National Women’s Law Center Progressive Leadership and Advocacy Network October 12, 2011

Crafting Your Message & Getting It Heard

Stephanie Drahan Outreach Associate National Women’s Law Center

Crafting Your Message & Getting It Heard

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Effective Messages Creating a Message Delivering a Message Questions & Answers

EFFECTIVE MESSAGES

Lay the Groundwork

 Create Goals  Target Audiences  Research  Develop a Message  Produce Background Materials  Timing

What is an Effective Message?

 Effective messages are short, simple and clear.

 Effective messages are easily understood.

 Effective messages are compelling.

 Effective messages are consistent.

Message – The Basic Rules

 Messages should support your main goals.

 Messages take time to create. You shouldn’t rush the process.

 Messages should not change frequently. To have impact, they must be repeated over and over again. Stay on point.

Message – The Basic Rules (cont’d)

 Less is more. Don’t have more than 3 or 4 messages. More is too confusing and won’t get heard.

 Keep it short. Messages should be conveyed in a sentence or two. If it takes a paragraph, keep working.

 Make it understandable. Use plain language and avoid specialized vocabulary or acronyms.

 Make it memorable. Use soundbites, statistics and anecdotes.

CREATING A MESSAGE

Key Questions to Help Develop Your Message

 What do people need to know, believe or care about to support and engage with your organization or issue?

 What obstacles or misconceptions do you need to overcome to get people engaged?

 What needs to happen, or what do people need to do, to meet your organization’s goals or have an impact on your issue?

Creating a Message Box

    A Message Box helps you hone in on the key points of your campaign Messages don’t always need to be delivered in a vertical order – your presentation depends on your audience Write in the main points Fill in with anecdotes, statistics, and soundbites that reinforce this message.

Example Message Box

• • Affordability Prevention • Non-partisan panel of experts using their medical and scientific knowledge determined contraception to be preventive health care for women • Multi-use: health benefits, prevent unintended pregnancies, plan timing and spacing of families Uncertain economic times 99% of women use birth control at some point in their lives, regardless of religious beliefs

Contraceptive Coverage

• • Affordable Care Act The ACA made preventive care available at no additional cost to the consumer Tangible benefit of how the law works to advance women’s health • NWLC Signature Issue The National Women’s Law Center has been working for many years to get contraception covered in all health insurance plans

DELIVERING A MESSAGE

Delivering the Message

 Remember the audience.

 What questions will likely be asked?

 Have your key message points ready.

 Know your opponents’ viewpoints and have counterpoints ready.

 Don’t make things up and never lie.

Delivering the Message (cont’d)

     Don’t use jargon or acronyms.

Follow up with additional information.

Use “off-message” questions to bridge to your point.

 The best way to answer that is to look at the broader issue…  What’s really at issue here… Don’t repeat negative questions or accept the frame. Be succinct and persuasive.

Nuts & Bolts

         Be a reliable, helpful source of information.

Return calls promptly.

Only use facts you can back up.

Be able to translate language into every day terms.

 Help with background information.

Know your audience.

Localize.

Make a clear ask.

Say thank you.

Follow up.

 STAY ON MESSAGE!

QUESTIONS