From snoring to soaring

by Miraz on 20 July 2008

I’ve skimmed through, and trashed, my share of incredibly boring newsletters in my time. I fact, these days I try to avoid newsletters as much as possible. But if organisations followed the advice Katya’s Non-Profit Marketing Blog has uncovered the world would be a much better place.

After all, community organisations do great work, making real change in peoples lives. Their newsletters should be don’t miss material. Here are some edited highlights of what Katya says, but read her post for the full monty, all details exposed:

So what’s a nonprofit to do? How do we take our newsletters from snoring to soaring? … here’s what trainer, writer and newsletter guru Kivi Leroux Miller of Nonprofit Marketing Guide.com had to say.

Katya: Why are there no stories, or only milquetoast stories, in so many newsletters? What gives?

Kivi: Two reasons, I think. First, people are afraid that they can’t pull it off. When you say “storytelling,” most people envision either someone like Mark Twain or Toni Morrison or a wild-haired grandpa on a stage at some mountain storytelling festival spinning some yarn – someone with way more creative juices flowing. Or they simply don’t think they are good writers, and the thought of writing something that qualifies as a “story” is just too daunting. It doesn’t have to be that way. Nonprofits have tons of great stories. Finding material in the nonprofit sector is never a problem.

Kivi: You just need to learn some basic storytelling patterns. …

Kivi: The Challenge Plot is your basic three–act structure that practically every Hollywood movie is based on. These are your classic underdog stories, against all odds stories. …

Kivi: Creativity stories are those with the “aha!” moments and those “what if we . . .” stories that work out in the end. …

Kivi: [the Connection Plot] is a little harder to pull off without sounding sappy or forced, but once again, with the right elements, it’s easy. These are the bridging the gap stories and big meaning in small events stories. …

[Via Katya's Non-Profit Marketing Blog: How to fix boring newsletters.]

Oh, and the medium doesn’t matter: print, web, email, video, audio, posters — they all need their stories.

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