Raise Your Voice Read online

  “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head.

  If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.”

  NELSON MANDELA

  Raise Your Voice

  A Cause Manifesto

  Brian Sooy

  Praise for Raise Your Voice:

  a Cause Manifesto

  “Finally, a great marketing book for charitable organizations. Brian Sooy brings clarity and structure to the challenge of branding a cause.”

  Marty Neumeier, The Brand Gap

  “With Raise Your Voice, Brian Sooy has given designers, writers, and other creative professionals a highly relevant manifesto for cause-based and purpose-driven marketing. His ideas have important implications for leveraging the power of design to move people – in the nonprofit sector, higher education, and any other category where decisions are made with a blend of heart and mind.”

  Bill Faust, Managing Partner, Ologie

  “Now more than ever, effectiveness in the marketplace depends on our ability to rise above the noise and cut through the clutter. Brian Sooy provides a practical, design-driven approach for sharing your message with clarity and passion.”

  Todd Henry, Die Empty: Unleash Your Best Work Every Day

  “Raise Your Voice is a must-read for any organization that wants to align their message with their mission. You will learn how to create a culture that reinforces your organization’s reason for existence – the cause that drives all aspects of a nonprofit endeavor.”

  Shannon D. Smith, Executive Director,

  Wyoming Humanities Council

  “Whether you’re passionate about making a difference in education, philanthropy, the arts, or the church, I strongly suggest you grab a highlighter and a cup of coffee, and read carefully through the hard-earned insights Brian shares. Trust me, you’re going to want to keep Raise Your Voice close at hand as you set about to change the world.”

  Scott Humphreys, Writer/Editor,

  Research Planning and Marketing Team at GoodSeed International

  “Every church is passionate about clearly communicating their message and mission. Raise Your Voice gives ministry leaders all the tools to communicate effectively and be heard in a noisy world.”

  Chet Beetler, Pastor, Christ Church, Ohio

  “Part of what brings a donor to a cause is the hope of being part of a greater good. With Raise Your Voice, Brian Sooy gives nonprofits a means to go beyond being the loudest voice in the room to crafting a clear, articulate message which allows donors to see themselves as part of the solution.”

  Julie Chase-Morefield, Executive Director,

  Second Harvest Food Bank of North Central Ohio

  Every day, meaningful causes are trying to rise above the noise and be heard. Is your nonprofit or philanthropy one of them? Raise Your Voice is an exploration of mission-driven design and the touch points that are meaningful to your audience. It explores a framework for understanding how your cause is represented by your organization’s unique personality and distinctive voice.

  The resolutions of the Cause Manifesto are timeless principles that align how an organization communicates its values through its purpose, character, culture, and unique voice. These twelve strategic, inspirational, relational, and aspirational principles will transform your culture and empower you to communicate more powerfully and effectively.

  The principles of mission-driven design, and the resolutions of the Cause Manifesto, are a call to be courageous as you inspire your audience and connect them with your mission.

  This book is for anyone who supports and believes in a meaningful cause. It’s full of insights for executive directors, communication officers, grant and program managers, development directors and fundraising professionals. Share it with your board members, grantees, and volunteers. Encourage the organizations that you support and believe in to apply the principles, and make them part of its culture.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Brian Sooy is an entrepreneur, design professional, volunteer, donor, and nonprofit board member. He is the principal of Aespire®, a design and cause communications firm that helps nonprofits and philanthropies communicate with clarity.

  Visit causemanifesto.org or aespire.com for more inspiration.

  RockBench Publishing Corp.

  6101 Stillmeadow Dr., Nashville, TN 37211

  rockbench.com

  ©2014 Brian Sooy

  All rights reserved. We encourage you to share the principles of the Cause Manifesto. You may share brief quotations from this content with full attribution. Distribution, reproduction, adaptation, derivative works, or transmission of this content in any other form requires the prior written permission of the author.

  Liability: the author or publisher shall have no liability to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage, caused or alleged to be caused, directly or indirectly, by this content.

  Printed in the United States of America

  Published 2014 | First Printing

  Published simultaneously in electronic format

  Library of Congress Control Number: 2014931614

  ISBN-13: 978-1-60544-030-9

  Visit causemanifesto.org for resources, inspiration, and a complimentary Cause Manifesto poster that you can download.

  Connect with Aespire® and Brian Sooy: aespire.com | @aespire | @briansooy

  For Lisa, you inspire me.

  Sola gratia, Solus Christos, Soli Deo gloria.

  Preface: A Designer’s (and Designed Thinking) Approach to Advancing Your Cause

  Part One

  Chapter One: Seeking Clarity

  Chapter Two: Ambassadors, Advocates, and Your Biggest Fans

  Chapter Three: Inspiration Starts at the Top

  Chapter Four: Knowing When to Raise Your Voice

  Chapter Five: Repeating the Same Conversations

  Chapter Six: You Are Here: the Cause Quadrant

  Chapter Seven: Mission-Driven Design

  Part Two

  The Cause Manifesto

  Chapter One: Be Strategic

  Chapter Two: Be Focused

  Chapter Three: Be Meaningful

  Chapter Four: Be Insightful

  Chapter Five: Be Inspiring

  Chapter Six: Be Engaging

  Chapter Seven: Be Social

  Chapter Eight: Be Grateful

  Chapter Nine: Be Trustworthy

  Chapter Ten: Be Positive

  Chapter Eleven: Be Powerful

  Chapter Twelve: Be Courageous

  Preface

  A Designer’s (and Designed Thinking) Approach to Advancing Your Cause

  This is not a how-to book.

  It’s not specifically a book about positioning, design, fundraising, marketing, or social media – although each of these topics are discussed, and an essential element of finding your voice and engaging your audience. There are an abundance of how-to resources available via the Internet, for free or for a small fee.

  As you read, consider this book to be a series of conversations. It’s my intention that they are thought-provoking conversations, to influence you to change the way you think, and perhaps motivate you to act in a different way.

  Isn’t that your goal? To change the way people think, and change their behavior, in response to your meaningful cause?

  I’ve talked with nonprofit leaders, executive directors, marketing and communications officers, development directors, volunteers, and board members. We all share one thing in common: to make a meaningful and lasting difference in our communities and in the world. I’m confident that every reader will find insights that will help them advance their cause.

  This is a book about communicating better: speaking with one voice on behalf of a meaning
ful cause. It’s about finding clarity. It’s about telling inspiring and informative stories about outcomes and impact that create credibility. This book will give you insight into how to connect your purpose and mission with people whose values you share, and to bring meaning to their lives as they become ambassadors for your cause. It’s about earning trust, and building relationships.

  It’s a book that will help you find your voice.

  The heart may inspire you to start a journey, and your mind will guide you along the path. You must begin your journey with the end in mind. Every step along the way, every decision made, must be on the path between where you start and the goal you seek to accomplish at the end of your journey.

  Mission-driven design will guide you to your goal, as a catalyst for cause communications that empowers you to connect with your audience. It will help you assess your progress and keep your eye focused on the destination. It is a compass to keep you on the path of communicating with clarity.

  Design thinking is a guide to help you be aware of the context, consistency, and continuity of your marketing and communications, in light of the outcomes of your mission.

  The journey is long; fulfilling your purpose and achieving your mission is the destination. Be certain you know where you are going so you can recognize it when you arrive.

  Part One: Chapter One

  Seeking Clarity

  Every day, no matter where you are in the world, meaningful causes are trying harder than ever to get noticed, to rise above the noise, inspire change, motivate action, and speak with one voice.

  The organizations that are the voice of these causes are looking to attract and acquire new donors and engage their communities. They are trying to raise awareness about who they are, what they do, and why they matter.

  They are simply trying to communicate better.

  Each one is trying to differentiate itself from other similar organizations, and show the difference that they are making. Churches, charities, schools, philanthropies, colleges, universities, and a host of other tax-exempt entities are trying to raise awareness about the cause they represent, and to raise funds to support their mission and programs.

  No two organizations are alike, even if their mission and cause are closely related. Each will have a distinct purpose, each is defined by unique values and character, and all operate with a unique culture. Their cause and purpose are expressed through the design, marketing, and media choices they make. Their voice and language – the tone and personality – is heard through their words and made visible through their actions.

  If this sounds distinctly human, it is. A nonprofit should not be perceived as a soulless corporation, but as a group of individuals who want to make a difference, to change the world, and to have an impact in the lives of people for generations to come.

  Many nonprofits look to adapt the methods and means of marketing that are used to sell products and services. While there are excellent lessons to be learned from marketing best practices, have you ever considered that there might be a more insightful way to think about nonprofit communication?

  YOU ARE WHAT THEY THINK YOU ARE

  How your cause is perceived is directly related to how well the organization is perceived. Communication occurs in every way imaginable, and every touch point of communication creates a new (or reinforces an existing) perception.

  Personally, we communicate through body language, facial expression, tone of voice, the way we dress, and how we act. Our thoughts, beliefs, and values are revealed by what we say and how we say it. What we feel in our heart – passion, compassion, empathy – contributes to the tone of how we communicate.

  Your organization communicates with your audience through every verbal, visual, digital, printed, and experiential touch point, whether you intend to or not. Examples of touch points are your web site, printed materials, press releases, social networks, events, and conversations.

  You may think your organization communicates well. You may think each design touch point is strategic, well executed, and compelling. Some may be informative, but not inspirational.

  Have you asked and listened to what your audience has to say about how well you communicate? Have you asked your audience what you could do to communicate better?

  Design choices must be purposeful and intentional, exist for the cause, be driven by the mission, and be guided by the purpose for which the organization exists.

  Communication is directly related to design. Communication is the what (we are going to share); design is the how (we are going to share it). Together they create your organizational voice.

  Every touch point has a purpose. Every interaction your audience has with staff, leadership, events, or media has to be intentional – designed with the thought that it has the potential to create or steward a relationship.

  Design creates opportunities. Touch points are opportunities to share a message, open hearts, open minds. Design cannot be left to chance.

  Design choices must be purposeful and intentional, exist for the cause, be driven by the mission, and be guided by the purpose for which the organization exists.

  Design contributes to culture, from the moment a new staff member, donor, volunteer, or advocate reads, sees, hears, or interacts with your organization.

  Culture creates ambassadors. Ambassadors have a connection to the organization, and a love of the cause. They are advocates. They will wear apparel emblazoned with your logo, with tag lines and phrases designed to inspire and motivate. They will speak out passionately and enthusiastically, sharing the words and messages that you have communicated so well to them.

  Where there are many messages, design helps prioritize them, magnify them, and visualize them. Design turns information into inspiration, blends images and words into stories, and stories into shared experiences.

  Perhaps you are a nonprofit leader or executive, a volunteer, or a director on a nonprofit board. Perhaps you’re a donor to a cause you find meaningful. You’re involved because you believe you can create change; because you felt you wanted to give back to the community; to make a difference. You believe you can contribute to the cultural or to the greater good. These are noble reasons.

  From these perspectives – as a leader, volunteer, director, or donor – what principles of communication can convey trust, gratitude, courage, and help advance the cause?

  How can you inspire your followers and give them a reason to believe in your cause?

  COMMUNICATING WITH CLARITY

  Every meaningful cause needs several components to move it forward: Purpose (why it exists), Mission and Vision (how and what you have set out to achieve), Goals and Outcomes (specific things you are going to accomplish), and Strategy (the tactics you will use to achieve your goals and outcomes).

  There is a thread that weaves these components together, that aligns the internal voice with the external listeners. This thread has many strands, or principles, that when woven together form a strong cord that bind the cause to its ambassadors, its stakeholders, and its advocates.

  I discovered this thread after many conversations with nonprofit leaders who were searching for a way to articulate a clear and focused idea of the purpose, character, and culture of their organization. These leaders understand their organization’s purpose, but struggle at times to fully connect that purpose with their audience. They understand what they are on a mission to do, but are challenged by how to effectively share how their cause is different and how their organization makes a difference.

  What they are searching for is clarity.

  Clarity is the clear and focused path for communication, the bridge between the cause and its followers. When an organization can find clarity, it finds its unique voice, confidently speaking and acting on behalf of the cause it represents.

  Clarity can help transform the internal culture of an organization and energize the staff. Clarity can contribute to the difference in a nonprofit’s performance as it finds a new voice and ways of expression
on behalf of its cause. Clarity can guide an effective communication plan that stewards existing relationships and creates new relationships. Clarity can help build affinity, loyalty, and trust with followers.

  What are you searching for?

  Part One: Chapter Two

  Ambassadors, Advocates, and Your Biggest Fans

  Several years ago, I was invited to join the board of directors of our regional food bank. At the first board meeting I attended, I didn’t have a clear understanding of the cause or my role. I didn’t fully understand the focus of, or the mission of the organization. I did not understand that my role was to be an ambassador for the organization and an advocate for the cause.

  Yet over the last few years, I’ve learned an effective board is as enthusiastic about the cause, as it is about providing effective business leadership of the organization. A well-led board understands strategy, governance, and oversight. A forward-thinking board empowers the executive leadership with resources to effectively communicate its strategic objectives and outcomes.

  What nonprofits need are fewer individuals who serve on multiple boards, and more individuals committed to serving effectively on one or two boards. Your participation on a board should not be based solely on your title, circles of influence or income, but also on your commitment to the cause.

  While board members often serve enthusiastically, and provide excellent governance and oversight, the forward-thinking aspect of their role – empowering for effective communications – doesn’t always happen.

  FACE PAINT AND FANTASY LEAGUES

  Imagine for a moment the particular nonprofit you have in mind is like a sports team: You want people on the team who desire – more than anything – for their team to win. Teams are made up of coaches and managers; cheerleaders; players and support staff; and, of course, the fans.