leveraging marketing strategies for social good
DESCRIPTION
Presentation for Mental Health Council of Arkansas, December 2012TRANSCRIPT
LEVERAGING MARKETING STRATEGIES FOR SOCIAL
GOOD
Mental Health Council of ArkansasDecember 13, 2012
Angie Albright
Independent Consultant in Nonprofit Marketing, Fundraising, and Strategic Planning
Language shapes the way we think, and determines what we can think about.
Benjamin Lee Whorf
If we use words, there is a very grave danger they will be misinterpreted.
H. R. Halderman
Communication in the 21st Century
Hurricane Sandy
Fiscal Cliff
Syria
What is marketing? The American Marketing Association Board
of Directors approved this definition in 2007:“Marketing is the activity, set of institutions, and
processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large.”
○ www.MarketingPower.com
Why engage in marketing strategies?
Effective “messaging” strategies are highly researched and tested
Audiences are sophisticated and savvy Legislative sessions are “noisy”
Developing a Message
Analyze the Audience Who are the stakeholders?
Mental health care program administratorsMental health care patients or clients, current
and futureCitizens of the stateHospitalsState governmentJustice systemLaw enforcementFamilies
Analyze the Audience Who are the decision makers?
Legislators○ Analyze the legislative audience:
Who are they? What is their education level? What is the political environment for this issue?
Analyze the Challenges What are the challenges?
Lack of education on issuesPrejudices and misconceptions about people
with mental health disabilitiesCurrent economic situationCurrent attitudes about government in generalHigh turnover in the legislature because of term
limitsCompeting issues
Determine the Purpose Develop certainty and consensus within the
group about the final goalImmediate goal Long-term goal
If more than one outcome is desired, prioritize the goals (so that you are prepared for a Plan B)
State the immediate goal clearly and simply – one sentence if possible
List the long-term outcomes if goal is achieved
Develop a Case – Hard Facts
Use numbers and statistics – no jargon! Keep them simple and targetedMake sure they are easily repeatable
Create a paragraph or two about the history of the problem and previously tried solutions
Develop a Case – Emotional Appeal
What kind of specific story can you tell, while preserving confidentiality?
Do you have a trusted spokesperson who can tell his or her own story? Find these stories regionallyPrepare the spokespersons in advance
Storytelling is the most powerful strategy.
Develop a Case – Practical Appeal
What is the economic impact? What is the community impact? How does it affect the average person? What are the consequences for not acting? What are the benefits of acting now?
Anticipate the Opposition
Outline the known or potential objections Practice responding to the opposition Incorporate responses to the opposition
into message
Creating “Talking Points” 30-second elevator speech 5-minute speech Identified and clearly outlined key words
and phrases Develop a one-page white paper Unified message ALWAYS
The One-Page Case Statement One or two sentences that state the immediate
goal Short paragraph of history of the issue Talking points (in bullet form) from the case that’s
been developedHard factsEmotional appealPractical appealResponse to opposition
Description of long-term outcomes of proposed legislation
Call to Action What do you want stakeholders to do? What do you want legislators to do?
Be prepared to say it over and over and over and over and over . . .
General Advice Talk only about what you DO, not what you
don’t do - use affirmative language Use plain language, not technical or medical
language Be prepared to say the same thing over and
over 9,000 times and stick to the script Know what your funding allows you to do
Developing a Strategy
Analyze the Opportunities New health care legislation Key committee members and committees Identify advocates for the issue, the
stakeholders, and the legislation
Analyze the Obstacles
Competing issues Advocate conflicts Public perceptions
Identifying the Market Where do you find the legislators and the
key markets? Which media channels work best for this
message? TelevisionNewspaperSocial MediaPress conferences? Professional publications, like an agency’s or
organization’s newsletter
Events Create events or opportunities for news
coverage Press releases for those events should
outline the key points
Some Legislative Realities Hundreds of pieces of legislation flying by Legislators with no staff to help them sift
through bills Emails from constituents make a difference! Lots of junk legislation