| A well planned, coordinated communications effort will give your organization more visibility, for less money, than unplanned, hit-or-miss stabs at reaching your audiences. But how do you go about making a plan?
The attached template often works well to keep small group discussions focused and to help establish priorities. Here’s how it works:
- Begin with the major short-term goals of the organization. What do you intend to accomplish in the next one to two years?
- Then take the goals, one at a time, and identify who must be persuaded in order to achieve that goal. The who can be groups of people, specific individuals, or both.
- For each person or group, brainstorm what message is likely to be persuasive. This means taking into account what they need, and looking for a way to align your message to show that helping your organization is helping them gain something. (The message must answer for each audience, “What’s in it for me?”)
- How refers to the media that will be most effective at getting the message to the audience. Will it be a newsletter, a brochure, a face-to-face conversation, or a combination?
- The last three columns get down to practical concerns that help establish priorities: how much each method of communication will cost, who will do the work, and when you expect to see the work completed.
A small group should be able to work through the process in one or two half-day sessions. The end result will be the outline of a communications plan for the organization.
A sample matrix is below.
Communications Planning Matrix
| Goals
(What are your organization’s communications objectives?) |
Who
(Audience: Who must be persuaded?) |
What
(Message: What’s in it for your target audience?) |
How
(Media: e.g., brochure, flyer, radio ad, newspaper ad) |
How Much
(Cost) |
Who Will Do
(Responsibility: Who will do the work?) |
When
(Completion date) |
| [sample]
1. Raise more money!
|
Foundations |
Community development/housing is the bedrock under all other social needs
This CDC is a professional organization. We are accountable, and have a good track record. |
Grant proposals
Website
Brochure
Neighborhood tours |
n.c.
$5,000
$2,500
$1,500 |
E.D., with board assistance
Hire consultant
E.D. with outside designer
All staff |
Ongoing
June 30
April 30
May 15 |
| City government |
We are part of the solution. We are the “glue” of public-private partnerships. |
Website
Brochure
Tours |
See above
See above
See above |
See above
See above
See above |
June 30
April 30
May 15 |
| Residents |
We’re helping build a safer, stronger neighborhood. We can all be proud of our neighborhood. The CDC makes things happen. |
Sell T-shirts
Neighborhood festival |
$750
$2,500 |
Housing dir., with designer
All staff |
July 15
July 15 |
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This article and matrix template were prepared by Don Akchin, communications program director for The Enterprise Foundation.
(C) 2001, The Enterprise Foundation, Inc. Reprinted by permission. |
