We’re asking that question in the 2018 Nonprofit Communications Trends Survey. So far, here’s the word cloud of answers from nearly 300 communications pros. See the trend? “Reactive communications instead of proactive” “Random social media posts” “Busy work and meetings” “Fewer events” What about you? Get your experiences included in the report by taking the…
Today I presented the first in a two-part webinar series on streamlining your communications workflow. We focused on five strategies for managing what happens to ideas, suggestions, and other potential assignments BEFORE they make it on to your to-do list. After talking about each strategy, I polled participants about how easy they thought it would…
It’s our most popular download of the year: The Annual Nonprofit Communications Trends Report. We answer the burning questions that nonprofit communications pros have about their work and their colleagues in the sector. Our ability to produce this report is entirely dependent on your participation in the annual survey, which is now online. Please take the…
Every communications director has a to-do list a mile long, and it gets longer every day. What’s the secret to keeping that list in check? It’s all about creating a workflow for ideas BEFORE they make it onto your editorial calendar or to-do list. Here are three tips to get you started: Idea Parking Lot…
I’m teaching two new webinars on measuring the effectiveness of nonprofit communications this week. In the course of doing the research, I found three items that you might also find interesting . . . 1. There’s a whole association dedicated to communications measurement. AMEC is the International Association for Measurement and Evaluation of Communication. They have…
It’s my least favorite goal for nonprofit communicators: Brand Awareness. Why? Because it’s vague and hard to measure, and therefore hard to know what will really work best to increase it. Nevertheless, raising brand awareness is a top goal for many nonprofit communications departments, according to our research. The argument for the goal goes like this:…
On Thursday, I’m presenting a webinar on how to create a great thank you video for your supporters. We’ll talk about the best scripts and soundtracks for these kinds of videos, but what about when you post them on social media and your supporters see it with the sound off? Here are a few tips…
We recently asked you to share your advice for new communications directors, and we heard from 25 of you. That’s a great start, but we’d love to hear even more! Share your advice here. Here are just a few of the great nuggets of wisdom so far . . . “The most important research you can do…
I love, love, love, thank you videos. They are relatively easy to produce and so feel-good and effective. They are the perfect way to remind your supporters of the good work you are doing with their help, right before your major year-end campaigns. You can use them in lots of other ways too. If you…
Measuring the effectiveness of your nonprofit’s communications is a complicated puzzle. You have the effectiveness of specific channels like your website or Facebook page. Those depend on the effectiveness of the content you create. That depends on the effectiveness of your editorial calendar. That in turn depends on your larger marketing strategy, which depends on…
Much of our work in nonprofit marketing and fundraising is about persuasion. How can we convince people to support our work with their time or money or to change their own behaviors? It all starts with asking for what we need in a clear, convincing way. Here are three steps to getting people to give, volunteer, or…
Many of the people who participate in our Nonprofit Marketing Guide community and training programs are new communications directors. Either they are personally new to the role, or they are the first person to step into a newly created director job, or they are filling a director job that’s been vacant for awhile. No matter…
