The Smart Communications Podcast

Big Duck’s latest book, The Nonprofit Communications Engine, outlines a simple model for nonprofit communicators and leaders that makes it easier for them to leverage communications in order to advance their mission. Nonprofit CEOs and staff who manage communications can use this book to set clearer goals, guide their planning and activities, identify gaps in their expertise, and discover opportunities to strengthen their communications. In this podcast, Sarah Durham breaks it down.

From broken links to automated testing, learn how to continuously improve your website’s “hygiene” with Sarah Durham and Rory Tucker.

CCS Fundraising’s Managing Director Eric Javier discusses the feasibility of your organization receiving large donations. This podcast explores feasibility studies, organization context, and audience research and redefines the 80/20 rule.

Marcus dePaula, audio expert and producer of Big Duck’s podcast, gives insight into the right audio professional for your team, the best mics to use, how to present your sound, and how to make people listen in to your content. Hear how you can up your recording game.

Making sure your clients and other key stakeholders are happy can be difficult. What do they really need and want from you? Tune in to understand how to be more mindful about engaging donors and clients every step of the way with Sarah Durham and Farra Trompeter.

What are the most important skills to have on your in-house creative team? Learn how consistency, production, breadth, and the right experience can make your creative team flourish by tuning in.

Big Duck’s Farra Trompeter and communications professional Chris Tuttle discuss the importance of captions and alt titles, how to use color palettes, creating an inclusive team, and specializing your communications. Listen in to learn how your communications team can be more inclusive.

Big Duck pros Sarah Durham and Claire Taylor Hansen discuss the do’s and don’ts of design—how and when to use white space, how less is more, typographic hierarchy, and staying on-brand with little frill to get in the way. Listen in to learn more about how you can design as a non-designer for your nonprofit.

Ochen Kaylan, Senior Developer at Advomatic and attorney, is passionate about online privacy. He discusses how to store and manage your donors’ and clients’ information, when enough information is enough, and how your own information is being used. Tune in to learn more.

“You’re never going to get 100% buy-in...” is one of many lessons Elisabeth King, Director of Communications for Lycée Français de New York, learned during her organization’s rebrand. Over two-plus years, she oversaw a process that thoughtfully involved over 2,000 people—students, parents, teachers, and staff. Listen in to hear how she undertook this complex change management process and navigated buy-in. You’ll get tips for involving your community in a significant organizational change, too.