Tips and tricks to scoring that first interview, building relationships with media, and more
When it comes to earned media for nonprofits, many work with tight budgets. Some can’t allocate a budget to hire an outside communications agency or hire someone in-house. However, there are many cost-effective tips, tricks, and strategies to create and implement a successful communications plan to help make non-profit earned media less daunting.
On Feb. 6, our Director, Ann Marie Price, participated in an online workshop hosted by the Leichtag Foundation’s professional development hub, The HIVE, in partnership with Dr. Bronner’s, KPBS, and San Diego Gives. With nearly 80 individuals in attendance from dozens of local organizations, Ann Marie and her fellow panelists provided valuable insights and techniques on earned media for nonprofits.
Over the hour-and-a-half panel discussion, several questions were asked on how nonprofits can strategically approach earned media on a budget. From when a press release should be distributed to tips on search engine optimization (SEO), the online training covered all the do’s and don’ts when it comes to non-profit earned media.
Panelists shared many techniques for earned media for nonprofits and Ann Marie had the opportunity to provide our team’s checklist when creating a successful promotions plan. This checklist includes identifying your campaign focus points, confirming your target audience or market, specifying keywords and messages, and more. She also shared the importance of using press coverage in different mediums.
In addition to the panel discussion, the workshop attendees participated in two breakout sessions. The first session covered reactive crisis communications, while the second went into proactive crisis communications scenarios.
Reactive Crisis Communications
During the first session, attendees discussed what they would do if the senior leader of their organization departed. Ann Marie shared the importance of keeping messaging transparent and positive. She highlighted prioritizing internal communications before reaching out to stakeholders, donors, and the community.
When it comes to earned media for nonprofits during a scenario like this, external outreach to media should spotlight the positive transformation that the organization is going through. Creating a holding statement will help your organization communicate with the media while you prepare for any media interviews.
Proactive Crisis Communications
In breakout session two, panelists tasked attendees with creating a basic media outreach plan for an important event. This allowed Ann Marie to emphasize the importance of first mapping out their overall goals for the event (i.e. if it is a fundraiser, how much do they hope to raise), as well as determine their target audiences to help create an effective plan centered around specific key performance indicators (KPIs).
Earned media and strategic communications can seem intimidating at first. These tips and tricks can put any non-profit on a path to create a successful, goal-crushing earned media plan.
Did you miss the workshop? Watch the full presentation here:
Interested in seeing how Scatena Daniels can boost earned media for your organization? Contact us and let’s start a conversation.