Building the right messaging for your nonprofit’s community

You likely intuitively know the who, where, when, how, and what of your organization. You’re involved in the work every day. But new supporters need these questions answered explicitly before they jump in.

Are there certain demographics that aren’t connecting with your message? Do you have a lot of boomers but no zoomers?

Can you say in ten words exactly what your organization does? If not, how many words does it take? And is it possible to pare it down? No, seriously, give it a try right now!

We all know the power of words, but when it comes time to figure out how to write nonprofit messaging, opinions abound. And they usually don’t all align. This is why it’s so important to take a step-by-step process when building your nonprofit’s messaging.

And that’s exactly what we’re here to do!

The journey starts from here

It’s hard to get somewhere if you don’t know where you’re currently standing. That’s why step one is to zoom in on your current location.

Take some time thinking through the different ways your organization engages in nonprofit storytelling. 

You likely have a team talking with donors and another talking with volunteers. Then you may have a group engaging with the media and another one in dialogue with business leaders.

Gather up as many of these threads as you can. This can come from:

• Recent public relations campaigns.
• Emails to donors.
• Newsletters to volunteers.
• Ad creatives to new audiences.
• The executive director's latest speech.

Now put all these messages together. Are they telling the same story? Are they saying those things in the same way? You want a lot of overlap, but it shouldn’t be identical. That’s because you’re talking to very different people in these situations.

Are there ways that any one piece more powerfully or succinctly states your mission and position? Do you have a way of measuring the impact of these diverse messages?

What sets your organization apart?

Now that you can clearly see where you are. It’s time to spend a little time defining where you want to go. This step is all about differentiating your organization from the pack.

There are likely other organizations that do some of the same things that you do. But you do it a little differently. Or if you don’t, then why don’t people give to them instead?

This is ultimately what your messaging is all about, explaining your nonprofit’s value proposition. Why should they give their time, money, and hearts to your organization instead of the one down the road?

These key messages begin with the messages your organization is built on: the mission, vision, and value statements. You likely won’t be reinventing the wheel on these. But did you feel the spirit of these statements when you assessed where you currently stand?

Wow! Now’s a good time for a sigh of relief. Your organization already did the hard work of writing a mission statement. So you aren’t starting from scratch. It’s more about making sure that these core statements connect to all the other words your organization speaks.

And a lot of the day to day work in writing nonprofit messaging is going to circle around the most basic five questions:

WHAT: What’s your mission? What is your organization doing to solve real problems in your community?

WHO: Who are the individuals that are partnering with you in your work? And who are the individuals who make up your team? And why do these people care about this work?

WHERE: Where do these people meet? Do you serve all around the world or do you all live in a small town in Arkansas?

HOW: Ok, this is similar to the what question. But if someone wants to know how, they want to know all the details. So tell them as precisely as you can how you’re going about the work.

WHY: This may be the last on our list, but it’s certainly the most important. Why do you care so much about this mission? Why should they care as much too?

Even after you’ve answered these five questions, you’ll need to translate your answers either to the specific content format you’re building or to the specific people you’re talking to.

If you’re a nonprofit that’s tackling a systemic issue, you’ll likely be framing your answers in a form of challenge and solution. Your organization didn’t pop up out of thin air. There are reasons why your community is facing these challenges, and you’ve done a lot of work trying to respond to those challenges. Use this information to tell your story. 

You’re the hero… Not!

Ok, we think you’re the hero because you’re doing incredible work in your community. But don’t tell your community this. It may not come across the right way.

We don’t want you to really stop thinking your work is incredible. But we do want you to consider especially how it all revolves around the people that support you. 

Yes, you’re doing the work, but donors are keeping the lights on, volunteers are out there being your hands and feet in the community, and supporters are spreading the word.

You can’t do this thing alone. So make sure that all your communications are at heart an invitation. The work simply isn’t going to get done without them. So make sure that they feel like they’re the heroes.

The work is never done

We waited till the very end to tell you the bad news. Words constantly evolve. One day it was “good evening,” and the next it was “wazzup!”

What we mean to say is that messaging is just as much an art as it is a science. 

The art is about trying your best to frame the work you do to the incredibly diverse people you’re inviting into it. The science is about using technology to know what words are connecting and which ones are falling flat.

Try everything (well maybe not everything)! But try a lot of variants of the main messages that you want to tell (as long as they’re empathetic and capture your core messages). And then see what sticks, and with whom.

If you don’t currently have a tech stack that allows you to see what’s working, this is probably your first step. You may get lucky here and there, but if you want consistent wins, you need to know what’s causing them.

We love partnering with nonprofits of all stripes and watching their marketing efforts take off. If you want to talk strategy or see if Feathr is a good fit for your mission, schedule a demo today!