Disclaimer: In general, the second someone earnestly tells me about this urgent new awareness campaign upon which they are about to embark, is the exact moment my eyes begin to roll back in my head. As a matter of course, the vast majority of awareness campaigns fall far short, IMHO, of their intended goal. As easy as it is to find fault, it is more constructive to offer some perspective and reply.
Waves can crash on the beach and flatten out to nothing, or they can aggregate their energy and become huge, crushing bludgeons like a tsunami. What kind of wave it is how big and how strong, depends on many factors, such as how much energy it started with, how fast it goes , how far its needs to travel and what happens to it along the way.
Your awareness campaign shares many qualities with a wave. All by itself, your message must travel via different media, must gather momentum and have a direction. It must be carried by different waves: your volunteers and constituents, your board and management, via that many-tentacled communications of the internet and all that neat social media.
Does your Wave Crash or Simply slip Away?
The impact of creating awareness will be much like the energy of the wave; if it is focused and directed, gathers energy as it travels through your followers, those that can and will be affected by your cause, and then it will travel and grow.
But if your message is unfocused, not targeted at anyone in particular, it can drift and flatten and be lost among so many others. Be thoughtful about your awareness campaign, take the time to define your real audience, and speak to them directly. When the right words to the right people resonate, the wave grows and becomes more powerful.
No Such thing as the General Public
There is no such this as ?awareness for the general public?, there are far too many people out there and thing general about them. Everyone has direct and related concerns, and the same energy expectations on them as you do.
To reach the ones that matter to you, think as a surfer, watch and think, and choose carefully. Smart choices will ride a pretty wave all the way to the beach.
Need help catching the right ride? Get in touch by email here or by voice on 310 828 6979.
Cindy Lauren is the Principal of Lauren Associates – non profit consulting
As well as advising Executives and Boards on all aspects of nonprofit management, the firm specializes in developing fundraising solutions for all sizes of organizations.
Image Credit:
Surfing Burleigh Heads_1031 by Michael Dawes on Flickr.
Posted while listening to:Riffing in 59 – Instrumental Study Music – Instrumental Study Music