Three Hour Workshop at the Montana Nonprofit Association conference, September 21, 2012

1. So What?
Who Cares?
Making Your Communications
More Relevant for Today

2. Kivi Leroux Miller
New Book
in the
Works!

3. We get 3,000 media messages a day.
We pay attention to about 52.
We positively remember about 4.
The rest?
So What?
Who Cares?

4. Quick and Dirty Marketing Plan
• Who are we trying to reach?
(Or what do we want someone to do?)
• What’s our message to them?
(Or why should they do it?)
• What’s the best way to deliver that message?
(Or how do we convince them?)

5. Which Comes First:
Right Message or
Right People?
flickr.com/photos/marktee/5586165599

6. What Do We Need
People to Do?

7. Calls to Action
Something Needs to Does Your Audience
Be Done! Know Where to Begin?
flickr.com/photos/fusen/2342290882

8. Typical (Ineffective) Calls to Action
• Participate • Collaborate
• Engage • Buy in
• Believe • Promote
• Understand • Share
• Help • Educate
• Support • Network
• Be proactive • Connect
• Work with us • Partner

9. Or No Call to Action At All!
We Assume It is Obvious, or Or We Are
Maybe That People Are Too Shy to Ask
Psychic
flickr.com/photos/68726162@N00/

10. People Need Direction
• They won’t do
anything unless we
ask.
• They can’t get there
without a map.
flickr.com/photos/liaw/398748129

11. Solution 1: Think Visually
Can you take
a photo or
video of
someone
doing it?

12. Solution 2: Step 1, Step 2 . . .
Can you break
it down into
simple,
ordered steps?
flickr.com/photos/atoach/2545233155

13. Solution 3: Create a Checklist
Can you
create a
short
checklist?

14. Let’s Work on Your
Calls to Action.
We want _______________
(group)
to ______________________ .
(verb/object)

15. Who Cares?
Let’s Get to the
Right People by
Segmenting

17. Not this one, who doesn’t.
If your org likes cranes,
you want to focus on this
person – who does care!

18. Neutral, probably
persuadable.
Ignore people like
this (unless they
are organized
opposition).
Most likely a strong
advocate for you.
Most likely a friend
of your org.

19. Everyone should care.
But they don’t. 

20. flickr.com/photos/stopdown/2507765030
Forget the “general public.”

21. Clients
Volunteers
Advocates
Donors
Funders
Partners
Policymakers
Decisionmakers
Media
Others Who Influence Your
Success

22. Focus on
groups of
people who
are likely to
lean your
way.

23. Some Possible
Groupings:
• Demographics?
• “Tribes”
• Behaviors
• Geotargeting
• Stages of Change

24. Let’s Add Segments to
Your Calls to Action.
We’d like _______ who
(group)
_________ to _______.
(segmenting description) (do what?)

25. So What?
Start with Rewarding,
Realistic & Real Time

27. Good Marketing: Making Your
Messages Relevant to Others
What are you
trying to do?

28. Gross! Bad Messaging.
I don’t
care if it’s
good for
me!

29. Rewarding Messages

30. Rewarding: The Benefit Exchange
• What’s in it for
them to follow
through?
• Often an emotional
payoff

31. Example: Teens and Smoking
• What are the benefits
of not smoking?
• Do teens care about
them?
• What DO teens care
about?
• How can we relate
what they care about
to not smoking?
.flickr.com/photos/21524179@N08/2419469212

32. What rewards do your
participants or
supporters get for
following through?

33. Realistic Messages

34. Realistic: Addressing Barriers
• Heart overrules
head
• Convenient?
• Easy or difficult?
• Costly ($, time)
• Stigma?

35. Example: Health Screenings
• Most women know
they need Pap
smears.
• So why don’t they
get them regularly?
• How can we
address the barrier
in our messaging?

36. What barriers should
your messaging
address?

37. Real Time Messages

38. REAL-TIME
MESSAGES:
Does your
message work in
the context of the
news and
everything else
you are talking
about?
flickr.com/photos/katerha/4647339052

39. Add These As We Discuss . . .
• National News
• State News
• Local News
• Seasons and Holidays
• Your Programs, Services, Events Schedule
• What Else?
flickr.com/photos/katerha/4647339052

40. What can you do to
make your messages
feel more timely?

41. So What?
Create Content That’s
Responsive, Revealing
and Refreshing

42. Responsive Messages

43. flickr.com/photos/marcinmoga
RESPONSIVE MESSAGES:
Think of communicating
as gift giving.

44. Flickr: Brittany G
RESPONSIVE MESSAGES:
Listen to what your
supporters are saying,
and respond!

45. EARN wanted to talk
about home ownership
and small business
development as a way to
help low-wage workers
build wealth, but their
target audience wanted to
talk about student loan
debt, thus the creation of
MyDebtStory.com
RESPONSIVE MESSAGES:
Prove you are listening!
http://www.nonprofitmarketingblog.com/comments/great_content_forges_great_connections_a_reader_guest_post/

46. RESPONSIVE MESSAGES:
Be a helpful human.

47. RESPONSIVE MESSAGES:
Be a helpful human!

48. How can you listen and
then be a helpful
human?

49. Revealing Messages

50. REVEALING
MESSAGES:
Share New Info
or Insights.
flickr.com/photos/katemere
flickr.com/photos/farleyj/2768941171

51. REVEALING MESSAGES:
Bringing New Info or
Perspectives to Light
Read the story of this post here: http://www.bethkanter.org/pigs-hsus/

52. flickr.com/photos/katemere
REVEALING MESSAGES:
Take us back stage.

53. REVEALING MESSAGES:
Following Up with Results
Your Donors Made Possible

54. REVEALING MESSAGES:
Story Arcs that Take Us
Back Stage

55. REVEALING: Communications Arcs
• Think Must-See
TV, Except Now
It’s Your Content!
• Story Threads
Over Weeks or
Months
• Think Beginning,
Middle, End
flickr.com/photos/wonderlane/5351266905

56. Where are your
communications arcs?
Can you take us back
stage?

57. Refreshing Messages

58. REFRESHING MESSAGES:
Show some personality!
flickr.com/photos/uggboy/4100732860

59. flickr.com/photos/ piccadillywilson
REFRESHING MESSAGES:
Facts are fine, but emotions
drive action.

60. flickr.com/photos/noelzialee
REFRESHING MESSAGES: Show us
the personal side of your work – think
You and I/We.

61. REFRESHING MESSAGES:
Have some fun!
“Raum and Moresi, both employees with
the nonprofit United Service Organizations
(USO), came up with a plan.”
You got cookie, so share it maybe?

62. REFRESHING MESSAGES:
Express an opinion!
flickr.com/photos/randysonofrobert/393165345

63. How can you be more
refreshing?

64. Messaging That DOES Work
REWARDING:
Benefits are clear.
REALISTIC:
Barriers are addressed.
REAL TIME: REVEALING:
Context makes sense. Something new is shared.
RESPONSIVE: REFRESHING:
We can tell you are The style is authentic.
listening.

65. What Three
Things Will You
Do Differently?

66. Any Sticky Situations?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/katerha/5588607682

67. Thank You!
flickr.com/photos/flashpackinglife/6844834841

68. Kivi Leroux Miller
@kivilm
Facebook.com/
nonprofitmarketingguide
kivi@ecoscribe.com