MARKETING AND

COMMUNICATIONS GUIDE

INDEX

Communications PlanWhat is a communications plan?How to develop a plan?Defining goals

Social Media Marketing Plan What is a social media marketing plan?Conducting social media auditAccounts to follow and calendar exampleEvaluate and adjust your social media plan

Writing a Press ReleaseImportance of a press releaseExample of a press release Press release format and what to include Press release sample

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COMMUNICATIONS PLANWhat Is a Communication Plan?A communication plan is a written document that describes:

• what you want to accomplish with your organization’s communications (your objectives)

• ways in which those objectives can be accomplished (your goals or program of work)• to whom your association communications will be addressed (your audiences)• how you will accomplish your objectives (the tools and timetable)• how you will measure the results of your program (evaluation)

Communications include all written, spoken, and electronic interaction with your organization’s audiences. A communication plan includes objectives, goals, and tools for all communications, including some of the following:

• print publications• online communications - website, emails, social media • meeting materials• media relations and public relations materials• marketing and sales tools (such as advertisements)• incoming communications (such as voice mail content)• identity materials, including letterhead, logo, and envelopes• surveys• certificates and awards• annual reports• signage• speeches• invoices

Where to Get InformationInformation for the plan generally comes from five sources:1 your organization’s mission statement2 a communication analysis3 surveys4 committee and leadership feedback5 discussions with other staff and volunteers.

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How to Develop the PlanTake the following steps to develop an effective communication plan:

Step 1: Conduct a communication analysis. Evaluate your current communications. To conduct your own communications analysis, find out:• what every staff person is doing in the way of communication,• what each communication activity is designed to achieve, and• how effective each activity is.

To get the answers you need:• brainstorm with staff and volunteers• interview the board• talk to communication committee members (if relevant) • host focus groups (a dedicated meeting in which communication topics are discussed)

Step 2: Define objectives. Armed with information from your communication analysis, define your overall communication objectives. What do you want to achieve? Some examples might include:• growth of audience• converting interest to attendance at events• excellent service • volunteer loyalty • donor loyalty • increased employee teamwork • visibility for the organization and the industry or profession it represents

Step 3: Define audiences. List all the audiences that your association might contact, attempt to engage, or serve. Included on your list may be:• related community organizations• volunteers • potential volunteers• important community spokespeople/influencers • local media

Step 4: Define goals and identify how to reach goals: Ex: Our goal is to have a successful Winterfest event. How can we reach potential attendees? How can we gain greater media coverage? Decide what tools will be used to accomplish stated goals. These tools can be anything from a simple flyer to a social media post. Establish a timetable. Once objectives, goals, audiences, and tools have been identified, capture the results in a calendar that outlines roughly what projects will be accomplished and when. Separate objectives into time periods (monthly, weekly, etc.).

Refer to this section of the Marketing and Communications Guide to assist you in completing this plan.

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1: Communication analysisHow will you gather information on your current communication situation? What are some of the questions you will ask to discover that information?

2: Objectives (after Communication analysis is complete)What has your analysis taught you about your current communication situation?What are some key improvements you’d like to make based on this analysis? (What are your objectives?)

3: AudiencesWhich audiences do you think you should contact, engage, or serve?

4: Goals What are your goals for your event or program? Remember, effective goals are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time bound. List your goals below.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

What specific communication tactics will you use to achieve each goal?

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

5. Timetable

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Using the information you have gathered through this process, create a calendar to help keep you on track towards achieving your objectives. Separate objectives into time periods. See an example below complete your own calendar, and attach it to this plan.

DATE OBJECTIVE GOAL AUDIENCE TACTICWeek 1 Increase ticket

sales to eventSell 50% of seats by December 30th

30 something professionals and retirees

Incentive campaign on Facebook and Instagram; Media release targeted to print publications

Week 2 Improve customer service

All members of organization give consistent messages to the public

Anyone who calls, emails or communicates via social media

Create fact sheet and distribute to all staff, volunteers and board members

6. EvaluationHow will you keep track of and report your progress re: achieving your objectives?

Evaluate the result. Build into your plan a method for measuring results. Your evaluation might take the form of• a monthly report on work in progress,• ongoing progress updates at planning committee meetings,• periodic briefings to key staff or volunteers, and a year-end summary for the annual

report.

Some examples of tasks outlined in the calendar might include: Work on Social Media posts for week Research networking events where we can discuss/spread word of mouth of our

event.

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Create list of potential contacts to reach by e-mail in regards to event. Brainstorm ideas with staff about how we can reach local media Research and create list of media and local personalities to reach out to the

following week.

Evaluate the result. Build into your plan a method for measuring results related to your goals. Establish how you will capture your evaluation of results , such as:

• a monthly report on work in progress,• ongoing progress updates at planning committee meetings,• periodic briefings to key staff or volunteers, and a year-end summary for the annual

report.

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SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING PLANWhat is a social media marketing plan?

A social media marketing plan is the summary of everything you plan to do and hope to achieve for your business or organization using social networks. This plan should comprise an analysis of where your accounts are today, goals for where you want them to be in the near future, and all the tools you want to use to get there.In general, the more specific you can get with your plan, the more effective you’ll be in its implementation. Try to keep it concise. Don’t make your social media marketing strategy so broad that it’s unattainable. The plan will guide your actions, but it will also be a measure by which you determine whether you’re succeeding.

Step 1: Create social media objectives and goals

The first step to any social media marketing strategy is to establish the objectives and goals that you hope to achieve. Without goals, you have no means of gauging success or proving your social media return on investment. These goals should be aligned with your broader marketing strategy, so that your social media efforts drive toward your objectives.Go beyond “vanity metrics” such as Retweets and Likes.

You should also use the SMART framework when setting your goals. This means that each objective should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound.

SMARTS – SPECIFICM – MEASURABLEA – ATTAINABLER – RELEVANTT – TIME BOUND

SMART goal example:“For Instagram we will share photos that communicate our organizational culture. We will do this by posting three photos a week. The target for each is at least 30 likes and 5 comments.”A simple way to start your social media marketing plan is by writing down at least three social media goals. Make sure to ask yourself what the goal will look like when completed, and use that to determine how you will track it.

Step 2: Conduct a social media analysisPrior to creating your social media marketing plan, you need to assess your current social media use and how it’s working. This means figuring out who is currently connecting with you via social, which social media sites your target market uses, and how your social media presence compares to others doing similar work.

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Once you’ve conducted your analysis it should be evident which accounts need to be updated and which need to be deleted altogether.

As part of your social media analysis you’ll also want to create mission statements for each network. These one-sentence declarations will help you focus on a very specific goal for Instagram, Facebook, or any other social network. They will guide your actions and help steer you back on track if your efforts begin to lag.

Take the time you need to determine the purpose of every social profile you have. If you can’t figure out its purpose, you should probably delete that profile.

Mission statement example:“We will use Snapchat to share the lighter side of our company and connect with younger customers.”

Before you can determine which social media networks are right for your business, you first need to know who your audience is and what they want.

Step 3: Create or improve your social accounts Once you’ve finished with your social media analysis, it’s time to hone your online presence. Choose which networks best meet your social media goals. If you don’t already have social media profiles on each network you focus on, build them from the ground up with your broader goals and audience in mind. If you do have existing accounts, it’s time to update and refine them to get the best possible results.

Step 4: Get social media inspiration from industry leaders, competitors, clientsNot sure what kinds of content and information will get you the most engagement? For inspiration, look to what others in your industry are sharing and use social media listening to see how you can distinguish yourself and appeal to prospects they might be missing.Your audience can also offer social media inspiration, not only through the content that they share but in the way that they phrase their messages. See how your target audience writes Tweets, and strive to mimic that style. Observe hashtags used by other similar organizations, and search for popular hashtags related to your city, organization type, or activities (e.g. #HamOnt #HamArts). Use them on your social media posts to join the conversation and get your event or organization known.Make up your own hashtag for your event and promote its use on your marketing materials and communication with partners. Discover how to make up an effective hashtag here: http://www.tweetbeam.com/blog/simple-powerful-tips-hashtags-events/

Engaging Non-Profit Twitter accounts to follow for inspiration:

National Wildlifehttps://twitter.com/nwf

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SACHA (sexual assault centre of Hamilton) https://twitter.com/sacha_tweets

National Centre for Families Learninghttps://twitter.com/NCFL

Step 5: Create a content plan and editorial calendarHaving great content to share will be essential to succeeding at social media. Your social media marketing plan should include a content marketing plan, comprised of strategies for content creation and content curation, as well as an editorial calendar.

Your content marketing plan should answer the following questions:• What types of content you intend to post and promote on social media?• How often you will post content?• Who is the target audience for each type of content?• Who will create the content?• How you will promote the content?

Content and editorial plan calendar ex:PLATFORM TIME/DATE TOPIC POST LINK

FACEBOOK Monday January 9th @10:00 am

2017 Winterfest announcement

Discover that Hamilton is a city that doesn't hibernate in the wintertime! Celebrate with 10 fun-filled days from February 4 to 20, 2017 (add photo)

*(link to post here)

TWITTER

INSTAGRAM

BLOG

Add extra blocks under social media platforms if you intend to post more than once a day.

Step 6: Test, evaluate and adjust your social media marketing plan 

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To find out what adjustments need to be made to your social media marketing strategy, you should constantly be testing. Build testing capabilities into every action you take on social networks. For example, you could:

Use *Hootsuite’s (online social media management and analysis tool) social media analytics to track the success and reach of social campaigns (https://hootsuite.com)

Track page visits driven by social media with Google Analytics (https://www.google.com/analytics)

Use Tagboard to create a storyboard of your event/program’s hashtag use across all platforms (https://tagboard.com)

Record and analyze your successes and failures, and then adjust your social media marketing plan in response. Surveys are also a great way to gauge success—online and offline. Ask your social media followers, email list, and website visitors how you’re doing on social media.

The most important thing to understand about your social media marketing plan is that it should be constantly changing. As new networks emerge, you may want to add them to your plan. As you attain goals, you will need to set new targets.

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WRITING A PRESS AND MEDIA RELEASE Why are press releases important?

Significant Public Relations ToolA press release is a free public relations tool, which is especially beneficial for small organizations. Each press release publicizes important or useful information about an upcoming event or one that has occurred.

Cost-Effective and Easily DistinguishableAnyone can write and submit a press release, free-of-charge to multiple media outlets. Although traditional options include newspapers, radio and television stations, online options are becoming increasingly common. A standard newspaper format makes it easy for the public to distinguish between a press release and an advertisement. For example, a headline, clear, concise wording and a fact-based presentation of the information makes a press release clear and easy to read.

What Press Releases Don’t IncludeThe importance of a press release lies as much in what it doesn’t include as in what it does include. Because press releases typically don’t, and shouldn’t include advertisements, the public often views the information in a press release as credible. De-emphasizing emotions and avoiding strongly worded expressions also enhance credibility.

Press Releases TodayIncreasingly, heavy emphasis on social media as a public relations and marketing tool is giving press releases alternative publishing options. Posting a press release on your organization’s website and promoting it through social media or an online press release distribution service allows you to directly communicate information to a mass audience and to target specific groups.

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PRESS RELEASE FORMAT:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

These words should appear at the top left of the page, in upper case. If you don't want the story to be made public yet, write "HOLD FOR RELEASE UNTIL ...." instead.

Headline Just like a headline in a newspaper. Make sure this describes the content of the story.

City, State/Country - Month Day, Year

These details precede the story and orient the reader.

Body This is where the actual story goes. There should be more than one paragraph, each paragraph no more than a few sentences. If there is more than one page, write "-more-" at the bottom of the page.

Company/organization info

Include any background information about the company or organization featuring in this press release.

Contact Information Include contact person, company name, phone/fax, email, physical/postal address.

ENDS or ### This indicates the end of the press release.

(xxx words) If you like you could include the total number of words contained in the press release.

What to include:

It is always helpful to include a poster, postcard or any visual marketing material you might have in with your press release. This could be an attachment via email, or if you are dropping off or mailing just add it in with your package.

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Example of press release:FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Wedlocked: An off-white wedding market - Hamilton’s very first alternative wedding show.

Date: April 23rd, 2016Time: 11:00 AM - 5:00 PMWhere: Park St. Gasworks - 141 Park St.

Wedlocked is an alternative wedding market targeted to brides and grooms who are looking to break tradition. Wedlocked aims to be Hamilton’s go-to wedding show for couples looking to add something different to their wedding ceremony or reception. Whether it is replacing a cake with donuts or working hand in hand with an artist to create a perfect and personal wedding invitation. Wedlocked will be smaller than a typical convention centre wedding show with a selection of carefully curated vendors from Toronto and Hamilton including, Donut Monster, The Other Bird Restaurants and Catering, A Fine Medley Florist, Collective Arts, Loversland, Ospre Studio and many more…While keeping the show smaller, we hope to create a relaxed atmosphere giving the attendees and vendors the opportunity to socialize, sample delicious local food and drink while planning their big day with like minded individuals.

Wedlocked is being organized by Pretty Grit’s store owners Annie Horton and Amanda Cordero. With Annie’s upcoming wedding in September, she found it difficult to find anything in the city that was helpful in serving the “alternative” bride, this being part of the fire that fueled the creation of the show.

With Collective Arts supplying beer samples as well as selling beer, all proceeds from these sales will go to supporting Hamilton’s LGBTQ community. Hamilton’s LGBTQ community is vastly lacking in awareness and funding, as a result of this, fundamental support services do not currently exist in the capacity that they should. Through Wedlocked Annie and Amanda hope to encourage this conversation and bring awareness to this fact while raising enough money to assist in getting these programs off the ground.

The first annual Wedlocked will take place April 23rd, from 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM at the Park Street Gasworks in Hamilton.

Annie Horton and Amanda CorderoOwners of Pretty Grit and organizers of Wedlocked 128 James St. North Store (905)-393-7809Cell (289)-382-9169###

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