My fire.

I was in my 20’s when my life changed in an instant. That’s how it happens, right? In an instant.

This week marks an anniversary of a horrific fire—when a neighbor died and I came close. I was asleep in my century-old Manhattan apartment and awoke at 3:00 a.m. choking on smoke.

I got my deep-sleeping roommate out the fire escape but stupidly ran back to my room to throw on clothes. Then I was trapped.

Consumed by smoke I leaned out the window and yelled to the FDNY below, “Is the fire in my apartment?” They didn’t know, but wanted me out—NOW. From below came my instructions: climb out on the 6" sill, turn around (rear to the sky), grab hold of the brick facade and dangle my feet off the ledge.

A ladder came up to meet my feet. Small aside here: NYC fire ladders only go as high as seven floors and I was on the seventh—the tippy top of the first rung. I gingerly climbed down as glass was breaking from the heat in my face and flames were lapping inches away.

I hyperventilated my way to the bottom and then spent a year rebuilding everything I had. But life goes on and I moved on. Met my love, changed careers, grew up. 

Life lesson: Fear is real but can be overcome, or at least processed. Something to keep in mind as we worry about what comes next...

Addendum:
Here’s what I couldn’t fit into that 1,300-character limit story above: the fire was arson; I lost nearly everything I owned; what didn’t get ruined by fire, smoke or water was stolen by opportunists; I exited that window over Lexington Avenue and 85th street with no clothes on and a bathrobe in my hand that I didn’t have time to put on during my quick exit; it was bitterly cold that night; my neighbor who couldn’t get out and died was a professional stunt man; besides smoke inhalation, my only real injury came when I stepped off the bottom rung of the ladder and fell off the top of the fire engine; I was one of the few in the building who actually had renter’s insurance; and dozens and dozens of strangers and friends came to help me in a million little ways in the hours/days/weeks/months after the fire and I’ve never forgotten their generosity. I’ve spent the past several decades trying to be as generous to others as they were to me. And when all was said and done, many months later, I moved back into that same apartment because I loved it despite its many flaws. That seems to be a running theme in my life. There’s more, but I’m saving it for my book…

Higher Ed is a different beast.

I remember when I got offered the job of MarComm VP at @The New School, a progressive and artsy university (home of @Parsons School of Design) in the heart of Greenwich Village.

I was working at the @New York Public Library and the President there, once a college president himself, cautioned me about transitioning to #highereducation. “Universities are different beasts when it comes to authority. Faculty and students have a surprising amount of leverage.”

New School president Bob Kerrey (former governor, senator and US presidential candidate) confronted several crises in his tenure. Bob was a charismatic, smart and intuitive leader, but he was not from the world of academia. And in short order faced faculty and students who did not warm to his approach to college leadership.

I was only there a few weeks when Bob decided the best way to deal with campus tumult was to meet it head on—in an open town hall. Alone on stage he invited direct questions. Yipes. It was eye opening to say the least. But his disarming honesty quelled the anger and business returned to usual. At least for a few years…

Life lesson: What works EVERY time is transparency and authenticity.

Polling, Punditry and Prognostication

I don’t know about you, but I have more than a little bit of frustration with those on-air personalities – those analysts and pollsters and pundits – who make predictions and give us assurances about numbers and outcomes before the count is in. Yes, I’m talking about the seemingly interminable election results that only now just resolved. But this frustration could just as easily apply to the industries I’ve worked in (and probably yours too.)

Here’s an example. For over a dozen years, I worked in Higher Ed as a chief communications and marketing officer. My teams worked side-by-side with those in Enrollment, Admissions, and Financial Aid, which is by and large, a numbers game. Market research analysts are often hired to help us zero in on where we should be looking for that perfect elusive student to fill our rosters. They traffic in knowing the demographics, data-driven solutions, and predictive modeling in a way the rest of us marketing folk don’t. But we need that big data to inform everything we create and promote. It’s a synergistic relationship.

The universities I worked at in my career both had high populations of international students. Market researchers were brought in to analyze and model admission and financial aid data in an effort to recommend ways of optimizing each university’s allocation of need- and merit-based aid. They measured the ups and downs of enrollment in specific disciplines on multiple campus locations and coupled that with the complexity of what was going on in the greater economy. They looked at the demographics of college-age students in the area. They polled our constituents—current and potential students and their parents. And they used social media to gather minute data on user behavior and understood that these bits of data, when modeled, can shape future behavior.

Based on these models, suggestions for actions to take were made. New messaging and marketing were created by folks on my team. Predictions of success followed. Everyone felt good about where we were to go. 

And then, at each place I worked, the world turned upside down. 

When I was at The New School, the economy went into free fall. The Great Recession of 2008-09 lasted for a good eighteen months. Families started wondering about the ROI on higher education and whether it was worth it at all.

When I was at the New York Institute of Technology, new U.S. anti-immigration policies limited visas on international students. So, college-bound students from China, India and numerous Middle Eastern countries chose not to go (or were forbidden to go) where they were no longer welcome. 

In both cases, those smart predictive models broke down. Student recruitment efforts had to adapt—as they had to at most colleges and universities. And with each setback, universities fought back and rallied. New predictions and plans followed.

Then Covid hit. 

Schools with high campus residential populations and mostly on campus learning are now straining. Another model shattered.

Enrollment managers are expected to use existing data in the development of their predictive models, but the randomness of unanticipated drivers—such as global political upheaval, population migrations, biological phenomena (like the coronavirus) and environmental events (like an earthquake)—can never be knowingly added to the analytic mix up front.  For those institutions that are tuition-dependent and/or operate on the edge of fiscal viability, the consequences could be significant. 

So I’m not a huge fan of predictions. As stated above, any number of things can throw them off. Does it mean you shouldn’t do them? No. You need to get to know where and to whom to direct your focus in your marketing. It just means that there are always surprises around the corner and you may have to pivot at any moment. 

With that said, here’s my prediction about the future of higher ed. And it’s no surprise to anyone.

Everything about it is going to change. The way they teach. The way they operate. The way students interact. Those colleges and universities that can be most agile, and innovate, collaborate, and be open to utilizing outside agency to alleviate some of the technical strains their campuses may now endure will be the ones that thrive.

If I may quote my wise former colleague from NYIT, Ron Maggiore, “Darwinism has come to the higher education realm.”

You’re not too small for a press crisis.

It’s not uncommon for smallish institutions to have just one or two people handling all of their #PR needs and not uncommon for these people to be somewhat junior.

Many years ago, I was a newbie PR Director at @The New-York Historical Society, a wonderful museum of early 19th c. art and history, where our usual concerns were getting press on things like Tiffany lamps or the Constitution. Then, unexpectedly (to me at least), crisis struck. 

I was so not prepared for the intense media attention, especially in the NY Times, as we battled headlines of Raiding Endowment! Damaged Art! and Budget Crisis! These were pre-digital days, so clips were kept in a large black portfolio inside a flat box I labeled “Not a Pizza.” You had to have a sense of humor.

One night I got a call from CBS News anchor Dan Rather. I froze. Then felt compelled to talk to him. I acquitted myself well enough and did no further damage, but it could have gone another way.

In time, the N-YHS turned itself around and is now one of NYC’s greatest cultural gems.

Life lesson: Take big league problems in stride even if you’re batting for the minors. Importantly, prepare!

Want to know more about #crisiscommunications? Message me for a free 30-minute consultation.

Trustees are people too.

The New York Public Library, one of the world’s greatest organizations, has always had one of the world’s greatest Board of Trustees. They represent all that is good about that institution. 

When I worked there as VP for Communications, I sat in on Board meetings and got to listen in on wonderful discussions about access and censorship, literature and art, infrastructure and #funding.

The #trustees I knew were involved, innovative and incredibly generous philanthropists. Some were celebrities– famous authors, theater producers, fashion designers and more. Every one of them had more ideas than could possibly be implemented, so naturally when one came to you with a suggestion, you took it seriously.

I remember at one meeting—which was particularly chilly with the a/c blowing hard—a trustee who had just donated many millions of dollars and could have made a noisy fuss about the freezing temperature, instead, quietly picked up an NYPL plastic book bag and tied it around her neck elegantly like a scarf. Once observed, the staff quickly took action.

Life lesson: Sometimes you get more mileage (and attention) out of not complaining but improvising.

Want to know more about interacting with high-level Boards? Message me for a free 30-minute consultation.

Career Coaching + Personal Branding

Career Coaching is just #branding and #marketing for individuals. If you’re looking to up your professional game, you need to take stock of how you showcase your skills, passions and aspirations. That means you need to assess and probably tweak your personal brand.

How can you set yourself apart from others?

Be authentic

Be consistent

Know your value

When I coach clients at Donner Creative Communication Strategies on their personal brand, I ask: what do you truly enjoy doing? what are you most proud of? and what do you wish you could do over again?

I suggest they create a “future profile” document to mirror their past profile (aka résumé). Go ahead and tell people where you want to go in your career. Trust me. Your LinkedIn page, personalized cover letters and own websites will all flow more freely. Ask your colleagues and clients for references and recommendations. It’s others who define your brand, anyway.

Let me also say...a lot of people do all of this homework and then sit on it. You have to be proactive for the magic to happen. Connect with people, request informational interviews, join groups and network anyway you can. Be more visible. Hello @LinkedIn!

These are tough, but not impossible times.

How are you advancing your #personal brand?

#careercoaching

Overarching Goals//Tangible Objectives

OVERARCHING GOALS and TANGIBLE OBJECTIVES. What’s the diff and why should we care? Time to drill down on my recent post about #strategicplanning.

It’s important not to conflate the two as you work on major projects requiring both high level and quantifiable outcomes. Whether you are in the corporate world or in #nonprofit (#highered, #museums, #performingarts, #philanthropy and #socialgood) the concept is the same.

Overarching Goals are big ideas at the 30,000-foot level, operate institution-wide and should inspire your stakeholders to work toward a common purpose. They do not usually identify a time frame or numbers. A well-articulated Overarching Goal should also address WHY it’s important to achieve.

Tangible Objectives are more on-the-ground practical desires and may be specific to a department. They are measurable and unambiguous. These Objectives should address the questions of WHAT and WHEN. (Tactics will reveal the HOW.) Achieving the Objectives help feed into the Goals.

Using a University as an example:

OVERARCHING GOALS

• Manage/build reputation and awareness so that more people are acquainted with and have an appreciation for the university and its offerings

• Create brand identity and affinity so that there is a quick and positive identification with our brand that begins and solidifies a long-term relationship with the university

• Inspire inquiries and applications so that the university can continue to grow enrollment

• Develop life-long associations with our students, alumni, and donors, so they always feel connected to the university, have a vested interest in its success, and give back

[Notice the “so that…” phrase in each of the bullets above. That’s the important “why” that helps engage your stakeholders in participating toward that goal.]

TANGIBLE OBJECTIVES

• By end of 2021, build responsive website that allows for social interaction

• Increase the number of transfer student applications by 20%

• Double the donations from new sources within 6 months of capital campaign launch

• Land feature story in mainstream media about new master’s degree that can be shared through social

• Reduce the draw on endowment by 1%

Having clarity on your both your shared purpose and desired quantifiable outcomes can bring consensus, galvanize your stakeholders and motivate your teams.

Facing a Reporter -- Especially in Times of Crisis

Do you fear talking to the press—especially when you or your company is in a crisis? Understandable.

Call in a communications professional and start your media training with these ten steps:

1. Research your interviewer and the media source. Are they likely to be friendly or adversarial? Learn about the audiences they serve.

2. Know your topic well. Be fluent, but not scripted. And don’t ever “wing it.”

3. Have a few “go to” key messages to get out. When you can, entice the reporter into asking you a question you want to answer.

4. Prepare answers for tough questions. Don’t be defensive. Don’t say “no comment.” Politely pivot.

5. Know the difference between “not for attribution/on background only” and “off the record.” If you don’t specify, assume everything is “on the record.”

6. Answer concisely to avoid being misquoted. Once you’ve said something, it’s hard (but not impossible) to take it back.

7. If you are doing broadcast or video, practice being on camera. Know where to look, how to sit, how to dress. Don’t speak over the interviewer. If it isn’t live, assume your 30 minutes will be boiled down to a 20-second soundbite.

8. Be authentic, cooperative and conversational.

9. Breathe.

10. Donner Creative Communication Strategies is here to help.

Let me add one other thing here. Or maybe three other things here:

Publicity is great if you can get it and you can control the arc of the story. Contrary to popular belief, not all reporters are out to get you. And not all stories are crisis stories – though it may feel like that these days. If you can bring something interesting and special to the table, you have the opportunity to enjoy some terrific earned media that tacitly endorses what you and your organization are doing. But know this: it has to be actually newsworthy to the universe, not just to you. That’s where a good pitch comes in. More on that in future posts.

If you really want to stress something, say it S-L-O-W-L-Y. While it’s critical to emphasize your messages, if you try to emphasize everything, you’ll emphasize nothing.

And one more thing. Use examples to bring your key message to life. Personalize the message. Analogies make your quotes more quotable. Painting a picture is all part of good storytelling and that will get you the press coverage you desire.

Changing Perception//Impacting Brand

Let’s get a few things straight. A brand is not a logo. It is not your slogan. It is not the way you describe your mission and vision. Those are tangible representations of your brand and important for a lot of reasons.

Your brand is defined by those who experience your product/service/program/project/performance. In other words – it’s not what you say about you it’s what others say.

I can’t believe I’m saying this as a marketing and PR person, but no amount of publicity, advertising, social media or fabulous design can change how people feel about your organization or product.

You first have to deliver on what is called a brand promise.

Here’s an example: If you’re a restaurant and served up the most fantastic bouillabaisse once to a customer and the waiter and ambience were equally delightful, she will come back to your restaurant again and again and expect it to be just as wonderful every time. If you continue to make good on your promise, she will reward you with loyalty and engagement and share her experience with her friends. This will hold true even if on occasion she got a funky mussel in the batch and the waiter took care of it immediately. Because she’s come to know and trust your brand—and you routinely deliver on that promise—she will continue to come back. Same holds if you’re a corporation, a university, or a theater company. In fact, this holds true for every enterprise.

The logo design, the publicity and the advertising are simply representations and extensions of your brand that remind the universe you deserve attention. Hopefully, the mere sight of your logo makes potential customers long for your seafood -- or your equivalent! :)

So what exactly is a “brand promise”? Imagine it as a handshake you make with your employees and your customers about every interaction they will have with your brand. Internally, it is your organization’s manifesto and rallying cry. Externally, it sums up your value proposition.

They can vary widely in tone and structure depending on your industry and need, but a few things are constant:

• a “brand promise” is simple and clear. It’s a cross between your weighty mission statement and your lightweight tagline. Short, sweet and not vague. Think of Geico’s “15 minutes could save you 15%.”

• a “brand promise” is believable. Hype can be inauthentic. If you are not genuine, your brand will have no value. Think of FedEx’s “Your package will get there overnight. Guaranteed.”

• a “brand promise” is distinct and often memorable. What can you say about your product or service that is uniquely yours? Think of Apple’s “Think different.”

There’s nothing worse in marketing than having the hype not live up to the customer’s experience. Remember, it’s their perception of their experience that will define your brand.

So the first order of business is ensuring that your employees on the front lines—the ones who interact with the customers directly—have the greatest responsibilities to securing your reputation. Then build out your brand by sharing their authentic stories.

The bottom line is this: the last place people want to go for trusted information about an organization, product or service—is the company’s own brochure (print or digital). Sure, you can (and you must) lay out the facts and put your spin on things, but what they really want to hear is what others who’ve used or experienced what you’re selling have to say. Customers trust peer-to-peer more than they do authority.

This is where enabling active engagement with your customers comes in. Give them room to tell their stories (and be prepared immediately to respond should a story start spinning negatively). That changes perception and that perception becomes your brand.

Happy to chat with you further about this. Find me at nancy@nancydonner.com.

What Your Target Audiences Want, What They Really, Really Want

Harvard professor Theodore Levitt once famously said, “People don’t want to buy a quarter-inch drill. They want a quarter-inch hole.”

The people you are trying to attract – to buy your product, come to your shows, enroll in your schools – have reasons for gravitating to (or away from) you. And their motivation is likely governed by emotion.

Marketing genius Seth Godin takes Levitt’s theory a step further:

“No one wants a hole.

“What people want is the shelf that will go on the wall once they drill the hole.

“Actually, what they want is how they’ll feel once they see how uncluttered everything is, when they put their stuff on the shelf that went on the wall, now that there’s a quarter-inch hole.”

As a marketer, you’re not selling a drill-bit, you are selling respect and the feeling of accomplishment.

Whether it’s product or service or performance you’re offering, dig deeper and find the underlying desires your customer seeks to unlock the secret to the stories you need to tell in your #marketing.

As Godin says, “Many marketers try to sell on facts and features. Humans buy on emotion and beliefs.”

Let your #storytelling take your audience on a journey that motivates them to engage with you.

Donner Creative Communication Strategies can help.

What Are We Gonna Do Now? RETHINKING THE NONPROFIT STRATEGIC REVIEW PROCESS

It’s time to confront the new reality. And that can be scary. The strategic planning process at any nonprofit organization is typically uncomfortable—if you’re doing it right. Because doing it right means focusing more on the “strategy” part and less on the “planning” part.

How often does your institution call up a problem it’s trying to solve (like more enrollment! or greater donations!) and then just goes about itemizing tactics for solution? As the Harvard Business Review puts it: “don’t mistake planning for strategy.” It’s got to be more than that.

Organizations can be their own worst enemies when doing this process on their own if they are not careful. They can get caught up in what’s not working before they do the big picture homework about their purpose and structure. Because so many institutions have had to temporarily close down and/or curtail operations due to the pandemic, many might have to go back to square one. And that may take a bit of reinvention.

The outline of a typical Strategic Plan looks something like this:

1. Set new goals—both the lofty aspirational ones and the tangible ones

2. Analyze existing data

3. Formulate a strategy that contains quantifiable objectives, a list of initiatives and operational tactics

4. Implement that strategy, converting initiatives into financials

5. Measure and evaluate results

While that 5-step process is still necessary, institutions have to dig deeper. Make sure you are including the following in your strategic review:

• Involve your stakeholders in this process. This is not an “administrators only” exercise. If you’re a university—that means bringing in students, faculty and alumni in the early evaluation stage. And not just with a token nod. Real involvement. For the arts organizations, you might involve members. For social service agencies, you could bring in volunteers or donors to hear what inspires them. Too often the process can be insular.

• Review/amend/replace your Vision and Mission. Whatever is necessary. Institutions have to ask themselves anew: Why do we exist? What purpose are we here to serve? What have you learned about your your capabilities, your audience/customers, about your competition, and importantly, now, about the evolution of your industry? This is not only a moment of reflection, but of reimagining and reinvention.

• Focus on the “Opportunity” in your SWOT analysis. We know that “Threat” might be top-of-mind during this pandemic but it has also opened up opportunities to look at your institutions with fresh eyes. For instance – this pause in operations could give time for your students, staff, etc. to develop new skills. This is also a good time to break old habits and try new ways of doing things. This reflection exercise might give institutions an opportunity to “right-size” its operations.

• Find ways to give all stakeholders a sense of belonging, despite almost everything and everyone being remote.

• Be nimble. The universe is in flux. Find ways to pivot if part-way through your multi-year plan you find it's not working. Keep the strategic thinking, adapt the operational plan.

I’ve been pleased to see so many of the universities and nonprofits I have worked with over the years doing these things now. They are asking the hard questions. And ripping off some band aids on long dormant wounds.

The bottom line is this: it’s easier to just dive in and start doing things you’ve done before to make your numbers. Yes, you have to stay afloat. The harder thing to do is spend time asking questions about relevance, purpose and structure.

Has your institution gone through a strategic planning process recently – or will be soon? What interesting paths are you taking in your self-examination?

Donner Creative Communication Strategies can help you work through this process.

How Do You Communicate in a Crisis?

Keep calm. Don’t blather. Be authentic. And importantly - be transparent.

I am stymied by those who think obfuscation or pretending everything is just fine is the way to go when talking to one’s stakeholders during a crisis. That is (usually*) a terrible idea. It is certainly no way to build trust among your audiences.

I’m not saying you should scare people by oversharing. But offering the facts in a steady, calm, authoritative manner will ensure your audience actually hears what’s important without running into the night.

I’ve been watching many of those “welcome” videos made by company CEOs, university presidents, and institutional leaders that are so common this time of year. [Seems that it doesn’t matter how old you are, we’re all on the “back to school” calendar in every industry in September…]

So many just don’t mention the elephant in the room. Whatever the elephant du jour may be. Among our very real issues right now is the coronavirus and how we all get back to “normal” in the office or in a class. As we are all now painfully aware – so many fear any kind of interaction and others have no concerns at all. So transparency about Covid 19 andyou’re your institution/company will handle it should not be relegated to a special section on your website about what to do to get tested or how to protect yourself and others. They need to hear empathy and candor from the leaders directly.

By the way, this is not just about the virus. Transparency—or at least basic clarity—about all issues is essential. It could be sexual harassment; racial, gender, ethnic insensitivities; politics or sustainability; finances and power; free speech and responsibility; and so very many more issues. This is the stuff that can consume college campuses and other organizations. But it doesn’t have to—in a negative way. It can open up dialogue and invite engagement. 

Long in advance of a problem coming to a head it is wise to gather your lieutenants and look at all the potential issues that could hit you. Prepare your thoughts and anticipate the questions. Be genuine and tell it to them straight. Say just what you need to and not more. Your honesty will be rewarded with a loyalty to you and your brand.

And when in doubt, call in a crisis communications professional and/or someone to teach your spokespeople media training. That’s what we’re here for. Donner Creative Communication Strategies.

* I said “usually” just to cover all bases. Actually, can’t think of when it is ever appropriate to obfuscate, can you?

Yes, Even Theater Majors Can Carve Out Careers...Doing Something Else

This is my personal story. Many moons ago I went to Brown University and got a great, solid liberal arts education. In fact I studied theater, which almost killed my parents because I got in for my science and math abilities.

After graduation I bounced around a bit looking for the right job to suit me and my seemingly undefined career skills. My mother said I should have gone to a trade school like my brother. He went to MIT.

 I get my mother’s point. He went to a university that suited his type of intelligence and persona—the kind that has a definite career at the end. I did not choose that direct path. My heart said “theater” (or probably "theatuh!"). And then learn other things just for the hell of it. And I learned a lot of other things along the way.

So I worked as an actress in NYC for a number of years and got my union cards and everything. But smart girl that I am, knew early enough on that I was never going to be successful in that über competitive field. I shifted gears while still in my 20’s and surprisingly found usefulness from skills I learned in theater to what I do now—marketing, communications, and branding at Donner Creative Communication Strategies.

I’m talking mostly soft skills here. Emotional intelligence. Ability to work in teams. Knowing that your work is better if the person you’re playing opposite is top of their game too. Sometimes being the star, sometimes the supporting player. Not fearing speaking in front of crowds or even raising your hand in a small meeting. Knowing when it’s your moment to step into the spotlight. Knowing when it’s your turn just to pick up the props.

Different types of college experiences for different types of students. Don’t rule out the liberal arts experience because you can’t figure out what to do with a degree in Renaissance history or performance art.

There are careers out there for people who think outside the box and have learned around the periphery of the subject itself. In fact, these are some of the people who invent those careers.

Trade schools are good too…

What did you learn in your liberal arts education? How does it serve you now?

Uncertain Times

If there’s one thing I’m certain of, these are uncertain times.

It’s a phrase we hear in ad after ad…”uncertain times.” Today, as I post this—the morning of  9/11—I have to ask… when were the “certain times”?

I’m ready to put that phrase to bed. Certainty is a luxury only mathematicians can afford. The rest of us can only make educated guesses as to what’s going to happen next.  Which is why in these “times” the quality we should admire most from our employees, our neighbors and our leaders is adaptability.

I’m certain of that.

Donner Creative Communication Strategies is here to help you pivot.

Thank you again, Gary Martin, MARTOONS for illustrating what’s in my head.

Why Do You Think You're "The Best Kept Secret in [fill in the blank]"?

I'll tell you why. You're not doing enough to tell and promote your unique story,

And contrary to popular beliefs, not all marketing costs big bucks.

I’ve met with a few not-for-profits recently who seem to fear the word “marketing.” Some think the idea of it is déclassé. Some don’t get how to do it. And almost all think it’s too expensive for them to do.  None of that needs to be true.

One new client has prioritized marketing last on the things they should spend money on. And I get it. They are a social service agency and that is not the first place where they should put their limited funds.

That said, they wonder why nobody knows who they are and what they stand for. They say “We are the best kept secret in [fill in the blank].  They say they need to raise funds from a wider pool of people than they typically have. They need to grow their audience. They need influencers and policy leaders to keep them top of mind.

What they need is good marketing.

But they have to stop thinking of it as just traditional advertising that costs bucket loads of dollars. There’s so much more that can be done. And much of it costs no more than a little human effort to stimulate action. Your organization doesn’t have to be a “secret.”

My infographic illustrates the realm of marketing possibilities using paid, earned, shared and owned media channels.  I know my examples are just the tip of the iceberg.

Anyone care to amplify?

Brand DIFFERENTIATION or Brand DISTINCTION?

I worry about the fate of some small liberal arts colleges who haven’t quite mastered the art of brand distinction. It’s especially tough competition for those higher ed schools not focused on promising careers at the end of that expensive rainbow.

As many marketers know, differentiation is important and useful when you actually can be markedly, you know…different. But what if there’s a certain sameness to a liberal arts college experience that students are actually seeking? What if what they want is that personal faculty attention, seminar type classes, curricula that emphasizes how to think critically, and a pretty green campus?

So they don’t necessarily want different.  But they do want special. And so do the educators and the parents and the influencers and the alumni who might one day turn into donors.

Brand distinction helps all these people easily identify, recall and buy into what your college is offering.

All of your target demographics want to be able to say “my school offers all these things you expect and does it well, but what I really love is that they …”  What?

-        have required hands-on internships every year?

-        have a school choir that invites community into their mix?

-        admit an unusually high percentage of international students?

-        what else could it be at your school?

All that is good to know. But the part that will engage your audiences and make your offerings distinctive will be what you haven’t yet said:  WHY IT MATTERS.

Better to promote your school’s special attributes something like this:

-        has required hands on internships every year that help that the student studying drama realize there are careers beyond acting out there

-        improves town/gown relationship with a school choir that invites community into their mix

-        admits an unusually high percentage of international students who add infinite value to the global cultural experience local students might not otherwise get in these times of limited travel

Importantly, how does that distinction affect your various target audiences?

The trick for the Marketing team in working with the Enrollment office is to find the unique attributes that make your particular liberal arts college pop in the minds of potential students and make current students proud to stay. That’s what will make your school resonate with impact and help with recruitment and retention.

By the way – this concept works for all kinds of schools, and in fact, all organizations and corporations.

Getting your share of available audience was hard enough pre-pandemic. It’s harder now. Showcase your distinction. Donner Creative Communications Strategies can help.

Thanks again to Gary Martin, MARTOONS for his illustration and for making me look thin in his cartoon.

Integrated Marketing 101

Most organizations jump right to the middle of the marketing process. At Donner Creative Communication StrategiesI remind my clients that it's important to get messaging and goals right first. Tactics come later. And always keep an eye on the outcomes.

Social distancing? Phooey!

Hold on. Before you all lop my head off for that headline let me assure you that I endorse—in fact avidly encourage—wearing a mask and taking a few steps back for however long this pandemic lasts.

But here’s the thing: That’s not social distancing; it’s physical distancing.  The last thing anyone needs these days is to feel socially isolated and distant. We need to feel closer and more connected than ever before. My argument is with the phrase, not the practice. Words matter.

So, more social interaction please. More open communication please. More positive reinforcement please.

Just back up a few feet…

Am I wrong?

P.S. Lucky me to have illustrator, cartoonist and animator extraordinaire nearby to make my post more visual. I encourage you to check out his site, www.MARTOONS..com

Taking a Walk on the Social Media Side...

Like the proverbial cobbler with no shoes of her own, I’ve led organizations’ marketing and communications away from staid old habits and into the new throughout my professional career … yet I’ve resisted doing the same for myself. Especially when it came to social media.

I did not fully appreciate how lucky I was when one job or project would happily lead to the next via word of mouth over coffee, cocktails or the always helpful in person informational interviews.  Back in the Before Times.

We cannot be out and about networking like we used to, so it’s high time I step up my game. Hence, the launch of a LinkedIn presence for my consulting practice, Donner Creative Communication Strategies, which I hope will become a regular stop in your digital day for the same kind of connections, discussions, problem-solving, and community we used to enjoy face to face.  

This cobbler’s lacing up a new pair of shoes for walk on the social media side. Whaddya say? Come take a stroll with me.