The Smart Communications Podcast

COVID-19 has changed everything and nonprofits have shifted how they offer programming and services from in-person to digital channels. Virtual events, galas, and conferences can help us connect and reach more people. How do we create experiences that are engaging and memorable? Chris Tuttle, founder and principal of TuttleCo, discusses the future of virtual events with Farra Trompeter, partner and chief growth officer, in this episode of the Smart Communications Podcast.

Urgency can present itself in a number of ways and is a key characteristic of white supremacy culture. Former senior strategist Laura FIsher, and chief growth officer and partner, Farra Trompeter, discuss how urgency can impact your organization’s team and offer useful ways to question it in this episode of the Smart Communications Podcast.

Your brand is how your organization expresses its voice. Knowing whose voices are being centered in your brand strategy and assets is a key element to developing or shifting your brand, and making sure the process is inclusive is essential. Listen in as Sarah Durham, CEO, and Farra Trompeter, partner and chief growth officer, share insights on how to use your brand to connect with donors and your community.

Google Analytics is a powerful tool and can help you understand how people use your website. Sarah Durham sits down with Heather Wozniak, technical strategist at Advomatic to discuss ways you can get started using Google Analytics to make strategic decisions about your content.

If you are a nonprofit communicator, the Nonprofit Communications Trends Report, a yearly report released by The Nonprofit Marketing Guide is a great fact-based, research-based tool about marketing and communications within nonprofits. Sarah Durham chats with award-winning author, and founder and CEO of The Nonprofit Marketing Guide, Kivi Leroux Miller about the impact these trends have had during the COVID-19 pandemic in this episode of the Smart Communications Podcast.

Are you looking to hire an agency or freelancer and questioning whether or not to go with a fixed fee or time-and-materials for the project? This solocast with Sarah Durham examines the differences between the two and what structure is best when choosing who to work with.

Is your website secure and flexible? A lot of the nonprofit sector are not techies. Sarah Durham talks with Dave Hansen-Lange, Advomatic's Director of Technical Strategy about what open source is and tips on keeping your website up to date in this episode of the Smart Communications Podcast.

Is it strategic? Strategy is the practice of defining what you want to achieve and identifying the best ways to achieve it. Sarah Durham and Laura Fisher unpack terms like goals, objectives, strategies, and tactics and offer background and examples of how they intersect. Listen in as they answer a few questions frequently by nonprofit communicators, and apply these terms and pressure test for strategy.

What norms should you challenge and disrupt? Sarah Durham and Hannah Thomas unpack “thoughtful disruption” and offer different ways of challenging nonprofit communications norms and assumptions.

Who is your community? They often tend to be more expansive than we think. Listen in as Sarah Durham unpacks the word “community” in fundraising and communications with Michelle Shireen Muri, the founder of Freedom Conspiracy, Co-Chair of the founding Seattle chapter for Community-Centric Fundraising and host of The Ethical Rainmaker podcast. Learn about community mapping and more in this episode of the Smart Community Podcast.