Messaging 101: Crafting Your Message to Engage the Media (and Other Audiences)

March 18, 2011

Agenda for Today

I. Introductions and Housekeeping

II. Framing the Message Why Messaging is So Important What Makes a Strong Message Understanding Your Audience Developing Messages Around YOUR Issue(s)

III. Wrap Up

Getting Attention is Hard To Do

“Content is not a scarce resource; attention is a scarce resource.”

Pete Cashmore, Founder of Mashable

Message Bombardment

MESSAGING QUIZ

Too Many Organizations Communicate Like This

The Way You See Things Is The Way You See Things

The Way You See Things Is The Way You See Things

It’s All About The Frame

Frames are mental structures that shape the way we think. As a result, they shape the goals we seek, the places we make, the way we act and what counts as a good or bad outcome of our actions. In politics, frames shape our social polices and the institutions we form we to carry out our policies. To change our frames is to change all of this. Reframing is social change.

-George Lackoff, Don’t Think of An Elephant

Framing Messages• What are the common beliefs/

understanding/values of your issues?

• What is the current conversation about this issue? Who is shaping the discussion and how is it playing out in the media?

• How do the frames that people have affect policy?

• How can the conversation be reframed to reflect a broader range of choices?

Bad Framing: PEPCO• "Pepco acknowledged that it does not know whether the

projects in the new plan will actually achieve its reliability goals because it had not fully analyzed them," the report said. "With this ready-shoot-aim approach a portion of the Company's planned capital spending is almost certainly poorly targeted."

• Bob Hainey, a Pepco spokesman, disagreed with the consultants' conclusions about the reliability plan. "We don't feel like that is something that was just cobbled together," Hainey said. "We're spending millions in additional money to trim trees. We will probably have a discussion with them on that."

Source: Washington Post A-1, March 8, 2011

Research (Internal and External)

Internal ● Resources and Capacity● Your reputation? Awareness quotient?● Academics or street fighters?

External● What is your reputation?● Timing issues? ● What is the state of the conversation about your

issue? Who else is working on this? ● Who are your allies? Opponents? What are their

resources?● How has your issue been portrayed in the media?

Research

• Google News Is Your Friend

• Look at how all sides are framing/talking about your issues

TARGETING AUDIENCES

Audiences

● Who do you need to reach and why?● What stake do they have in your issue?● Are they a supporter? A detractor? A

connector and influencer? Neutral?● Are they movable on your issue, either

closer to you or further away?● How do they get information?● Are they watching TV, reading newspapers;

online? Word of mouth?● What influences them?

Types of Audiences

Primary • Absolutely essentially to the success of your

efforts• Board, Staff, Donors, Political Leaders,

Government Agencies, Partners

Secondary• Influences Primary Audience (media, think

tanks, researchers, recognized and leading authorities on an issue)

Six Questions to Ask When Crafting Messages

● Who is your audience?● What matters to your audience? What are

their values and concerns as it relates to your issue?

● What are your common values?● What are the barriers to people

understanding/hearing your messages?● What is the action you would like them to

take?● If they take this action, what changes and

why is that in their interest?

Map Audiences Against Desired Outcomes

Audience Outcome

Donors Increase their giving to XX Effort

Board Raise XX from their network; Introductions to politicians, media and other influentials

Political Leaders Introduce and support legislation that provides additional dollars to prevent homelessness

ELEMENTS OF FRAMING

Lead with Values Research shows people reason on deeply held moral values

Metaphors Simplify Complex Issues

Messenger Match the Messenger to the Message

Tone Style, Mood, Manners or Philosophical Outlook on Communication

Visuals Picture Worth 1,000 Words

Solutions What Can We Do Concretely?

Context What else is going on?

Numbers Hard Data Proof

Source: Frameworks Institute www.frameworksinstitute.org

Six Questions to Answer When Crafting Messages

● Who are you?● What’s the Burning Problem You Want to

Solve?● What’s the Unique Opportunity (Urgency?)● What’s the Solution?● So What?● What’s the Action?

CASE STUDY: MADD

• Who We are: Organization dedicated to stopping drunk driving and helping the victims of it.

• Burning Problem—People are dying from drunk driving. It’s a major violent crime and many of the perpetrators are underage teens. Too many people are maimed, injured or killed. Too many families are destroyed.

• What’s the Unique Opportunity – We have the tools to stop it.

• Solution: Enforcement, Prevention, Technology. • So what? We can save lives; spare anguish. • The Action: Support the heroes who keep roads safe;

turn cars into the cure; blow before you go.

MESSAGING TRIANGLE

Key Message

Key Message

Empower

Key Message

Core Message

MESSAGING TRIANGLE

Tougher Laws

Enforcement

Empower

Prevention

Safer Future by

Eliminating Drunk Driving

What Makes Good Messaging

• Clear, compelling messages give you the best chance to get your story told right

• Messages are ideas that you want to convey• Messages are not sound bites, but sound

bites reinforce and help convey messages• Messages must be repeated often to make

impact• Stories help drive your message home; put

a human face on your issue, create an emotional connection

What Makes Good Messaging

● Relevant● Concise● Memorable● Credible● Actionable

MADD Messages

• We’re Saving Lives.

• We’re eliminating a major violent crime, drunk driving.

• We can achieve our goal by doing these three things:o Support the heroes who keep our roads safe

o Turn cars into the cure

o Blow before you go.

• You Can Do Something. o Ask your representative to require interlocks for all offenders.

o Learn the facts.

o Sign the Pledge.

Messages that Made A Difference Change We Can Believe In Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty Mothers Against Drunk Driving Race for the Cure

Why have these been effective?

Resources:

Framing: George Lakoff, Don’t Think of an Elephant Frameworks Institute www.frameworksinstsitute.org Made to Stick by Chip Heath and Dan Heath Words That Work: It’s Not What You Say but What People

Hear by Frank Luntz

Media Relations Media Relations Primer in your handouts Guerilla PR, by Michael Levine

Social Media Mashable www.mashable.com