Each nonprofit communications director I do know has manner an excessive amount of work to do. It’s the character of comms work (so many concepts, so many channels, and many others.) and the character of nonprofit work, the place we regularly assume now we have to do all the pieces for everybody straight away.
However we are able to’t do it all of sudden. We have now to make choices and prioritize primarily based on the capability now we have obtainable. That capability consists of how a lot time you as a communications professional have in a day or week or month.
So what do you’re employed on and what do you put aside for one more day (or perhaps by no means)? What ought to come first? What will get your greatest considering and vitality?
One method to prioritizing is to take into consideration how necessary communications and advertising are to the success of the group’s bigger, mission-oriented objective.
For instance, should you run a social service program that has a 10-12 month waitlist, you most likely don’t want to do loads of advertising to encourage individuals to use the service. They’re already discovering out another manner and also you don’t have the capability to serve extra individuals. Persevering with to promote it when you possibly can’t actually ship may really damage your group.
However what in case you are working a brand-new coaching program for a gaggle of individuals that you just don’t usually interact with fairly often? In that case, you want a comms technique that not solely introduces your group to these individuals and begins to construct belief with them, however that additionally encourages them to attend your coaching program. With out that advertising plan, the coaching program is probably going to fail.
I discovered the next method in a white paper from Discussion board One known as Do Your Communications Efforts Measure Up? It says that Pew Charitable Trusts’ analysis crew makes use of these standards to assess program influence:
Decisive: The load of proof suggests the result wouldn’t have been achieved with out this system’s efforts.
Essential: A number of actors contributed to the result and we performed a substantive function.
Inconsequential: This system performed little or no half within the consequence, implying that the result would have occurred with out its involvement.
So translate this to your comms and advertising work: Where is your comms work decisive in assembly mission targets?
Where is it necessary?
And the way about locations the place comms is inconsequential (be sincere!)? What would go on and be simply fantastic with out communications assist?
I like Likert scales, so you can additionally use one these to broaden on this. For instance, you possibly can take your mission targets or tasks you’re being requested to assist with communications and advertising work and assign a rating:
- 0 = Comms is Not Essential At All to Success
- 1 = Comms is of Little Significance to Success
- 2 = Comms is of Common Significance to Success
- 3 = Comms is Very Essential to Success
- 4 = Comms is Completely Essential to Success
Now after all, for this to work, you will have to outline what success seems like! That’s typically a brand new and difficult dialog along with your management and program employees, however it’s one which completely has to occur. Then you possibly can resolve simply how necessary communications help is to attaining that success or if different elements will probably be extra necessary.
If the work will go on nicely with out you, it most likely shouldn’t be a precedence to your comms employees. Focus your time the place comms is essential or completely important to success.
