Nonprofit Guide to Writing

In the workplace, basic communication is often through writing, including email, memos, and social media.  Jobs that once would not have required a great deal of writing or computers now rely on both. For those in the nonprofit sector, writing has gotten more complicated with emergence of social media, email, digital news alongside traditional print. Professionals may be writing for several different platforms on any given day. A communication director is likely to be in charge of internal communications delivered by email, annual reports reproduced in hard copy, social media posts on multiple social networks and advertising material for both print and digital. Knowing how to write for each platform is critical.

Nonprofit professionals benefit from understanding how to write specifically for:

1. Email – dos and don’ts of email etiquette
2. Social media – multiple platforms
3. External audience - including grant funders, the public, community partners  
4. Internal audience - employees, board of directors, supervisors

Understanding how to tailor messages to fit the audience can save nonprofit professionals from miscommunication and help strengthen their own reputation along with that of their organization. They will know how to adjust one message to fit multiple audiences and multiple platforms. They will also know who to tailor content to literacy levels, length, and format (Walker, 2015). 

image source: http://gif-finder.com/george-clooney-too-long-didnt-read/

Lastly, in a world contingent on external funding and charity giving, nonprofit professionals should understand how to effectively tell their story through media.  Author Janet Kolodzy explains the eight elements of new story, which include:

·        Focus

·        Newsworthiness

·        Facts

·        Sources

·        Clarity

·        Answers

·        Audience

·        Ethics

(Kolodzy, 2013)

These eight elements are excellent guidelines for nonprofit writers.  For example, let’s say a grant director is writing up a quarterly report to their funder about a breast cancer prevention grant.  A well written report could touch upon most of these elements, including project mission (focus) program highlights (newsworthiness), number of women screened (facts), address any problems with proposed solutions (answers and clarity). 

image source: http://www.quickmeme.com/meme/3sm4u9

Working in the nonprofit world requires professionals to be flexible and nimble with their writing skills. It’s important they always consider where, how and who they are writing for.

References

Kolodzy, J. (2013). Practicing convergence journalism: an introduction to cross-media storytelling. New York : Routledge.

Walker, R. (2015). Strategic management communication for leaders. Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning.