On Monday Liz Truss was confirmed as the new Prime Minister. Charities quickly responded to the news. Civil Society shared statements from NCVO, NPC, CFG, DSC, Bond and Christian Aid. Charities took to their social media channels.
Here’s a selection of some of the different ways charities shared direct asks on Twitter. Most got really good engagement with supporters as they reacted quickly with strong messages as if they were talking to her directly.
Although some mentioned @TrussLiz (no one accidentally tweeted @LizTruss who is brilliantly having her own John Lewis moment and went from 800 followers to 19k in a few days) and others used #LizTruss, realistically, these messages are aimed at supporters rather than the new PM and her team.
To-do lists
This tweet from Together with Refugees shows a post-it with three tasks: Get keys to No10, set up new email and create fair, kind, effective system for refugees.
Now that @trussliz has won the race to become our next Prime Minister, we look forward to working with the new PM and her cabinet on the key topics our campaigners told us matter most to them.
Tomorrow is #LizTruss first PMQs. What do you want our new Prime Minister to prioritise for children and young people with cancer and their families?#CCAM
While Crisis asked supporters to choose one of four tweets aimed at the PM.
More than 220,000 in England are living in the worst forms of homelessness, and with spiralling rents & bills, many more will be forced into homelessness this winter.
Dear Prime Minister, will you protect women and girls? We’re calling on #LizTruss, as the newly appointed PM, to ensure that protecting women and girls is a priority. Together, we have a louder voice, sign the open letter today>> https://t.co/urYupoRfUfpic.twitter.com/vI6kr3fyez
The mix of tone of voice and different approaches in these reactive messages is really interesting. Do they work?
There were many charities who didn’t share a message for the PM this week. Did they miss a trick?
There were others who shared more descriptive messages announcing the news and sharing hopes for the future, like this from RSPB and this congratulatory one from Macmillan. Quite a different tone, more conservative than the direct ones above. See more examples in this Charity Comms thread.
What’s your view?
Waste of time or effective comms?
Did your organisation join in on Twitter or other social channel or email? Or decide to do nothing?
Have you seen any other great examples?
Is there room on your social media strategy for reactive comms?
Messages to Ministers
As the Ministers in the Cabinet are announced, charities have been communicating with them too.
Young Minds are calling on their supporters to sign a ‘congrats on your new job’ card for Theresa Coffey and shared a to-do list.
Record numbers of young people are being referred for emergency mental health support, but you have the power to change that @ThereseCoffey. Here's a quick to do list to help you get started. #EndTheWaitpic.twitter.com/irYnJrN0vM
Thérèse Coffey has just been announced as the new Health Secretary.
To make sure diabetes is at the top of her agenda from her very first week, we’ll be sending her a welcome card filled with messages about what it’s really like to live with diabetes day in, day out. (1/2) pic.twitter.com/UivYW2A95p
Highlights this month: covid content, covid comms, covid language battles, covid fundraising, covid-driven digital services, covid burnout.
Well, March was intense. April was the same, but different. Now we are in May, it feels like a good time to review and reflect on the month just gone. This round-up, like most of the comms this month, is 98% coronavirus. Here are some gems you might have missed. Stay safe everyone.
How to use: Pick and choose links to read, or open in new tabs for later. Or bookmark this post. Even better, subscribe and get future round-ups direct to your inbox.
Content and digital fundraising
At the start of the pandemic in March, comms was focussed around hand washing and protecting vulnerable groups. As we moved into April, fundraising appeals, digital fundraising and lockdown coping strategy content emerged. It has been really inspiring to see so many creative campaigns turned round so quickly and made from home.
Charity So White report on the impact of covid19 on BAME communities. It establishes five key principles to guide the charity sector’s response.
The NHS is reporting a big drop in cancer referrals. CEOs of big cancer charities recorded a shared message – #HelpUsHelpYou and some charities shared their symptoms comms (see Pancreatic Cancer UK and Bowel Cancer UK).
Kindness will keep us together – moving advert from British Red Cross.
Citizens Advice shared insights into how their advisors are giving #AdviceAtHome.
Doncaster Council are great at using Twitter threads. Here they tell the parable of Back to the Future to teach us lessons about staying safe through a pandemic.
#NoHookUps during a pandemic say Terence Higgins Trust (“That means w**king has never been more important. So go on – do it for yourself to help protect others). Take the Pleasure Pledge and get your kicks elsewhere.
Choose your own adventure style thread from RNIB raising awareness of how hard it is for blind and partially sighted people to shop and observe social distancing.
The National Emergency Trust has been showcasing some of the charities it has supported, like Made in Hackney.
Not a charity, but Hassan Akkad who spoke at Being the Story, is sharing beautiful photos on Twitter of colleagues at the hospital where he is working as a cleaner. This is Sandra.
Most charities have built covid information hubs on their websites, very quickly writing lots of new content to meet the needs of their audience. These hubs are generally prominently linked from homepages and in some cases appear as a new item on top-level navigation. Here’s a selection:
Citizens Advice have been releasing data from their website showing key topics of concern and how this is changing during the crisis. Might be useful to look at if you are creating your own content or signposting information.
It has been really worrying to see the rise of so much inaccessible information during this time from official sources, businesses and some charities. The accessibility of official information provided by No10, DHSC, PHE and even the NHS has been especially poor at a time when it matters most. This was covered on Channel 4 News.
It has been particularly noticeable that so many organic and promoted tweets used images or gifs of text to share statements and complicated information. These generally appear with no alt text or link to an html version of the information, or text version in a thread. The information is therefore inaccessible to anyone who can’t view images. There have also been lots of videos without subtitles and without voice overs.
Clearly this has been a pressured time to release information as quickly as possible. But accessibility matters.
£7m was raised during the #TwoPointSixChallenge (London Marathon) weekend. People did so many exhausting and creative challenges. Here’s a round-up from UK Fundraising – 26 examples of 2.6 Challenge fundraising events. (My 7yo wrote a Roald Dahl quiz – download and donate £2 to play – thanks!)
You are not alone – how The Samaritans adapted their fundraising and set up a dedicated support service for NHS workers within 10 days. Interview with Sonya Trivedy.
We’ve all had to rapidly adjust to this new way of working. It has been tough. Not least because of the technological learning curve and the loss of face-to-face contact, but also because we are all dealing with big additional mental loads as we come to terms with the situation we are living and working in. The home schooling, the loneliness, the worries about food and health and the future and our loved ones. There’s lots to deal with.
There was a flood of ‘top tips for working at home’ type-articles at the start. And now, there are more about recognising that wall-to-wall Zoom calls and WFH (especially when your home isn’t set up for this) is very draining. If you are finding it hard, or your team’s motivation is draining, this is normal. Here are some articles which it might be worth sharing internally. You are doing great. It’s ok to have off-days. Working life is likely to be like this for a while.
Sound familiar? Fundraising right now from the fundraising frontline – Agents for Good
The current situation has lots of implications for long-term outputs. Organisational strategies have been parked and business as usual pivoted. It’s a challenging time for senior leaders and trustees.
How Hospice UK have responded including by running weekly Zoom calls of 300 colleagues across the country. CEO Tracey Bleakley explains in this short video post.
I am missing train trips and walks in open countryside. I have been sharing some virtual walks and adventures including Cornwall, a sleeper train to Spain (and back) plus the lavender fields of Kent.
If you want to transport yourself to other places at a deeper level, take a look at Radio Lento podcasts. Get some headphones and listen to 30-minute soundscapes of woods, rivers and birds. Perfect for meditation, some quiet before sleep or just switching off during the day. Subscribe via your podcast provider or get updates via @RadioLento.
What did you read, watch or launch? Please share in the comments.
Can I help you?
Get in touch if I can help you with content planning, training or strategy. I work with charities of all shapes and sizes. I can help give your comms or digital processes a healthcheck and ideas injection.
——
Did you miss the last round-up? Catch up with more good reads from a time before lockdown.
Updated: 6 April (new: Charity So White report, write your own coronavirus style guide, how to communicate with furloughed staff).
Since I wrote this post on 3 March, everything has moved on. Coronavirus is dominating world news and the way we live and work has completely changed. I have been adding new useful resources as well as removing ones which are no longer relevant. I have kept the examples of charity comms for reference.
Whatever your size of organisation or purpose, you will be meeting to plan how you’ll respond internally and externally. There is lots of noise and misinformation about the spread of the virus with rumours and blame escalating. What are you doing to reassure your beneficiaries and keep your staff safe?
Here are some useful links and good reads to help you manage your own charity’s response.
Writing about Covid19 for beneficiaries
Information about the virus is changing all the time. Keep an eye on official advice which is being updated on a daily basis and share / incorporate it into your comms:
Full Fact are working hard to fact-check lots of the information circulating. Are there any misleading memes or discussions circulating related to your audience or cause? It’s worth checking FF’s website to see.
Knowing what and when to communicate about coronavirus depends on what type of organisation you are.
If you are a health charity, one working with older people or one with public-access buildings, you may be sharing updates, especially if you are getting lots of helpline calls or forum discussions about risk. As there is so much misinformation circulating, this is your chance to be the go-to authority on the subject for people with specific needs and spreading good advice.
Here are some examples of information charities have created for the people they represent:
Charities representing people with underlying health conditions listed in the Government’s latest advice quickly responded by updating their information. This Twitter Moment includes examples from Asthma UK, Diabetes UK, Bloodwise and others.
Older people are one of the at-risk groups. Age UK have been sharing updates via social media and have a prominent link on their homepage to their Age UK advice page.
19 cancer charities shared information under the One Cancer Voice group.
Hospitals and care homes are issuing guidance about visiting. Hospice UK have shared links to statements from 13+ hospices across the country. (They also took part in a video call of 200 hospices to share plans and best practice – love this!)
Information is available in alternative formats. Sign Health have produced a video using British Sign Language and subtitles to share information with deaf people. Mencap and Down Syndrome Ireland have produced easy-read guides.
PDSA addressed questions from pet owners about the impact of the virus on animals and their owners.
Good Things Foundation released information about accessing digital healthcare – to support people who may have to do this for the first time due to the virus. Using the internet to get ready for coronavirus.
Comms tips
Think accessibility – not everyone can read the text on an image. If you are sharing images with text on via social media, include a link to a web page where the same information can be read and/or repeat the text in your post. I have seen so many covid statements which are just images of text with no link (and probably no alt text). See more from @CovidAccessInfo (new account set up on 19/3).
Make information easy to find. Pin your tweets. Use hashtags (#covid19UK / #coronavirus etc). Clearly layout information so it is easy to read. Add the story to your homepage.
Only ever link to one page which you are keeping up to date. As the situation develops you don’t want people to be seeing old advice. They may be seeing old posts or looking at old emails but at least you’ll know they can click through for current information. Avoid PDFs for the same reason.
Clearly indicate information you have added or changed. You might do this at the top of your web page or by highlighting what has been added. See this example from Cystic Fibrosis Trust.
Even if you don’t have infomation you have produced yourself, at this stage it is probably a good idea to have a page about coronavirus on your website which links to the key sources of information and something about the services you offer if there are changes to them. A quick random search found lots of charity websites showing no covid results in their searches.
Don’t include information about the current number of cases or deaths. This instantly dates your information and shows that it is not up-to-date.
As the situation develops, you may need to use more effective and urgent ways to communicate your messages. Plan ahead now. Are you able to use video or audio or other methods to respond to a crisis comms situation? Might you need to devote your entire homepage to the story? Can you send out mass emails to your stakeholders? Are your crisis comms processes up-to-date? See this thread from Gemma Pettman sharing crisis comms planning tips.
Check your scheduled messages. For example, do you have messages scheduled which are promoting events which are likely to be cancelled? Be aware that the situation could change over the coming days / weeks.
Start planning ahead. We are now moving from the crisis planning stage into a more widespread experience of the virus. This means that your comms needs to be less about explaining the virus and how to respond to the changes we are all making. The next comms stage is describing our ‘new normal’ of operating and communicating about ill or dying colleagues, volunteers and stakeholders. See Coronavirus comms – planning ahead.
New:Think about your language. How you talk about the virus and its impact on your beneficiaries and organisation will change. Write and share a mini styleguide to include standard phrases which you use, as well as ones to avoid. This post about how language changes through a crisis and how to frame your comms is useful. 8 tips for framing covid19 – Ella Saltmarshe.
Running your organisation
Internally you will be looking at the impact of a wider spread of the virus and what this might mean for how you operate.
New:Charity So White have written a position paper sharing the ways coronavirus can impact BAME communities disproportionately. It calls on charities to consider that in their response and includes five key principles to guide them.
It’s useful to see other organisations’ internal plans if you need to write one yourself. Some have shared theirs publicly:
Reassuring staff and volunteers that you are prepared is key. Internal comms must play a vital role. What internal comms systems do you use? Do they work to reach everyone? There is some good advice in this post by Rachel Miller of All Things IC.
What about your events or meetings? Many have been cancelled / postponed or changed to online. Here’s how Bond announced the cancellation of their annual conference.
Digital service delivery
What does the situation mean for the services you run and the support people in your community might need? What might you need to do more of or change?
For example, can you move face-to-face services , online? What different services could you offer to expand to support people through a scary and challenging time? Are you able to run digital events or make fun content to entertain?
Community Action Response launched to encourage everyone to support their communities, particularly vulnerable and isolated people during the crisis. Here’s a thread explaining the five-step process by Eden Project Communities.
If you are a community volunteering charity, how are you keeping volunteers in touch with how they might be needed? And reassuring them about measures you’ll be taking to protect them?
Virtual working
More people are switching to virtual working as a way to reduce risk. It can be a real shift for an organisation if you are not used to working like this. Here are some useful links:
The London Marathon has been postponed until October (announcement 5pm Friday 13th March). Read this thread by Russell Benson with great tips and alternative options for events fundraisers if you haven’t already. Here are a few examples from charities responding to the news in case you want some ideas.
Tobin Aldrich – A proper crisis. “But what we really need to do is to plan. How are we going to have the maximum impact in supporting our beneficiaries throughout the crisis and after it. And how are we going to fund it.”
New: Pandemic fundraising: what to expect and how to succeed in the months ahead – Better Fundraising.
Good Finance have created a resource hub for social enterprises and charities.
The Fundraising Regulator have advice about fundraising events: “All charities should now be thinking about what they will do if their fundraising event needs to be cancelled or postponed.”
Many funders such as London Funders are adapting the terms for the charities they support. LF say “we want to offer reassurance that we stand with the sector during this time”. See also Esmee Fairbairn and Corra Foundation. This thread by Max Rutherford had lots more examples.
Howard Lake of UK Fundraising wrote advice for fundraisers about the challenges ahead and how to be prepared.
I’m seeing lots of threads on Twitter of people with existing health conditions talking about self-isolation. This Channel 4 News clip shares one story.
Many health charities shared information as the news spread. Look at examples from Asthma UK, Sue Ryder, Diabetes UK, Cystic Fibrosis Trusts, Sickle Cell Society, Crohn’s and Colitis UK, Eczema Society, MS Society, British Liver Trust and more gathered in this Twitter Moment from early March.
Here are some highlights from this year’s crop of digital advent calendars shared by charities, museums and other not-for-profits.
Fun and competitions
Ruby the Reindeer is visiting a familiar place behind each door of The Family Holiday Association’s website calendar. Your challenge is to name the places and rearrange the first letters of the answers into the title of a well-known song, in order to enter the competition.
Follow, like or share Deki’s advent tweets to be in with a chance of winning a mystery box of goodies! “Each box is filled with surprises and items that celebrate the vibrancy of the communities in Togo and what Deki means to our partners and staff.”
Stories
Bletchley Park are sharing photos of actual doors from their site and telling the stories from each of them. Check out their Instagram for stories from Hut 1 and the garage so far.
#iwill are posting stories which celebrate the difference young people are making across the UK. Check out the #iwill advent calendar.
Sharing learning
A wealth of information and learning from Fundraising Everywhere’s fab calendar shared in one handy thread. So far we have had Dana Kohava Segal on behaviour economics and Howard Lake on giant cheque pictures in press releases.
CIPR Not-for-Profit are also sharing learning through their calendar. They are promoting great resources and showcasing Christmas campaigns from the sector.
Fundraising
The National Literacy Trust are sharing details of a book recommendation each day. They asked top authors which book they would give as a gift to a child this Christmas. The tweet includes a text donation number to support their #GiftofReading campaign.
Cats Protection are sharing stories of cats in their care, with links to different ways you can sponsor a cat or support their work.
Others
For the 12 days of Christmas, Dogs Trust are sharing 12 naughty and nice realities of owning a dog.
Hope Pastures have decorated stable doors and behind each is a pony with a story.
The National Library of Scotland are running a advent calendar with an 80s theme. Rubiks Cubes, Tetris and Jackie magazine have featured so far. #AdventOf80s.
Age UK Lincoln and South Lincolnshire are encouraging donations to their charity shop through their reverse advent calendar. Day 4’s challenge is to find something red.
CRUK in Scotland are using a 12 Days of Christmas countdown to celebrate highlights from the year.
People are sharing the stories of the charities behind each door of the Advent of Change paper calendar.
Orkney Library are re-posting their best tweets of the year. Follow #OrkneyLibraryAdvent19 for some gems.
Seen any others? Let me know.
Join in
It’s not too late to join in. Last year many organisations ran 12 days of Christmas reveals in the dead-zone after Christmas. What a nice way to share positive stories from 2019 or calls to action for 2020.
Highlights this month: a lesson in crisis comms from RNLI, climate change comms, diversity in the sector, guide to wellbeing.
It’s overwhelming to try and keep up at the moment. Aside from UK and world news, this is a busy time of year for awareness days and campaign launches. Here’s a small snapshot of some of the best charity content and reads from this month and some from August too.
How to use this round-up: Pick and choose links to read, or open in new tabs for later. Or bookmark this post. Even better, subscribe and get future round-ups direct to your inbox.
Content
Big campaigns
Alzheimer’s Research UK launched a new video starring Samuel L Jackson as part of their #ShareTheOrange campaign. It’s all over social and has been viewed over a million times on Twitter. No mention of it on their homepage now World Alzheimer’s Month has finished though. The campaign has now been running for five years. ARUK also shared a behind the scenes film from the shoot.
Clic Sargent shared this video about the cost of travel to treatment, as part of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.
Dogs Trust shared this video (with very upsetting content) to mark 15 years of their Freedom Project, removing a barrier for families escaping from domestic abuse.
Creative content
‘Choose your own adventure’-type Twitter thread from Trussell Trust to raise awareness about Universal Credit and drive signups to their #5WeeksTooLong campaign.
Time to Change shared a Moment of what people want you to know about suicide, for #WorldSuicidePreventionDay. They have also been sharing illustrations of what it is like to have mental health problems. This showing physical symptoms is very powerful.
Did your organisation do anything to join in with the #GlobalClimateStrike either by joining a strike or sharing messages of solidarity or making statement about your own organisation’s commitment to addressing climate change? On a day where there was a global focus on the issues, it was good to see some (mostly environmental charities) pulling out all the stops. It was disappointing to see so many others saying nothing. Here are some examples of charities who joined in with the #GlobalClimateStrike.
Comms
It can be stressful and relentless being on the comms frontline. Your work is key to building and protecting your organisation’s reputation and impact, while also battling internal pressures. This month, Charity Comms launched A wellbeing guide for comms professionals authored by Kirsty Marrins with contributions from others sharing case studies and tips. It aims to help build resilience and look after mental health. Do have a read if you haven’t seen it already.
This month, RNLI faced a backlash then a rush of support, following a story profiling their overseas work. Their messaging on Twitter was an example of patience and warmth. The volume of incoming comments was relentless through the week. They responded by writing personal messages to thousands of people. Their initial tweet has been liked 44.8k times.
Great thread of ideas from Richard Berks about sharing research insights internally. Could also be used as part of any buy-in process or internal roadshow.
Listen to this Radio 4 programme about digital skills and the social divide created by the digital world. Dr Josie Barnard explores reasons why 22% of the population are being left behind. Digital Future: the new underclass.
Amazing work from suicide prevention organisations who have managed to influence so many digital platforms to automatically share content about prevention in response to keyword searches. This tweet from Ben Bowdler-Thomas shares some screenshots from Twitter, Facebook etc.
Fundraising
Age UK partner with Cadbury in #DonateYourWords. 30p from every special Dairy Milk bar will be donated to Age UK.
Remember a Charity Week was 10 years old this year. Here are some examples of how charities joined in on social media. Legacy fundraising on social media.
Salary and Organisational Culture Report – new report from Charity Comms based on 668 survey responses. Includes data about pay, diversity, career paths and attitudes towards comms staff. The report links to useful guides and includes a list of actions for staff, leaders and recruiters.
NCVO launched the Trusted Charity Essentials Tool, a new online diagnostic toolkit for small charities to judge how well they are working and how to improve.
What did you read, watch or launch this month? Please share your recommendations in the comments.
Could you also tell me if these round-ups are useful. It takes quite a long time to put them together. How do you use the round-ups? Please share any feedback. Thanks!
Can I help you?
Get in touch if I can help you with content planning, training or strategy. I work with charities of all shapes and sizes. I can help give your comms or digital processes a healthcheck and ideas injection.
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Did you miss July’s round-up? Catch up with more good reads!
Highlights this month: #YouMadeItHappen, #GivingTuesday, Christmas campaigns, Charity Digital Code launched.
November is always a rich time for content with Giving Tuesday and Christmas appeals. This month it was also the first ever #YouMadeItHappen day. It was great to see so many large and small charities joining in by thanking their supporters and sharing detail of the impact they had made.
How to use this round-up: Pick and choose links to read, or open in new tabs for later. Or bookmark this post. Or, even better, subscribe and get future round-ups direct to your inbox.
Breast Cancer Now and Breast Cancer Care shared merger news. Supporters received letters through the post on the same day the news was publicly announced.
The Code advocates digital skills across staff and the board. This helpful infographic produced by Zoe Amar, Ellie Hale, Sally Dyson and Janet Thorne asks Do you need a digital trustee?
What did you read, watch or launch this month? Please add your links in the comments.
Can I help you?
Get in touch if I can help you with content planning, training or strategy. I work with charities of all shapes and sizes. I can help give your comms or digital processes a healthcheck and ideas injection.
June passed by in a blur of great weather, football fever and lots of great charity reads. Get an ice cream / cool drink and settle back to hook some juicy digital catches!
Warning – this is another bumper crop. Pick and choose links to read, or open in new tabs for later. Or bookmark this post. Even better, subscribe and get future round-ups direct to your inbox. Enjoy!
Find out why Kate Collins, CEO of Teenage Cancer Trust says that Twitter is an essential leadership tool. This is a great article to show to your non-digital CEO.
Do you know about the comms2point0 comms job description model. Really useful if you are thinking about the skills you are looking for in a new member of staff.
Mind your language
Suicide has been in the news a lot recently. Here are some guides to writing about it responsibly.
This quick read guide is based on guidelines produced by Samaritans and Mind.
What did you read, watch or launch this month? Please add your links in the comments.
Can I help you?
Get in touch if I can help you with digital copywriting, content planning, training or strategy. I work with charities of all shapes and sizes. I can help give your comms or digital processes a healthcheck and ideas injection.
——
Did you miss May’s round-up? Catch up with more good reads!
In the month that we were all swamped in GDPR emails and RNLI and Dog’s Trust were responding to endless negative comments following misreported press stories, there were lots of great reads. Pull up a comfy chair and catch up with some great charity content and digital reads you might have missed from May 2018.
Warning – you may need longer than a tea break to catch up. Pick and choose links to read, or open in new tabs for later. Or bookmark this post. Even better, subscribe and get future round-ups direct to your inbox. Enjoy!
Digital
Useful resources and reads if you are working on digital projects, thinking about future technologies or just getting on with your everyday digital tasks:
Charities have a problem with men according to a CAF report (UK Fundraising). Includes questions and a flatpack fundraising guide to address the issues. Handy!
This Royal Wedding Moment contains lots of fundraising related fun from large and small charities. Great examples of how to join in with a feel-good event.
Strawberry Social even did a comprehensive thread of an A-Z of Royal Wedding tat which should have got more likes than it did.
Sick of hearing about the floss but not actually sure what it’s all about? This handy guide by TES for teachers so they can keep up with the kids, is for you!
What did you read, watch or launch this month? Please add your links in the comments.
Can I help you?
Get in touch if I can help you with digital copywriting, content planning, training or strategy. I work with charities of all shapes and sizes. I can help give your comms or digital processes a healthcheck and ideas injection.
More than ever today, my timeline is wonderfully filled with messages celebrating brilliant women and highlighting women’s projects and causes. It is International Women’s Day (#IWD2018) so here’s my pick of the top content around.
Richard Herring did his annual ‘Why isn’t there an International Men’s Day?’ response marathon to raise money for Refuge. At one stage during the day, new donations were being every added every ten seconds. The £50k target was hit around lunchtime, and £100,000 by the early evening. The final total is now almost £150k + Gift Aid!
There were lots of fundraising activities on the day. This reproduction of this suffragette poster from 1906 is being sold to support the campaign for a statue of Mary Woolstonecraft.
There are thousands of tweets giving shout-outs to fabulous women. Imandeep Kaur’s thread, showcasing women in her life stood out. Using one tweet per person and a stonking photograph, she explains what the woman has achieved and why they are amazing.
City, University of London asked why there aren’t more expert women featured on the news with this nifty animation they shared on Twitter sharing research from Professor Lis Howell.
The NY Times admitted that its obituaries have been dominated by white men. They have responded with a series called Overlooked.
Some charities you wouldn’t particularly expect to have an story for IWD, used the opportunity to share stories about their work. For example Dog’s Trust shared information about their Freedom Project.
This was just a small fraction of all the tweets, videos, campaigns shared for IWD18. What did you see or produce which particularly stood out? Do share your highlights in the comments.
Get in touch if I can help you with digital copywriting, content planning, training or strategy. I work with charities of all shapes and sizes. Can I help give your comms or digital processes a healthcheck and ideas injection?
In case you missed them, some of the best reads on crisis comms, digital strategy and charity content from last month.
Crisis comms
Charities have been in the headlines ever since the start of the year (Oxfam, President’s Club, Oxfam again, Jo Cox Foundation). There’s lots we can learn from these events in terms of how we need to respond to a crisis and rebuild trust.
Plus this – after Oxfam, charities are no longer untouchable by Vicky Browning of ACEVO – in which she tackles the public call for charities to be transparent while resenting money spent on admin.
Read, then review your crisis comms plan. Does it include the right people? Have you got clarity about the messages? Do they work across all channels? Have staff done media training? Are there enough people with social media skills to be able to respond to comments? (NB Oxfam put a call-out to staff for help and drafted in 40 colleagues to help with front-line messaging.)
It’s worth noting that it’s not just Oxfam who have been effected by this story. NCVO have been working tirelessly to share safeguarding best practice and represent the sector in media interviews.
Macmillan’s Senior Digital Editor, Rebecca Cryan, talks about accessibility audits.
Seb Baird from Time to Change shared insights from this year’s #TimeToTalk day in which they shared over 40 pieces of unique content across different social channels.
#WorldCancerDay is a big day for lots of health charities. Macmillan launched this lovely #LittleActsOfKindness video. I really liked the way they displayed the subtitles.
How can you use your archive to connect with topical stories? There were lots of charities marking the 100 years since (some) women got the vote. Age UK told the story of one of its founders Eleanor Rathbone.
I am a sucker for maps and data. These examples of (non-charity) content marketing campaigns using maps could give food for thought. How can you use your data to tell a bigger story?
I spent January doing an interim comms manager role as well as going to BarCampNFP and SMEX18 so might have missed other good stuff. What did you read / watch / produce this month? Please do share.
madlinsudn blog 