Change Conversations blog

6 min read

Content Libraries: Key to Unlock Your Digital Asset Potential

By Hiro Soga on 6/27/19 11:42 AM

Images, videos, sound bites, and other media are great ways to cut through the clutter online for small businesses or nonprofits. But a common mishap we often see with our clients is that all of those assets are only stored on social media where they were first used. On the surface, it may not seem like that big of a deal, but in reality, you’re severely restricting your ability to repurpose that content in the future. You never know when a certain photo could be useful for another medium or campaign — and your mantra is to make the most of your limited resources!

4 min read

How to Remove the Curse of Knowledge from Your Writing

By Pat Heffernan on 6/13/19 11:21 AM

The more you know, the harder it is to remove the curse of knowledge from your writing. After years of education and experience in your field, you may no longer even notice when you’re baffling others with the concepts, obscure language and shorthand of your daily life. But though your prospects and clients may not know something you know, they are smart and sophisticated and they will seek out a professional who’s easier to communicate with if you don’t clean up your language.

7 min read

How to Partner Effectively with Your Website Developer

By Dave Bowers on 5/23/19 1:00 PM

Considering a new website? Your goal is a stunning and hard-working new website in a process as smooth as possible. Miscommunication or conflict with your website developer can quickly torpedo your goal. Here are some questions to ask to make your job (and the job of your web developer) simpler and more effective as project partners. Every unanswered question can add risks and costs to your project.

5 min read

Driving People to Your Cause: Social Currency for Nonprofits

By Intern Blogger on 5/9/19 11:42 AM

You may think your local nonprofit cannot use flashy campaign tools to set your organization apart. You may think those tools are for businesses and big organizations and since you’re a small nonprofit, then these strategies either won’t work or aren’t appropriate for you. But social currency is an often-overlooked asset that can be powerful for small nonprofits.

8 min read

How to Create Video Testimonials for Small Business

By Intern Blogger on 4/25/19 11:03 AM

 

 

Do you need a high-quality video for your small business? Don't hesitate because you worry about breaking the bank. If your business has a fan or two that loves your services, you can make a great testimonial video on any budget. Employees who love their job with you are also perfect for testimonials.

Testimonials are a powerful way to build credibility and trust for a mission-driven business, whether you do it yourself or with the help of a production company. Let’s look at how you can get a useful testimonial with good video production quality and not a lot of money.

7 min read

How to Benchmark Your Marketing Performance

By Pat Heffernan on 4/11/19 11:50 AM

Last week in a client meeting I was asked a string of marketing questions that I have been asked many times before.

“Is that a good open rate, a good click-through rate?”

“How much do others spend on digital advertising?”

“How are we doing compared to your other clients?”

What’s behind these questions are deeper issues—questions that everyone who works in a mission-driven organization wrestles with from time to time—“Are our results sweet or just so-so?” “Are we doing a good job?” Or more formally, how do we benchmark our marketing performance?

4 min read

7 Questions for Your Marketing Strategy: A Checklist

By Pat Heffernan on 3/14/19 11:52 AM

It often happens this way. First I hear a book author on NPR talking about an interesting subject, then the issue comes up with friends, and then just before the subject is about to slip from short-term memory, I see the book. So it was recently when I saw The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right, by Atul Gawande at my local library. The book got me thinking: Can the secret of marketing strategy be found in a checklist?

4 min read

Creating Quality Video Content on a Budget

By Hiro Soga on 2/28/19 11:38 AM

Here’s the bottom line. If you’re not making online video content for your business, you’re falling behind. Trends have been steadily shifting toward more video, especially on social media. Video is becoming, or in some places has already become, the preferred delivery method for content by people all over the world.

4 min read

Copyright Dangers: Is Your Business at Risk and What to Do

By Pat Heffernan on 2/14/19 11:33 AM

 

Your business or nonprofit faces copyright dangers on both sides of the copyright law:

  • For violating someone else’s copyright, resulting in hefty fines and a public relations embarrassment, and
  • For having your creative materials used improperly, violating your copyright but requiring extensive time and money for small organizations to enforce legally.

Let’s look at the reasons for the dangers, and at some practical tips for what you can do to minimize your risk.

5 min read

Smart New Year Checklist for Your Website and Blog

By Dave Bowers on 1/24/19 11:40 AM

We’re nearly a month into the new year, so it’s time to put into action a new year’s resolution for your website and blog. Your website is the backbone of your organization’s communications. Seven days a week, 24 hours a day — your website is always available (or should be) to tell the world about you. But it needs a little maintenance now and again or the neglect will be visible. Here is my checklist of suggestions for a happy, healthy new year for your website and blog.

3 min read

Marketing Wuss or Wizard: Which Are You?

By Pat Heffernan on 1/10/19 11:43 AM

Wuss isn’t a word I use often, but during my drive home from the holidays it came to my mind fleetingly as an appropriate self-description. I started driving in second or third gear with my hazard lights on though there was only the slightest visible dusting of snow on the highway — and car after car kept passing my (usually speeding) red roadster. But despite the weather map and my fellow travelers, I had decided I did not like the feel of the road beneath my snow tires.

4 min read

Nonpofit Marketers: Why Podcasts are Your Next Best Marketing Tool

By Hiro Soga on 10/25/18 10:50 AM

So why are podcasts your next best marketing tool? Not only is the number of podcast listeners on the rise, they are engaged in the content. And podcast listeners hit a demographic sweet spot for any nonprofit.

Check out our Guide to Inclusive Language to help you communicate
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About Change Conversations

The Change Conversations blog is where changemakers find inspiration and insights on the power of mission-driven communication to create the change you want to see.

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