Workshops

Workshop and training session focus on helping nonprofit organizations communicate what they do in a way that is memorable and actionable.

The results: improved donor retention, motivated volunteers and a higher level of community engagement.

Each workshop’s length and content can be customized to meet your specific requirements, whether for an association event or an individual organization.

To discuss your upcoming event or training session, contact me at 860.647.1080
And, as always, if you don’t find what you’re looking for, let’s see what we can work out.

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Unlocking the Power of Visual Storytelling

Stories compel us to learn, remember and act — all of the things needed to build support for your organization. This workshop is all about telling better stories. Stories that lead prospective donors, volunteers and advocates to act.

We’ll begin by reviewing the narrative elements that make for inspirational stories and then look at cost-effective ways to enhance those stories using documentary photography and multimedia technologies. Along the way, we’ll view and discuss several real-life examples.
Here’s what you’ll learn…

• Why our brains love stories
• How emotions affect decision making
• The seven elements of effective nonprofit stories
• The three types of stories you’ll need to attract and retain supporters
• Why photography is the best choice for the visual element
• How to incorporate images into each of your media channels
• How to discover and attract compelling stories
• How to make your own affordable videos

This workshop is particularly valuable for small and mid-sized organizations that have limited communication and marketing resources.

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Visual Storytelling for Planned Giving

Similar in scope to Unlocking the Power of Visual Storytelling, this workshop focuses specifically on telling stories that inspire longtime supporters to make a stronger commitment through planned giving.

We’ll begin by discussing how stories help recall memories and experiences. Then we’ll cover how to create the right mix of stories and financial information. And we’ll address why personal rather than journalistic-style stories are more effective at motivating prospective donors.

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The Donor-Centered E-Newsletter

An Email Newsletter is a cost-effective way to communicate with donors, volunteers, boards members and community advocates.

But to be successful, each newsletter must compete for the reader’s attention with dozens or hundreds of unread emails sitting in the inbox.
The objective of this course is to demonstrate how to plan and write an E-Newsletter that readers look forward to receiving.
We’ll cover all phases of starting an E-Newsletter, including…

• Goal-setting, planning and design
• The writing process
• Selecting an email service provider
• Subscriber acquisition
• Measuring the newsletter’s success

We will review the techniques that help make a newsletter successful, such as reflecting the writer’s authentic personality, balancing informational versus promotional content, and using a conversational writing style. Examples will be used throughout the course to illustrate points made.

We’ll even start planning your eNewsletter using a workbook provided by the instructor.