tips, Traps, and Tales
How to Write a 4-Page Nonprofit Annual Report - A Crash Course Webinar
Online Writing: Dos and Don’ts of Writing for the Web and Email
How to Write Moving Personal Profiles about Donors, Clients, and Other Supporters
