I am putting the finishing touches to my new book: PR on a Tiny Budget: How Not For Profits Can Communicate To Win Attention.
I'm motivated to write by one sad fact. Today’s not for profits must be as good at marketing as they are at providing services.
In a perfect world sponsors, governments, communities and clients would know what charities and others do and why they are important. They would automatically give money, volunteer time and shower recognition on their staff.
Unfortunately people are just too busy to naturally notice the good works going on around them each day. They may catch an occasional glimpse but usually they are too time poor, cash strapped and attention deprived to notice and value the not for profits that enrich their communities.
On the other hand not for profits have wonderful individuals committed to doing something worthwhile, putting ‘something back’ or caring for others. Yet despite their enormous outpouring of time and effort, most strain to tell the stories of their great work. Year in year out they grapple to win attention. Put simply they fail to market themselves.
Why should this be so? We live in the age of the marketer where selling yourself and what you do is essential for twenty-first century success. Silence may be golden but today it is rarely rewarding. Most not for profits lack the knowledge and skills to market or they devote insufficient effort or money to their communications. They are so busy just keeping afloat and providing essential services that outreach and promotion fall into the nice to have rather than the must have category.
This predicament can set up terrible anxiety and confusion for many managers and workers. They know they must promote their organisation to attract more volunteers, carers, supporters and even clients. They know they must communicate to win funding and raise awareness of their issues and concerns. But how and where can they find the talent, energy and effort, let alone the money to do all this?
They face a dilemma and are caught between the rock of resources and the hard place of need. However there can be no place for weary resignation. Something must change. In the post global financial crisis the long term survival of many not for profits in the end may come down to how they market as much as their good deeds.
So the reason for this new book. It offers guidance - based on hard-won experience - on the essentials of effective marketing and the strategies and tactics needed to win the attention you deserve even though your budget is tiny.