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You may remember last week when I told you what your communication plan is really for. Here’s a reminder: the purpose is to get stakeholders to do something and then help them do it.
Pretty straightforward, right? So let’s try a little exercise. The whole thing shouldn’t take you more than 10 or 20 minutes tops.
First, make a list of everything you’re doing in your communications program. Newsletters, annual report, brochures, direct mail, the web site, email campaigns, advertising campaigns, T-shirts, bumper stickers, Twitter, Facebook … whatever you’re doing, write it down. If you have a communications plan (and don’t tell me you don’t), just pull it out and highlight your tools and tactics.
Now take a good honest look at each item and ask yourself: Is this getting results? And by results, of course I mean are people doing what I want them to do as a result of your activity.
Are they signing up to volunteer? Giving money? Changing their behavior? Showing up for meetings? Helping to spread the message? Enlisting their friends in the cause? Whatever you want them to do, are they doing it in response to your effort?
Be honest. You’re not being graded, so the only one you’re cheating if you lie is your organization.
If a communications initiative isn’t moving people to action (and you define what that action is, but make sure it’s substantive), then you have two choices.
You can try to fix it, hoping that it WILL generate results. Or you can stop doing it and instead do something else.
Life’s too short and your mission too important to waste time on work that doesn’t get results. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. If something isn’t working, I don’t care how many people tell you, “But we’ve always done this!” or “But I LOVE [fill in the blank]!” Either make it work or make it stop.
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