Faced with tighter budgets and fewer resources than their corporate/agency counterparts, PR managers at nonprofit organizations are scrambling to find unique and affordable
ways to get their messages out. How can they do well by doing good?
In the current climate, the common thread binding nonprofit PR success stories is "creativity." This spring, for example, the American Heart Association (AHA) has been
promoting "Go Red for Women," a PR campaign designed to raise awareness about women's cardiovascular risks (see PR News, March 16). In casting about for an appropriate
vehicle, Senior Communications Manager Dee Baker Amos knew television could prove to be a powerful medium, but it's seldom easy for nonprofits to get on the other side of the
fence.
But as the PR rep of a major national organization, Baker Amos has an edge: a steady stream of organizations angling to form partnerships with the popular cause of heart
disease, including Lifetime Television, whose hospital drama "Strong Medicine" seemed the ideal place to push the AHA's message.
Unlike a one-time visit to a morning show or a single segment on the morning shows or evening news, "Strong Medicine" offered the possibility of a more personal kind of
messaging. A planned August episode will focus on one character's diagnosis of cardiac disease, to be followed by a PSA delivered by a cast member. "Being able to get it in the
storyline is awesome," Baker Amos says. "It can be much more powerful than just a PSA. A lot of people get personally involved in watching a show; the characters almost become
part of the viewer's family. We have a personal message, and this is a personal medium."
Capitalizing on the opportunity took some effort on AHA's part. Its consultants worked with the show's writers on script development, and its PR team wrote the PSA, giving
careful thought to which "Strong Medicine" celebrity would do the talking.
"When we allow any media partner to speak on behalf of AHA, there are some guidelines we have, including having a passion for the cause and having someone who does not smoke.
We would like for the person to have some kind of personal connection to the cause," Baker Amos adds. "The same things that guide our advertising guide our media partnerships."
(For the record: Rick Schroeder, who is new to the series this season, got AHA's nod.)
Sometimes, a nonprofit is lucky to hit on an opportunity that goes beyond PR business as usual. Take Dina Silver, the director of communications at Lehigh University,
who led the PR effort when the school received permission from NASA to study and analyze remains from the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.
"Usually, the PR approach in academia is that, once the research is finalized, PR pushes the results. We saw this as a bigger opportunity," Silver says.
In fact, Silver started talking to the media even before there was anything to say, inviting local and national reporters to a press conference when the material first
arrived on campus. Displaying a bag of debris -- not your typical sexy photo op -- won media coverage in more than 100 markets.
Silver later spent $5,000 to produce B-roll of students poring over the rubble in the lab, and she also highlighted the ongoing effort on the school's Web site. To date,
coverage has appeared in such diverse outlets as ABC.com, CNN, the Los Angeles Times, MSNBC.com, Newsday and the Washington Post along
with stories in local and regional media.
Like many in the nonprofit PR world, Sandra Gordon works with limited resources. And like so many of her peers, the director of public education and media relations at the
American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons has to make a little go a long way. Her ongoing PR programs include the "Get Up! Get Out! Get Moving!" campaign geared toward
educating people about the importance of physical activity; "Legacy of Heroes," a nod to veterans that includes a PBS documentary and that highlights the contributions made
by orthopedic surgeons; and the "Safe, Accessible Playground" program, through which the association highlights its medical issues by helping with the construction of safe and
wheelchair-accessible play structures.
Sounds like a full PR plate, doesn't it? So what was Gordon to do when the association determined to make a major production of its upcoming 75th anniversary in 2008? The
overall PR push, including related program materials, could cost $2 million, and Gordon's budget wasn't going to stretch that far.
Going well beyond the traditional role of the PR executive, Gordon led the effort to raise funds to support the anniversary. "If I have a great idea and I want to make it
happen, I pretty much have to go out and raise the money to do it," she says. "As a PR person, you have the whole world open to you if you can come up with a great idea, and paint
a picture for somebody of what it is and what it can mean to them."
Contacts: Dee Baker Amos, 214.706.1467, [email protected]; Norman Birnbach, 781.639.6701, [email protected]; Jim Brodsky, 212.829.2002, [email protected]; Sandra Gordon,
847.384.4030, [email protected]; Dina Silver, 610.758.6656, [email protected]
A New Twist For Nonprofit PR
Nonprofits always have highlighted their success stories, typically as a way of generating community goodwill. Now there's a new twist on the theme, as philanthropic groups
find themselves under pressure to demonstrate in tangible ways the good they do in the community.
Known as "venture philanthropy," the general idea is that those who give the bucks want to see the recipients make good use of the funds -- doing well by doing good, if you
will. This becomes a communications issue, challenging PR to find new ways to promote a group's achievements.
"As a giver, I want to know that the organization is doing well, and I don't want to see it only in the newsletter or in the letter from the president," says Norman Birnbach
of Birnbach Communications in Marblehead, Mass. To really be convinced, "I want to see outside validation," he says.
Best Practices For Nonprofits
In today's belt-tightening environment, how can you succeed in nonprofit PR? Jim Brodsky, founder and president of Sharp Communications Inc., and Bob Ireland, partner and
managing director of the firm, provide these pointers:
- Identify Competitors: Competition isn't limited to the corporate world. Even among nonprofits, two or more groups may occupy a similar space. Find the others, and
watch what they're doing. - Focus: Your resources are limited, but your audience potentially is vast. Nonprofit PR executives are especially challenged to direct their efforts toward the most
significant and accessible targets. - Make Friends: Nonprofit PR organizations can leverage their resources by looking beyond the typical "sponsorship" deals to add depth to their partnerships, perhaps in
terms of shared branding or programming.