The big questions for today's nonprofit communications

Photo by Simon Evans.

Communications for mission driven organizations has been turned upside down by two things: a rampaging Republican administration and the obliteration of traditional modes of mass outreach and engagement. The result of this is a lot of organizations continuing to invest in strategies that are going absolutely nothing for them, and others who know that something is wrong but are still fumbling in the dark. I don’t have all the answers, but I want to share some of the questions that I hope are a good starting place for people in our industry:

How will you directly reach large numbers of like-minded voters who are not already in our circle?

This is the big one, so I’m putting it first. I can’t tell you how many nonprofits I’ve worked with who have a great cause and a strong message, but have no way to reach large numbers of people with it. This is truly an era where a small email list, weak or inconsistent social media, and no marketing budget will assure your failure. Power is in numbers, and if you don’t have numbers, you probably don’t have much power. Many turn to earned media in the form of news coverage or op-eds to make their case, but this is undependable. Traditional news outlets reach far fewer people than ever before. But more importantly, when you speak through the press, you’re speaking through a filter, one that frequently weakens your message, or doesn’t pass it on at all.

How are you building your lists?

This is similar to the first question, but I want it to be more specific to the technical side of list-building, or better, audience building. And I’m specifically talking about email addresses and phone numbers (I’ll get to social media later). Lots of nonprofits with small budgets have talked themselves into the idea that they can build these lists organically through social media or people with clipboards at events. Honestly, few organizations can reach significant numbers this way. List purchases have never been less expensive to buy, and have never been more targeted. If you haven’t been able to grow your list by more than 5% a year, you need to go this route.

Once I’ve reached all these new people, how are you going to effectively engage with them to take action?

Getting lots of eyeballs is great, but it takes more to get people to call their elected officials, sign on to a letter, or take some other meaningful action. This is where your messaging strategy makes the difference. Find a way to hit people emotionally and give them something meaningful to do.

What’s the right action to change the status quo?

There was a time in my career, years ago, when the email action alert was a high-impact way to get the attention of policymakers. While there is some utility to the email action alert, the days when lawmakers freaked out when their inboxes fill up with advocacy emails are pretty much gone. So what are you going to do now? There are good options in the form of phone calls, postcards, social media, and elsewhere. But not all of these are going to work for you. It’s critical that you figure out where to direct your power most effectively.

How do you plan to make people love you?

I once heard a conservation CEO compare his organization to a newspaper in that “if both sides are mad at you, you must be doing something right.” That’s utter bullshit, because if nobody loves you, you are lost. You need a real strategy to draw new people to your organization, with the understanding that if some people love you, others will hate you—and you have to get comfortable with that.

What’s your edge?

Not every organization is either equipped or disposed to fight the right-wing machine right now, but every organization needs to figure out where it will rhetorically stand and fight. If you want people to love you in this day and age, you need to speak to their emotions and make yourself worth their engagement. If your organization is A Future for Whales, then you should be able to confidently oppose any proposal that will kill whales. If you can’t do this, your audience simply won’t take you seriously. You might be able to fool them for a while, but whale lovers will eventually go elsewhere.

Are you wasting time on social media?

Social media is a dark and scary place, but it’s also a massive opportunity for mission-driven organization, one that can’t be ignored. But I can’t tell you how many groups are using social media perfunctorily, which is to say they’re just posting nice photos or random news memes. And while they might be getting some likes and comments, they’re wasting energy. The algorithms that drive all platforms these days only take a passive glance at follower numbers when deciding whether to show your posts to the world. A much bigger factor is consistency and individual post quality. Bottom line: organizations that are trying to make change need to create social media that changes the conversation, blows people away, and sparks both positive and negative reaction. This means consistently posting timely, high-energy, creative posts that prompt real engagement. Yes, likes and comments are great, but keep an eye on how many people are sharing your posts.

What are some of the key questions that come to your mind?