What are some effective ways to communicate your mission to different audiences?

I agree that you should tailor communications to specific audiences. However, be careful not to confuse mission with strategies and tactics. Your mission is your raison d’etre, it’s why you are here, the problem you wish to solve. Strategies and tactics can change, missions are foundational.

Your mission statement should be clear and concise. What does your organization hope to achieve. Why does it exist. The easiest way to make a mission statement resonate with multiple audiences is to keep it simple and clean.

The problem is that "empower people to learn, grow and thrive" says nothing about what the organization does or why. It could be a school, a bank, a gym.

While numbers tell the what, stories convey the how and sometimes the why... and can do so in a way that pulls at the heartstrings. For organizations that have multiple programs, try to find the common thread that runs through all the programs. Is there something in common that they are all trying to do (refer to mission)?

Storytelling can be just as important as hard data in explaining your mission and demonstrating the impact that your organization is making, and in some instances more important (I have observed this with online giving days). Donors don’t necessarily have the time or inclination to read a detailed description of your mission, and many make giving decisions based on what they see as they scroll through emails and social media on their mobile devices. Words that communicate your mission by explaining the impact on one individual/ animal/ community/etc., accompanied by some compelling images, can tell the story of your mission in a way that makes an emotional connection and inspires the reader to want to be part of your mission.

I agree with this. Be authentic. Do not try to be all things to all people. If your mission statement is strong, it will find an audience.

You can and should have a single mission statement. But audienece-tailored expressions of that mission can vary for differing uses.

A combination of impact statistics and program stories/testimonials is ideal, and those items should directly tie into the mission.

This might be the right advice for a product or campaign, but it’s terrible advice for a mission statement. A mission statement isn’t written for engagement. It’s the why of the organization. If that is easily influenced by your audience or changes by audience, either it’s not a mission statement or you don’t really have a company. If you want to pressure test your theory or product fit, go for it. For your mission statement. Be extremely clear, and write something that is bigger and expansive so you can grow with your business. Make it powerful, relatable, understandable, and something people care about. If you’re stuck—hire brand experts to help. Copywriters can give you options to find the perfect statement to match your brand voice.

Right. I am picking up what you're putting down here. And I had always thought that a mission was how you do what you do, and the vision was why you do what you do. *Example Mission: We provide microloans to women entrepreneurs in Central America *Example Vision: Expanded rights and representation for women in the Central American business community. And it doesn't really have to engage...but you do want it to be compelling to interested audiences, no?