Steno’s Post

Where’s the joy? This man right here is arguably the best basketball player in the world. Nikola Jokic has won league MVP multiple times and finals MVP last year. And he plays for my favorite NBA team, the Denver Nuggets. And I got to see him up close and personal during warm-ups last week and take this picture. But, he’s not my favorite player. And this is when we get to your marketing and communications. He’s not my favorite player because he doesn’t show much joy when he’s playing the game. So while he puts up the most points in each game and the best numbers in all the other stats categories as well, he usually looks just about how he looks in this picture. And, here’s the deal–if you can’t articulate the joy when talking about your mission or your services, people are not likely to gravitate towards it or you, even if you are the MVP. Maybe you are a nonprofit with a very serious mission. But don’t spoil the communications soup with too much salt (talking about the problem too much.) Instead, tell us about the joy of survivors or how people are thriving because of your work. Or if you are selling a service, people want to see themselves and their pain reflected a little bit when you start talking about your work. But they really just want to hear how you are going to solve the problem and how great they are going to feel afterward. So, being the MVP is great, but when it comes to marketing and communications, give me the joy. What’s the most joyful thing about the work you do? Fire & Bliss Creative helps values-driven businesses and organizations develop communications and marketing strategies that attract the right clients and donors so you can sleep well tonight and grow tomorrow. If you are interested in seeing if we’d be a good fit for helping solve your marketing or comms challenges, send me a message and we can set up a time to talk. #marketingstrategies #nonprofitcommunications #showmethejoy

Two ways I can help you over the summer break ... 1) a social media channel audit - telling you kindly and clearly how you could do more; ensure your marketing efforts continue to be fruitful not fruitless 2) a Super Sixty - an hour's focused time with me on your most pressing social media challenges; e.g. a LinkedIn profile/company page refresh; using LinkedIn's features more effectively - but not in a way that you feel chained to it! DM me Debbie, to find out more or get started. Once we've hit go, you can hit the beach.

Your audience is 20X more important than your creative in fundraising. Disagree with me? Let me tell you a story... No matter what we tried, we couldn't move the needle for a partner. We tested a dozen new (to them) ideas that were proven elsewhere. Nothing worked. Nothing moved the needle on performance. We refreshed control campaigns. Still didn't improve anything. I was scratching my head for months trying to figure this out. Then we stumbled onto the issue. Lapsed and minimally engaged names were being added. Even when they didn't meet the criteria we'd set for the campaigns. This happened nearly every time. Because there was a "mail to budgeted qty" mentality we didn't realize. And the result was predictable. Fast forward to today... We're back in market with a refined audience. 🌟 1st campaign easily beat goal. 🌟 2nd campaign also beat goal (at only 2 weeks mature). We didn't change anything but the audience selection. The "who" is WAY more important to your success than the "what". Thanks for coming to my TED Talk today...

Marketers, are you struggling to balance campaign performance with responsible media buys? Look no further than Givsly, a platform founded by CEO Chad Hickey. Through our partnership on Impact PMPs, marketers can give back to communities in need with no added cost to the brand. Learn more about how Givsly enables responsible giving in our latest interview. #marketing #responsibility #givingback #communityimpact

🚨 I’ve been away from your timelines for TOO LONG! 😱 To my accountability buddy Brooklyn Witteman —my sincerest apologies! A huge shoutout to Robespierre Dornagon for inspiring this post. I’m excited to do the same for my network! 🌐 Over the years, I’ve built a network of over 1,000 connections across the nonprofit sector, marketing, sales, and academia. I believe a post where my connections can share who they are and what they’re looking for will benefit us all. 📢 Here’s what you need to do: 1. Introduce yourself in the comments. 2. Mention what you do or who you’re trying to meet. 3. Share ONE goal you’re working towards. 👀 You can check back on this post to see who else has connected and say hello! Easy, right? I’ll kick things off: 👋 Hi everyone, I’m Stephen, an emerging professional in advertising with a rich background spanning five years in #nonprofit, #sales, and #marketing. I’m eager to connect with fellow advertisers, especially those on #programmatic and #strategy teams. My current goal? To immerse myself fully in the world of advertising and programmatic. 🤝 Happy Connecting, y’all! 🎉

Aneesh Gowri, AVP and SMS director, thinks that everybody should be texting a little bit more – and we agree! As we continue to celebrate the launch of MissionSMS, our SMS growth tool powered by The Digital Co-Op to help organizations connect with the best mobile audience for their mission, we’re taking a look back at some of our favorite conversations about SMS. Whether you’re considering launching an SMS program, or you’re already a pro at texting to fundraise, here are some key insights into making the most of your mobile program: https://hubs.li/Q02z0rS50

What is the best, most memorable event you've attended? Maybe it was an elaborate murder mystery fundraiser, an awesome retirement celebration that truly reflected the retiree, or an elegant black tie awards ceremony. All of these events likely had one thing in common: they used theming and branding to create a one-of-a-kind event. Now, we're not just talking about picking an "Under the Sea" theme and calling it a day. We're talking about engaging your audience from the beginning, creating a memorable experience, and fostering lasting impressions. Dive into our blog to see how you can utilize theming and branding to exceed expectations and leave your attendees ready for the next event 💃💃

Thank you OpenX for featuring Givsly's Founder and CEO, Chad Hickey, in your Spotlight Series. Check out this latest interview to read more on teaming up with OpenX, why he founded Givsly, and the importance of brand values. Read here: https://lnkd.in/etAtxdt7

Sounds about right! And the timing of this is so fitting too because this concept/character is something I've had a bit of a hard time with in the last couple of years or so. Working for a fairly small NGO means everyone is a bit of a 'jack-of-all-trades'; we all do a bit of everything because resources and capacity are quite limited. When I say we all do a bit of everything I mean it. For example, our 'social media team' is mostly me and a bit of my colleague's time (something that always makes the both of us giggle when 'outsiders' ask us about our social media team), and my role also covers other comms bits and lots of fundraising bits. This probably rings true for others who work at small or even medium size NGO's. The fact that I think I know a bit of everything but don't have an in-depth knowledge about a certain topic has niggled away at me though, whether that is in comms or fundraising. And having this pointed out when being unsuccessful at job applications has really cemented this belief. Even though rationally I know it's a perfectly valid reason; if there are other candidates out there that are more experienced and more suited it's a no brainer. But it does however make me feel like a bit of an impostor sometimes. My role was never solely focused on comms but it does have lots of comms elements. And out of the two, comms or fundraising, I am a bit more biased towards the former. I've had a bit more headspace in the last four months to really think about my career and where I'd like it to go and I realised I do really enjoy comms. This was a very long-winded and unplanned post to say I'm doing my best to ignore impostor syndrome and see my 'all-rounder' character as a strength, rather than a weakness. I know this CharityComms quiz was just a bit of fun but the result was interesting and clearly it triggered something (in a good way) because posting like this isn't something I do. If anyone is/has been on a similar boat feel free to comment. #comms #charitycomms

#Charlotte, SAVE THE DATE! Background: I moved to Charlotte, NC almost 3 years ago. Since I have been here I have noticed a few things: 👀 Curated experiences in the corporate space are few and far between 🤔 The ones I do come across are not for the digital marketing gals and guys 🎨 Charlotte is full of digital marketing GENIUSES...why aren't we all linking up? So like any good marketer, I did some market research and deemed that I needed to create the opportunity because unfortunately, this wouldn't solve itself. For months, I have been planning (and putting off) this event and I am now forcing myself to put it out there and make it REAL. If you're in #influencermarketing, #socialmediamarketing or ANY aspect of #digitalmarketing, this event is for you. The Mix is a space for us to come together to share our industry tips and tricks and meet folks that are outside of your typical #financebro that you might come across in the Queen City. The Mix No. 1 will feature panelists from Spotify AND Edelman. If you're interested in receiving the details fill out the form below and you will receive the RSVP link before I drop it here on LinkedIn. Tell a friend to tell a FRIEND and pull up on me! 🤪 👉 https://lnkd.in/eXURwnBW