Between never-ending ‘to-do’ lists and new communications channels popping up everyday, it can be hard to find the time to stop and look at the bigger picture. Take a few hours out of the trenches and into a conversation about your goals, audiences, and actions to support your nonprofit’s mission. In a workshop at the Foundation Center in DC, Big Duck’s Vice President, Farra Trompeter, outlined what’s in a communications strategy and a guide for how to create and implement one for your organization.

1. Developing a
Communications
Strategy
#techsense
Farra Trompeter | Big Duck
The Foundation Center
August 9, 2012
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4. #techsense
@farra
@bigduck
@FCWashington
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5. What we will talk about today
• Quick introductions
• How communications helps
• Ways to get your organization
communicating consistently
• Strategic communications planning
• Resources
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6. Intros…
• Name
• Organization
• Role
• Describe your approach to communications
in one word
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7. How can
communications help
your organization?
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8. Communications helps
• Internally – to facilitate the work
- Who needs and gets what?
- When do they get it?
• Externally – to amplify impact
- How will you engage your community
- What do you want them to think/do?
- What does they want from you?
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9. Reasons nonprofits
communicate
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10. Communications can help…
• Provide support/services
• Increase awareness/visibility
• Support policy change
• Help gain support and recognition
• Increase funding
• Change behavior or attitudes
• Recruit volunteers
• Attract members, clients, donors, etc.
• Organize community
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17. Blue slide: be clear about what
you want to say as an
organization, and how you want
to say it.
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37. Remember to connect
with audiences on
their terms, not yours.
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38. So…what’s in a
communications plan?
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39. A communications plan
includes:
• Goals and objectives
• Target audiences
• Strategies
• Tactics to engage the target audiences
• Roles and responsibilities
• Work plan
• Budget
• Evaluation
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40. Goals and objectives
• Relationship to mission
• Conduct research (audit)
- Materials review
- Landscape scan of peers
- Environmental scan (STEEP)
- Understand perceptions through surveys, interviews,
focus groups
• Create SMART objectives
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42. Target audiences
Try this exercise:
Audience Current Desired Their Desired
Perception Perception Needs Actions
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44. User Personas
• Audience Group
• Age
• Gender
• Ethnicity
• Location
• Occupation
• Education
• Personal online behavior
• Motivation and objectives
• Our objectives
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46. Strategies
• What will motivate audiences to do
the actions (donate, volunteer, visit)
you want them to take?
Example: Empower donors to share their stories as to
why they support our work
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47. Tactics
• What messages and communications
channels should you use to
accomplish your strategies?
• How do these channels reinforce the
experience of your brand?
Example: Ask and feature donor stories in our monthly
enewsletter and weekly on our Facebook page
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48. Roles and responsibilities
• Everyone is a communicator
• Who oversees and approves?
• What do you do on staff and where do you
ask for outside help (volunteers,
consultants, interns)?
• How do you train and grow skills?
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49. Work plan
• Create a steady stream of activities
• Repurpose when you can
• Keep each target audience’s needs, wants,
and perceptions in mind
• Ensure coordination in timing and impact
• Develop/refine brand strategy and use
brand consistently
• Be clear about who will do what & by when
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50. Budget
• Staff costs (salary, time)
• Materials development
• Printing and postage
• Software and hardware
• Technology systems
• Consulting
• Travel
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51. Evaluation
• Measure impact
- Quantitative and qualitative
- Benchmark prior to starting
- Focus groups, interviews, surveys
• Types of measures:
- $ raised
- # of calls or requests
- # of media hits
- # of page views, followers, fans
- # of letters sent, petitions signed, etc.
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52. Evaluation
• Use data to refine your approach
- What’s working and what needs to change?
- Are there new messages, channels, audiences?
- Who is most engaged? Least? Why?
- What messages or content are generating
actions?
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53. Questions?
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54. Resources
Big Duck
• www.bigducknyc.com
• www.bigducknyc.com/blog
• www.bigducknyc.com/DuckPondE-news
• www.bigducknyc.com/resources/scorecard
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55. Resources
Templates & Guide
• http://civicactions.com/blog/2010/mar/23/
nonprofit_marketing_plan_template
• http://www.gettingattention.org/downloads/
nonprofit-marketing-plan-template.html
• http://www.writeplacedesigns.com/portfolio/
fcphighperformancecom.pdf
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56. Contact Farra
farra@bigducknyc.com
twitter.com/farra
linkedin.com/in/farra
slideshare.net/farra
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57. Contact Big Duck
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bigducknyc.com/blog
facebook.com/bigduck
twitter.com/bigduck
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