Getting the Message Across: Successful Charity Communications

Now Hear This: The Nine Laws of Successful Advocacy Communications, by Kristen Wolf, describes the nine “common denominators” of planning and implementing successful communications campaigns. Charities sometimes hesitate to adopt a “marketing mindset,” Ms. Wolf writes. But doing so could help nonprofit groups communicate their message to the public, since, as Ms. Wolf notes, “browbeating is rarely a successful technique.” Among the traits of an effective marketing campaign: having clear, measurable goals; learning about the people you are trying to reach and what motivates them; creating compelling messages that resonate with the right people; forming a plan and sticking to it; and relying on experts when necessary. The guide is based on information from professionals in the public-relations and issue-advocacy fields. Ms. Wolf is an executive vice president at Fenton Communications. The David and Lucile Packard Foundation sponsored the report, which is available in portable document format at Fenton Communications’ Web site.

Publisher: Fenton Communications, 1320 18th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036; (202) 822-5200; fax (202) 822-4787; nowhearthis@fenton.com; http://www.fenton.com; 32 pages; free.