Additional Communications Articles, Tools & Resources

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Charities Need to Remember Why They Exist - And Shout About It

http://www.theguardian.com/voluntary-sector-network/2016/apr/06/charities-need-to-remember-purpose-brand-pr?CMP=share_btn_tw

 

A Practical Guide to Integrated Communications

Integrated Communications PDF

 

How to Simplify Your Complicated Marketing Strategy

https://www.dailyworth.com/posts/3896-4-ways-to-simplify-business-marketing

 

Smart Chart 3.0

An effective tool to help nonprofits make smart communications choices.

Smart Chart PDF

 

What's Your GAME Plan?

Ask these four questions before using any communications tactic.

http://www.lightboxcollaborative.com/GAME_Plan

 

Vision, Values and Voice

A social justice communications toolkit.

http://toolkit.opportunityagenda.org

 

Mission Accomplished with the Audience Dossiere

Learn how to best engage the audiences most important to your mission.

http://www.lightboxcollaborative.com/Audience_Dossier

 

The Best Nonprofit Digital Campaigns Collection

https://act.everyaction.com/best-nonprofit-digital-campaigns

 

Talkwalker Alerts

The best free alternative to Google Alerts.

http://www.talkwalker.com/alerts

Media and Public Relations

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Influencer Strategy

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Greater Influence, More Impact

An article from Stanford Social Innovation Review.

http://ssir.org/articles/entry/greater_influence_more_impact

 

Knowing Who You Know

Using your staff and board's connections to pass policies.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rich-tafel/knowing-who-you-know_b_848918.html

 

Stakeholder Analysis

Who are your nonprofit's stakeholders, and what is important to them?

https://knowhownonprofit.org/organisation/strategy/directionsetting/stakeholder

 

The Amazing Network Reach of Nonprofit Influencers

How do you identify the influencers that are already on your organization's email list?

https://attentive.ly/the-amazing-reach-of-nonprofit-influencers/

 

A Guide to Power Mapping

A power map is a useful visual tool for figuring out who you need to influence, how to influence them, and who can do the influencing in order to reach a specific goal.

https://movetoamend.org/toolkit/guide-power-mapping

 

How Networked Nonprofits Visualize Their Networks

http://www.bethkanter.org/network-mapping/

Messaging

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Reframing Refugees Messaging Toolkit

http://www.welcomingamerica.org/sites/default/files/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/wac02_reframing.FNL_.pdf

 

America Needs All Of Us

A toolkit for talking about bias, race and change.

http://www.welcomingamerica.org/sites/default/files/Implicit_Bias_Toolkit_FINAL_web.pdf

 

Don't Stay on Message

What 8,000 respondents say about using strategic framing to move the public discourse on immigration.

http://www.frameworksinstitute.org/assets/files/Immigration/dont_stay_on_message_values_11_2013.pdf

 

Education Core Story - Disparities Trigger

Video about messaging framing for education.

https://vimeo.com/95287056

 

Toward a Good Jobs Agenda

Economic justice messaging research.

http://www.goodjobsforall.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/pff-Full-Research-Report.pdf

 

Caning, Context and Class

A research report mapping the gaps between expert and public understandings of public safety.

http://www.frameworksinstitute.org/assets/files/pub_safety/public_safety_mapthegaps.pdf

 

"Handed to Them on a Plate."

A research report mapping the gaps between expert and public understandings of human services.

http://www.frameworksinstitute.org/assets/files/humanservices/NHSAMaptheGaps-Final7-31-13.pdf

 

Community Values Phrase Basket

We're all in this together, so let's say the same things!

Community Values PDF

Website

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Google Analytics

A tool for tracking how many people visit your website, how they get there, and what they do once they are there.

https://analytics.google.com/analytics/

 

The 100 Best Nonprofit Website Designs of 2015

https://act.everyaction.com/100-best-nonprofit-website-designs-of-2015

 

SumoMe

Tools to grow your website's traffic.

https://sumome.com

Email

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10 e-Newsletter Best Practices for Nonprofits

http://www.nptechforgood.com/2014/09/28/10-e-newsletter-best-practices-for-nonprofits/

 

5 Simple Strategies to Improve Your Email Open Rate

http://blogs.constantcontact.com/improve-email-open-rates/

 

10 Things to Avoid in Email Newsletter

http://support.e2ma.net/Resource_Center/Help_articles/10-things-to-avoid-in-email-newsletters

 

This is the Way to Write Email Subject Lines That Get More Clicks

http://coschedule.com/blog/email-subject-lines/

 

Improve Your Open Rates With These 12 Subject Line Tweaks

http://blogs.constantcontact.com/good-email-subject-lines/

 

11 Major Reasons Why Your Emails Could Land in the SPAM Box

https://sumome.com/stories/avoid-spam-box?src=sumome-email-story-avoid-spam-box

 

4 Techniques to Optimize Your Nonprofit Newsletter

http://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/4-techniques-to-optimize-your-nonprofit-newsletter#sm.00od5am81c92dwd10302oa4h9mvly

Photos, Graphics and Video

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The 17 Graphic Design Tips All Non-designers Need to Know

https://blog.snappa.io/graphic-design-tips/

 

The Ultimate List of Free or Low Cost Image Collections

http://list.ly/list/703-the-ultimate-list-of-free-or-low-cost-image-collections

 

The Noun Project

A huge collection of cheap vector graphics.

https://thenounproject.com

 

Top 5 Affordable Tools to Make Infographics in a Snap

http://www.verticalresponse.com/blog/top-5-affordable-tools-to-make-infographics-in-a-snap/

 

15 Free Infographic Templates

http://offers.hubspot.com/how-to-create-infographics-in-powerpoint

 

How to Successfully Launch Nonprofit Infographics Online

http://www.nptechforgood.com/2015/03/29/how-to-successfully-launch-nonprofit-infographics-online/

 

An Appropriately Quick Gif Guide

https://blog.hootsuite.com/gif-guide/

 

Why Should You Care About Typography?

http://www.fastcodesign.com/1664719/infographic-of-the-day-why-should-you-care-about-typography?utm_content=buffer75675&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer

 

Infogr.am

Create and publish beautiful visualizations of your data.

https://infogr.am

 

Six Easy Ways to Hit Video Out of the Park

http://www.prichardcommunications.com/featured-home/six-easy-ways-to-hit-video-out-of-the-park/

 

A Video Marketing Guide on Creating Epic Content for Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter and More

https://blog.bufferapp.com/video-marketing

Blogging and Writing

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Easy Reading is Damn Hard Writing

A guide for editing your writing.

https://www.helpscout.net/blog/damn-hard-writing/

 

50 Amazing Resources That Will Make You a Better Writer

https://www.themuse.com/advice/50-amazing-resources-that-will-make-you-a-better-writer

 

10 Blog Content Ideas for Nonprofits

http://www.nptechforgood.com/2015/06/14/10-blog-content-ideas-for-nonprofits/

 

5 Ways to Fight the Curse of Knowledge in Your Nonprofit

When you know too much about a topic, you lose the ability to talk about the topic in clear and concise language.

http://www.nonprofitmarketingguide.com/blog/2015/04/29/5-ways-to-fight-the-curse-of-knowledge-in-your-nonprofit/

 

What Makes a Good Blog Post GREAT

http://www.prichardcommunications.com/featured-home/what-makes-a-good-blog-post-great-10-tips-for-your-nonprofit/

 

5 Data Insights Into the Headlines Readers Click

https://moz.com/blog/5-data-insights-into-the-headlines-readers-click

 

YOU HAD ME AT HELLO: 54 Ideas for Strong Leads and Smooth Transitions

http://www.nonprofitmarketingguide.com/blog/2015/03/03/you-had-me-at-hello-54-ideas-for-strong-leads-and-smooth-transitions-in-your-appeals-and-action-alerts

 

Upgrade Old Content to Engage Your Audience

http://www.prichardcommunications.com/featured-home/upgrade-old-content-to-engage-your-audience/

 

9 Must-Know Best Practices for Distributing Your Nonprofit’s Content on Social Networks

http://www.nptechforgood.com/2014/09/14/9-must-know-best-practices-for-distributing-your-nonprofits-content-on-social-networks/

 

Jargon Finder

An online glossary of common nonprofit jargon.

http://www.comnetwork.org/category/jargon/

 

Cutting Through the Jargon

Make your stories simple and appealing.

https://www.hatchforgood.org/explore/149/cutting-through-the-jargon

 

Social Media

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50 Social Media Marketing Tips That Will Help You Build Traffic

http://coschedule.com/blog/social-media-marketing-tips/

 

8 Online Engagement Hacks

http://www.prichardcommunications.com/featured-home/8-online-engagement-hacks-a-cheat-sheet-for-nonprofit-communicators/

 

3 Simple Tips for Using Facebook on a Budget

http://www.prichardcommunications.com/social-media/3-simple-tips-using-facebook-budget/

 

10 Facebook Page Best Practices for Nonprofits

http://www.nptechforgood.com/2014/10/19/10-facebook-page-best-practices-for-nonprofits/

 

The Best Time to Post on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram in 2016

https://blog.hootsuite.com/best-time-to-post-on-facebook-twitter-instagram/

 

25 Twitter Tips for the Modern Nonprofit

http://www.classy.org/blog/twitter-tips-modern-nonprofit/

 

Tips for Taking Your Twitter Game to the Next Level

https://nonprofitquarterly.org/2016/01/07/tips-for-taking-your-twitter-game-to-the-next-level/

 

4 Signs Your Nonprofit Should Quit a Social Network

http://www.nptechforgood.com/2015/12/28/4-signs-your-nonprofit-should-quit-a-social-network/

 

Are You a Bot, or Not?

Create a social media persona that reflects your organization.

http://www.comnetwork.org/2015/08/comnet15-preview-are-you-a-bot-or-not/

 

Buffer

A tool for scheduling social media posts. 

https://buffer.com/

 

Thunderclap

Thunderclap allows a single message to be mass-shared, flash mob-style, so it rises above the noise of your social networks.

https://www.thunderclap.it/

Storytelling

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Story-Based Strategy Campaign Model

A flowchart for creating a story-based campaign.

Story-Based Strategy PDF

 

Heroes' Handbook

Use real life heroes and villains to tell a story about the work that needs to be done in our communities.

http://heroesnarrative.org/

 

Medium for Nonprofits, Explained

Why should nonprofits share their stories on Medium?

https://medium.com/above-the-noise/medium-for-nonprofits-explained-53d54721e6ca#.hou59hw49

 

Stories Worth Telling

A guide to strategic and sustainable nonprofit storytelling.

http://meyerfoundation.org/sites/default/files/files/SWT-Whitepaper-FINAL.pdf

 

Your Mission Statement is Not Your Story

Your stories exemplify your mission, but are not bound by it.

https://www.hatchforgood.org/explore/140/your-mission-statement-is-not-your-story

 

Making the Most of Your Best Stories

Focus on a few great stories and build as many doors into them as possible.

https://www.hatchforgood.org/explore/113/making-the-most-of-your-best-stories

 

Telling Our Stories Toolkit

An interactive online guide from University of Oregon.

https://blogs.uoregon.edu/toolkit/