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Introduction to Charity Marketing - Inspiring Scotland

Introduction to Charity Marketing

Charity Marketing: Are we nothing without our stories?

Storytelling is an age old concept. A great story can stay with us for a life time. Having this human to human connection through our stories is a powerful foundation for charity marketing. If people are at the heart of everything we do, their stories must be at the forefront of our communications.

In our digital age, people are becoming more and more time poor. This means you need to succinctly communicate your purpose, what makes you unique and demonstrate how that’s relevant to what’s happening in the outside world. This holds true for all sectors, but perhaps especially so for charities.

Here are our essential tips to guide you to marketing success.

  1. Set your marketing objectives

With limited resources you need to ensure you are focused.

  1. Understand who you are trying to reach

If you know your audience, then you are less likely to waste resources spending too much time reaching the wrong people.

  1. Get the method and channel right

Social media, traditional media, email, conferences and events.  You need to work out what’s the right method or channel for reaching your audience.

  1. Plan ahead

Look head and plan for the key milestones that you will need to hit and that are relevant for your organisations.

  1. Have your case studies to hand

The format, style and length may vary but be prepared and have these ready to use.

Downloads

For further reading, here is a presentation of ‘Comms and Marketing Essentials’ which our Communications team deliver: Comms and Marketing Essentials.

Other resources

Charity Comms is an excellent resource for the voluntary sector, rich with downloadable templates and articles covering all charity communications subject matters.

Graeme Downie has a wealth of experience in Public Affairs, PR and Marketing across a range of sectors.  Graeme headed up communications for a for a UK-wide Non Departmental Public Body and is currently Director at Scottish Communications Agency, Orbit.  Graeme has offered pro bono support to charities through Inspiring Scotland’s Specialist Volunteer Network.

https://vimeo.com/379317376

 

21.04.2021

Stakeholder template

Identifying who your key stakeholders are is a key first step to developing your overall strategy and for ensuring your communications are targeted. This template is a prompt to help you brainstorm who your stakeholders are and further define your relationship with them. Add your stakeholders to the list and place them in the appropriate

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19.04.2021

Marketing plan template

Fill in our template marketing plan to get your organisation up to speed with marketing and communication. Prompts within will lead you through the various steps – identifying your goals and understanding your market, identifying audiences and the best channels to reach them, and developing messaging and action plans.

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10.03.2019

Glossary – Third Sector jargon-busting

Inspiring Scotland’s guide to Third Sector jargon for charity leaders.

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