Make People Like Your Organization
Before They Walk in the Door
- On April 08, 2016
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You want people to feel connected with your organization, to see it as a supportive friend or mentor and feel a sense of loyalty to it… even if they don’t yet have warm relationships with staff members. Writing is often your organization’s first introduction to prospective clients, donor, or grant funders. How can they feel connected with you before they have even met you?
The answer is simple to understand, but more difficult to achieve: humanize your organization by giving it its own personality when you write about it.
Think of your organization as a character in a book. If we know only one face of a character, such as that she’s a teacher and great with kids, that’s not enough to really connect with her. She’s one-dimensional. Add in that she loves puppets, is having trouble getting pregnant, and squeals when she’s delighted by something, and we start to experience multiple dimensions of who she is and picture a real person whom we like. The same is true of an organization, yet most only show one side in writing, and therefore appear impersonal, one-dimensional, and forgettable.
Here are some categories you can use to show a variety of dimensions of your organization, and give it a sense of personality that people can connect with. These examples are for a fictional organization that works with undocumented immigrants and is writing to a radical foundation, so it displays a bold personality to which this funder will relate. Note how, as you read more and more of the examples, you feel yourself getting to know the strong personality of this organization through its uncompromisingly humanistic voice.
| Category | Definition | Example |
| Knowledge | What you have learned from others, research you draw from and build upon | We know that undocumented immigrants are absolutely vital to the economy. |
| Beliefs | What you see as true about yourself, your clients or constituents, and your world | We believe that all US residents deserve healthcare, because all human beings do. |
| Experience | What has happened in your life, events you couldn’t control, your actions and reactions | We have experienced people not treating us as true Americans, even if we were born in the US. |
| Insights | What you learn from your experiences, life lessons, how you have changed | We have learned that when we “come out” with our stories, people respect our courage and value as human beings. |
| Dreams | What possibilities you want and seek for the future, and how you are working toward them | We are working toward an America that really is a “land of opportunity”, a place where anyone – of any color, creed, or class – can access the tools available to create a good life. |
| Personality | Your patterns of thought, action, and speech; the words, phrases, and images you habitually use | The Statue of Liberty says, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.” She has been turned into a liar. Let’s give her back her integrity. |
| Perspective | How the above influence your framework, your understanding of the issues, and your role | We represent the original “American values” because we all came here for freedom and opportunity. |
Greg
Since there’s no separate blog post about either of your recent fundraising milestones, I’ll congratulate you here! If the trend continues at the same rate of acceleration, you’re due for the 4th million in just a few weeks. 🙂
Erica
Thanks, Greg! I’ve announced the $2 million and $3 million raised and all other news from my business on Facebook, and have been using this page for articles only. It’s been really exciting to see my totals accelerate!