1. http://www.flickr.com/photos/ceardach/4549865709
Taming Your
Communications
Calendar
Six Months
at a Time
#TamingComms
@kivilm
@guidestarusa

2. Speakers
Kivi Leroux Miller, President
Nonprofit Marketing Guide.com
Lindsay J.K. Nichols,
Communications Director,
GuideStar USA, Inc. (moderator)
#TamingComms, @GuideStarUSA, @kivilm

3. Get the shorter
“My Communications Plan at a Glance” Handout
npmg.us/commplan

4. Nonprofits Have Always Had Many
Buckets to Fill with Content
Flickr: Tracy Hunter

5. flickr.com/photos/bramus
There were the good old
“print” days (circa 1995).

6. flickr.com/photos/bramus
Then came website updates
and email newsletters.

7. flickr.com/photos/bramus
And now there’s social media and mobile.
You have so many ways to deliver your
message, your head’s about to explode.

8. You Have Waaaay to Much to Do
Flickr: sashaW

9. And Never Enough Time to Do It!
Flickr: laffy4k

10. Think Like the Media Mogul You Are
flickr.com/photos/scobleizer/2265721472
Everyone is a publisher
and broadcaster, and
therefore a media mogul.
Your nonprofit included.

11. Here’s how to
get a grip.

12. Impose
Some
Limits
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ajaxofsalamis/6794460197

13. How Many Slots in Six Months?
Monthly E-Newsletter with Three Articles:
6 editions x 3 articles per edition = 18 Slots
Weekly One-Off Email Alerts:
26 weeks x 1 topic = 26 slots
Facebook Updates
1 per day x 5 days week x 26 weeks = 130 slots
18 + 26 + 130 = 174 Slots to Fill

14. First, You
Map Original Content
into 1/3 of Your Slots

15. Next, You
Repurpose that
Original Content
into another 1/3
of Your Slots

16. Then You
Merge What
Comes Up into
the Remaining 1/3

17. Create – and Live By –
These Three Documents
1. Big Picture
Communications
Timeline
2. Core Topics List
3. Editorial Calendar
http://www.flickr.com/photos/indi/4063079245

18. 1.
The Big Picture
Communications
Timeline

19. Big Picture Communications Timeline Core Topics Annual
Evergreen: Color:
Perennial:
Topics
Core
Story
Arcs
Main Calls
to Action
January February March April May June July August September October November December
Events or Milestones
Within Our Control
Events or Milestones
Out of Our Control

20. What things happen every year?
What’s the seasonal to-do list?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fog6y/3503028725/
MAP

21. http://www.flickr.com/photos/8106459@N07/4928806600/
There’s Kitten
Season . . .
And When
Congress is in
Session . . .
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nostri-imago/3033054143

22. What events, programs, or services
also need to be mapped (these are
largely within your control)?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28481088@N00/315671189
MAP

23. MAP
What are your primary calls to
action throughout the year?
flickr.com/photos/pss/1359407958

24. What story arcs can
they participate
MAP in with you?
flickr.com/photos/zaffi/4597977354
Are we
there yet?

25. Communications Arcs
• Think Must-See TV,
Except Now It’s Your
Content!
• Story Threads Over
Weeks or Months
• Think Beginning,
Middle, End
flickr.com/photos/wonderlane/5351266905

26. Today
Filing Deadline (Feb)
Primary Election (May)
DNC Convention in
CLT (early Sept)
The Story of a Political Change
Election Day (Nov)

27. The Story of Stopping Something Bad

28. The Story of Getting Ready for the Future
anewwarrior.greenpeace.org

30. 2.
Core Topics List

31. Adding in Content on Core Topics
• Evergreens stay fresh from season to season.
Much of basic website content will be evergreen
content.
• Perennials come back year after year, but do
require regular maintenance especially when they
are growing and in bloom. Much of your newsletter
and blog content will be perennials.
• Annual color is short lived, but full of that extra
oomph! Much of what you do in social media will
be annual color.

32. Core Topic Evergreen Perennial Annual Color

33. Core Topics List for Tabby Cat Rescuers
Core Topic Evergreen Perennial Annual Color
Where to adopt a tabby Directory - only updated as Share Facebook updates
needed from our key adoption
partners
How to help tabbies Top Ten Ways to Help Regular features in Stories about star
newsletter and blog volunteers, etc.
What tabbies are Weekly newsletter feature Featuring individual
available for adoption tabbies on Facebook and
right now Twitter
The history of tabbies Single web page – update Trivia questions on tabby
only as new research history
becomes available

34. Now What Do I Do
with All of This
Information?

35. 3.
Editorial Calendar

36. Several Ways to Organize Calendar
• By Channel
• By Audience
• By Program
• By Format
(e.g. Standing
Heads)
Flickr: ifindkarma

40. Got Spreadsheet Brain?

41. Got Spreadsheet Brain?

42. Got Calendar Brain?

43. What does your editorial calendar
look like now?

44. Pick a Realistic Time Frame
• Quarterly
• Monthly
• Weekly
Flickr: tanakawho

45. How far out do you plan?

46. Don’t Fill It All the
Way Up!
Start with 33% original content,
33% repurposed, and
merge in other 33% later.

47. That’s What You
Can Plan.
Then the World
Comes Along.
Make Room.

48. Make little bets; be fine with failure.
MERGE
flickr.com/photos/suzettesuzette/6211600207

49. flickr.com/photos/slgc/5401648705
Let social media conversation
keep other content fresh.
MERGE

50. Always make
room for
serendipity.
Be open to surprises.
flickr.com/photos/picken/2601726937
MERGE

51. flickr.com/photos/slgc/5401648705
MERGE
Prepare to
newsjack.

52. flickr.com/photos/slgc/5401648705
Know how
you’ll respond
to a crisis.
MERGE

53. flickr.com/photos/slgc/5401648705
Deal with other people’s
MERGE
high priorities.

54. Where You Actually Decide:
The Editorial Meeting
• Daily, Weekly, or
Every Other Week
• Program,
Communications, and
Fundraising Staff
• Nimble
Decisionmaking and
Prioritizing on the Fly

55. Any Sticky Situations?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/katerha/5588607682

56. Kivi Leroux Miller
@kivilm
Facebook.com/
nonprofitmarketingguide
kivi@ecoscribe.com

57. Connect with GuideStar
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/GuideStarUSA
Twitter: @GuideStarUSA
Tumblr: http://guidestarusa.tumblr.com
Google + http://plus.google.com/+GuideStar
GuideStar Blog: http://trust.guidestar.org/
SlideShare: http://www.slideshare.net/guidestar
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/guidestarusa
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/guidestar
Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/guidestarusa/
#TamingComms

58. QUESTIONS?