Back in late March, I shared a post called How to Be Relevant Now (and What Not to Say). I think it’s time for another messaging update, so here’s some advice as of late May 2020.
If you aren’t already, it’s really time to set your eyes to the future. How do you want your nonprofit to be perceived a year from now, when (we hope) the worst of this crisis is behind us?
If you need help starting the conversation, here are three great options:
We want to be perceived as a helpful friend.
We want to be perceived as a reliable performer.
We want to be perceived as a creative problem solver.
You probably like all three, but which one is most important to each of your communities or target audiences? Think about your participants, your supporters, and other influencers.
With that answer in mind, I encourage you to get more specific about how you can address the current realities for the people in your communities. How have their needs changed as a result of the pandemic? What problems or concerns do they have that are new to them? How have their old problems or concerns changed?
Again, if you need a little jumpstart in your thinking, what does it mean to your participants or your supporters now that . . .
People are staying home more and traveling less — what can people do to make a difference on your issues from home? How can you make that easier and more convenient for them?
Many people are adopting the use of technology more quickly than they were before — can you do something online that a few months ago might have seemed like wishful thinking?
Many people feel like the world is out of control — what can you do to give them some sense of control? How can you help them feel like both they and you are making progress on something important and real?
These questions and your answers may not help you figure out what to post on social media tomorrow, but I promise, they will help you create a better long-term communications plan that helps your nonprofit weather this storm.
I’ll be sharing much more messaging advice, and nonprofit marketing advice in general during and post-pandemic, during our “Do This, Not That” webinar series, which starts tomorrow.
