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Posted By IAMU,
Wednesday, November 18, 2020
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You want your customers to read, understand, and put into action the information that you provide them. If you only put out the message once, though, the likelihood that many people will see it – let alone read it and do something with it – may be wishful thinking.
To better guarantee that your communications are effective, put them out there again and again – in different ways and in different places.
How does this work?
Take one 150- to 200-word article on any given topic.
- Use the article in its entirety in a newsletter and/or on your website.
- Create a poster or flyer using a portion of the content. Hang up the poster in your office and ask other community gathering places to do the same (e.g., the library, the rec center, grocery stores and restaurants that have community bulletin boards, etc.).
- Use a snippet (such as one tip or piece of information) in an email and link to more information about the topic online.
- Post a piece of advice from the article or a topic-related question (to spur discussion) on your social media sites.
- Find a topic-related testimonial from a customer and weave in facts from the original article. People love to read about others and can see themselves in the article, making it more relevant to their lives.
If you use one article in these five ways, your chances of reaching more of your customers, and making the message stick with them, are much greater. You may want to try this strategy with national observances and important seasonal topics (e.g., using space heaters or carbon monoxide issues).
Tags:
Communications Corner
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Posted By IAMU,
Wednesday, November 11, 2020
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Companies have business plans. Sports teams have game plans. Military divisions have battle plans. Having a plan is crucial for success, yet many utilities lack communication plans. A communication plan can guide you through your efforts – making sure you cover needed messages in ways that will be most effective without anything being overlooked or forgotten about. Consider developing a plan for an entire year. By taking time to create a guiding document for 2021 now, you may save yourself time, energy, and stress throughout the next year. At a minimum, your yearly communication plan should include: - What topics you’ll cover each month
- What media you’ll use — newsletter, e-mail, poster, video, etc. – to deliver your messages
- Who will be responsible for creating the communication – including writer, editor, designer, photographer, videographer, etc.
- When work on each communication needs to start
- When the final communication is due
- When you plan to distribute the communication
With a plan, you can work well in advance of when you will deliver your messages so they are well thought out and thorough instead of thrown together at the last minute.
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Communications Corner
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Posted By IAMU,
Tuesday, November 3, 2020
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Do you want your customers to pay attention to, trust, and act upon the
communications that you provide? Of course, you do. Well then, you
should strive to deliver clear, consistent, creative, and compelling
messages and information. Guarantee effective, engaging communications by designating a content manager to own your communication efforts. What is a content manager?A
content manager is someone who oversees the content creation and
dissemination process. The content manager ensures no tasks get
overlooked and that content comes together and is delivered on time. Job responsibilities:- Works with your team to determine topics to cover, making sure to include a wide variety of areas that are relevant to your customers and other stakeholders.
- Creates a detailed editorial calendar that outlines topics, duties, and due dates.
- Assigns communication project tasks to writer(s), designers(s), photographer(s), and/or videographer(s).
- Monitors the workflow of the communications team.
- May
or may not be responsible for various aspects of content creation
(writing, editing, designing, proofing, taking photos, making social
media posts, and/or shooting video).
- Oversees communication delivery to the intended audience.
If
you don’t already have someone designated as the content manager, look
into who would best be suited to handle the responsibilities. If you or
your content manager needs any advice or direction, you can reach out to
Jen Cronin, IAMU’s contracted communications support consultant. Jen
can be reached at jcronin@jcronincom.com or by phone at 616-610-2546.
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Communications Corner
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