Goals

The first step in any strategic communication effort is clearly defining your objective. Think of it as a destination, a specific spot on the map.

Until you put a pin in your goal and identify its precise coordinates, you won’t be able to chart the right course for getting there. A goal statement should be simple and unambiguous. The more qualifiers you include, the more muddled and lost you will become when you begin the hard work of achieving it.

Your goal should also be realistic and aligned with your available capacity, resources and time. Solving world hunger might be an over reach. Delivering 100 hot meals per night to homeless veterans in your community might not. The real question you need to consider is how will your communication efforts help to substantively advance the objective.

When setting your goal think long and hard about the ultimate social change you are seeking and the specific ways that your communication activities will complement the programmatic work required to get you there.

by the numbers

1

Rank of “build communication capacity of nonprofits” as a goal of communication.
SURVEY

2

Rank of “build public will” as a goal of communication.
SURVEY

3

Rank of “influence policy and practice” as a goal of communication.
SURVEY

tips and insights

Setting your communication goal is the first strategic choice. All other choices follow from this one. Don’t jump to tactics and tools. Begin by deciding what you are ultimately trying to achieve.

Organizations cannot create culture, policy, and practice change without strong communication.

Determining “how much success is necessary” is clearer for corporations whose break even point is based on bottom line costs. This question may not occur to a nonprofit with a mission based on an ongoing progressive vision. Success for nonprofits can be incremental. As such, it‘s important to gauge the level of achievement needed to ensure long-term success.
SOURCE

Voices

In this day and age, oftentimes communications is the work.

EXECUTIVE LEADER Private Foundation

Without communication we cannot advance our public policy objectives or raise the dollars we need. Communication is central to our strategy. It is a programmatic lever that we use early and often.

BOARD MEMBER Nonprofit

I’ve seen people who embrace communication but don’t really get it. They want to make a snazzy video but haven’t really thought it through. Why? What is the purpose? Who is the audience?

PROGRAM LEADER Private Foundation

Exemplars

exemplar

Urban Water Series

Greater New Orleans Foundation

By being clear about their goals, the Greater New Orleans Foundation was able to attract two national funders to their work about turning water challenges into water assets.

exemplar

Communication Strategy

Weingart Foundation

The Weingart Foundation lists their communication goals prominently on their website.

exemplar

Communicating About Your Grant

Flora and William Hewlett Foundation

The Hewlett Foundation makes tools and resources available to grantees to help them identify their communication goals, including Spitfire Strategies' Smart Chart.

exemplar

Visual Story Lab

Resource Media

This project stems from years of experience witnessing deep investments of time, energy and resources into how people tell stories in pursuit of social change, but very little into how to show why it matters. With the world awash in visual messages, and policy and consumer arenas dominated by sophisticated corporate communications, Resource Media helps level the playing field.