How Preparing Your Message Activates Your Mission

One of the most challenging conversations I have with fundraising clients is convincing someone that developing their nonprofit’s brand and staying on message is one of the most helpful things they can do, both for themselves and for their organization.

Yet, some people believe that they constantly need to keep their messaging “fresh” so that they stay relevant. Nothing could be farther from the truth.

In reality, developing a core message connected to the population you serve, your programs and your outcomes will allow you to create powerful content that any staff, volunteer and community partner can (and should) use AND will save you time to devote to the other 1,000 tasks on your “to do” list. 

I often use awards show speeches to prove my point.

Stay with me…..

I’m a life-long movie fan and I’m obsessed with the Oscars (and the Golden Globes and the SAG Awards). I love the fashion and the glamour and I love seeing people happy and acknowledged for their hard work. Every year, watching these ceremonies are my guilty pleasure.

But I don’t always love the speeches.

Because while a rehearsed and finely crafted speech can move the audience to tears AND to take action, an off-the-cuff speech can be an absolute disaster and give the impression that the award recipient is woefully unprepared for one of the most important moments of their lives – a moment when they are in the spotlight in front of millions of people with a unique opportunity to deliver powerful messaging – whether that’s to acknowledge their professional team, their family or a special mentor who inspired them and guided them. Because they are too in the moment, they often forget to thank someone critical to their success and have to then apologize and make ANOTHER speech! 

What these awkward awards show moments can teach us is that being prepared when called upon to deliver your message can bridge the gap between the excitement and nervousness of the moment and the information that needs to be communicated. Witnessing these moments can also remind us of something even more powerful – that even people who write and memorize scripts for a living need notes and rehearsals to effectively get their message across and ironically, insure they are speaking from the heart! In fact, carefully crafting, editing and rehearsing your message allows you to choose exactly the right words and phrases that illicit the perfect response to your mission. A profound opportunity that can rarely be managed when speaking off the cuff. 

Over the past 25 years as a nonprofit fundraiser, I have found that both the process of grant writing and the finished product of a completed grant package provide my clients with the right tools to help them focus on their essential message and the polished words and phrases designed for the most impact with their audience. So if you are looking for a process to help you identify and create messaging, writing a grant is a great place to start and can provide the core around which you can build the complete scope of your agency communications. 

So don’t worry if you think your message sounds rehearsed or stale to you. A well-crafted message communicates your vision and passion with clarity and helps the listener or reader understand your mission and purpose. Commit to your message and you will see the impact as the right people are drawn to your mission over time. And that’s really the point of it all.