August 18, 2005 | Read Time: 1 minute
The Public Relations Handbook for Nonprofits: A Comprehensive and Practical Guide
by Art Feinglass
This book provides nonprofit employees with an overview of public-relations methods and tools that can be used to mobilize people in behalf of a cause.
Art Feinglass, president of Access Communications and an adjunct professor at New York University, begins the book with guidelines for determining who a charity wants to reach and for crafting messages to appeal to those people. He uses examples from charities across the United States to show how nonprofit leaders have handled public-relations campaigns.
The bulk of the book is devoted to explaining the marketing techniques at a charity leader’s disposal. Mr. Feinglass discusses the importance of choosing the right spokesman and of drafting effective press releases. He shows how to prepare brochures, newsletters, and annual reports, and describes the roles of direct mail, advertising, the Internet, television, and radio in raising awareness about a charity.
Mr. Feinglass also gives nonprofit employees tips for evaluating whether their marketing efforts have been a success and for shifting gears if they find their techniques have not worked. Although public relations can sometimes feel a little like playing the lottery, he says, charities that offer a compelling message to the right decision makers at the appropriate news-media outlets can be confident that they will receive coverage.
Publisher: Jossey-Bass, 989 Market Street, San Francisco, Calif. 94103-1741; (317) 572-3986 or (800) 956-7739; fax (317) 572-4002; http://www.josseybass.com; 311 pages; $48; ISBN 0-7879-7454-4.
