Communicating the essence and uniqueness of your organisation

Communicating the essence and uniqueness of your organisation

Max du Bois2 December 2010

162,000

Think of a charity that stands out?

Think of a charity that stands out?Was it yours?

Unique space?Unique approach?Way they communicated?Size of their communications budget?

Defining what’s unique about you?

Describe your organisation in one sentence

Describe your organisation in one sentenceAre there other charities that could use the same description?

If your charity didn’t exist, how would that effect the world?

After a bad day, why do you come back?

Telling us very little

Brand; describing our organisation

Brand is a way of building and using an

organisation’s reputation in a distinctive

and relevant way to manipulate its target

audiences to act in ways that will help

achieve corporate objectives

Defining a brand:

What do we do?

Scope: What area of business are we in?

Status: What status do we want to achieve?

Why do we do it?

Ambition: What is our heart-felt ambition?

Ethos: What are the principles behind our actions?

How do we do it?

Style: How do we go about our business?

Response: What impression do we want to create?

Focus: What is our basis for making decisions?

Example: Merlin

Response: The impression

we want to create

We do what it takes and

we stay for as long

at it takes

Focus

Confidential

Style: How do

we go about our

business

Vitalising to fill with life or energy

Incisive clear, to the point, effective, fast

Undaunted not discouraged or put off

Hands on working directly with, extremely

practical

Ambition: What’s our

heart felt ambition

Investing in

healthcare that gives

the most vulnerable

people healthy lives

Ethos: What are the principles

behind our actions

We work around the world to help people build

their own lasting and effective healthcare

Scope:

What area of

business are we in

Saving lives by delivering

emergency medical aid

and reviving health services in

the toughest places

Medical experts

on the

frontlineStatus

Medical relief to lasting healthcare

Focusing on our audiences

Who are our key audiences?

No, who are our key audiences?

What can they do to help us achieve our goals?

What do they think about us?

What do we want them to think about us?

What are the barriers to this?

WHAT’s going on in the world

• Headline

• Supporting points

From a general perspective or that of

each specific target audience.

What is happening in the world that

makes our presence and our work

valuable to them.

Facts, observations.

WHY do we think this is important

• Headline

• Supporting points

The internal perspective, thinking about

what drives us, the principles that

underpin our approach and our actions.

Beliefs, opinions.

HOW will we help

• Headline

• Supporting points

The way in which we go about our

work – our approach and style

rather than our specific activities.

Signals of proof.

RESPONSE we want

• Headline

• Supporting points

How we want people to respond in

attitude and actions.

Think

Feel

Do

Key message grid: Audience focus

PURPOSE

A brief statement of what we are

aiming to achieve

Why do we feel that this is important?

We are passionate about tackling hearing loss and

dedicated to improving the lives of people with

hearing loss• Too many people are being personally isolated through hearing loss,

by their own inaction, the people around them them and by society

• We live in a hearing world where people with hearing loss are

disadvantaged and discriminated against

• People aren’t accessing and getting access to the information,

solutions and services that would improve their lives

• This appalling problem will get worse unless we act now

How are we solving these problems?

We support people with hearing loss and make

hearing matter• We are the authority on hearing loss

• We are the largest provider of information, advice, services,

support and products

• We challenge attitudes to hearing loss at a general, personal,

social and governmental level

• We directly fund medical research and increase the demand and

the capacity in this area

• We work in partnership with other organisations to make hearing

matter and improve the lives of people with hearing loss

How do we want people to respond?

We want people to realise the value of their

hearing and that they can stop hearing loss

ruining their and other’s lives• Hearing connects people to the world and hearing loss

isolates them

• It’s a tragedy that this huge and solvable problems is being

ignored

• We want people to protect their hearing and seek help on

hearing loss

• We want people to actively support RNID in curing

deafness, removing the effects of hearing loss and making

hearing matter

Subject: Who and what is RNID

What is going on in the world that makes what we do important?

Hearing loss is needlessly ruining people’s lives• By not valuing their hearing, people of all ages are needlessly ruining

their lives

• Many people are suffering because they are too embarrassed to seek

help or unaware of what help is available

• People are being denied basic solutions to hearing loss

• People with hearing loss are treated as 2nd class citizens

• This is hidden crisis across the UK: 9m DHOH, 4m are losing hearing

and not taking action, 2m who have taken action are not getting what

they need

• Hearing loss is not a public health funding priority and there are no

Government health messages

• The problem is getting worse with an aging population, many of

whom will lose their hearing as they get older

RNID stops hearing loss from ruining people’s lives

Expressing the brand

Aligning your communications

DREAM

Drop

Retain

Evolve

Add

Manage

Rethink: Voice of severe mental illness

Rethink: Voice of severe mental illness

Thank you