A strong public relations plan should translate into stronger support, more money raised, higher average gifts and a high rate of participation.

By: Roy P. Wheeler, Jr. & Elizabeth Skelley

Building consensus of support is essential to the success of a capital campaign. The more people are educated about the needs, the solution and the project, the more they “buy into” the campaign and, ultimately, the more they will give to support it. Therefore, it is sound campaign strategy to educate and inform, to the greatest extent possible, your potential sources of support.

Our experiences lead us to advocate the development of a public relations or “Publicity” plan for implementation in our clients’ capital campaigns. Each plan is unique and is based on the particular nature of the organization—taking into account the target audiences, geographical impact, current and potential sources of support and the objectives of the fundraising initiative itself. You can begin by analyzing a basic outline of a successful publicity plan and its various components.

To be effective, any public relations or publicity activities must be well-planned and focused. This is accomplished, in part, by associating potential donors strongly with the case for support, the project, and the organization. The plan is the basis for all publicity efforts related to the campaign. Elements of the plan should include:

• Summary
• Situation analysis
• Project description or statement
• Goal of the plan
• Objectives
• Target audience(s)
• Key messages
• Strategies
• Specific actions

Summary:
Describe the purpose of the plan, the issues that the plan will address and the timeframe of the plan.

Situation Analysis:
Describe the situation the organization is in regarding the public relations initiative and define the reasoning behind the plan. Explain current perceptions of the project and attempt to define the general level of knowledge of the project among the constituencies to be targeted.

Project Description or Statement:
Provide a clear, succinct description of the project and how it relates to the organization’s mission. You may begin by including:

• Brief, relevant history
• Project description
• Compelling rationale for the campaign
• Project benefits

Objectives:
List the specific objectives of the plan. You may derive these objectives from what is needed to make the fundraising effort and the actual project itself successful. Create a heightened sense of excitement and enthusiasm for the project while informing and educating prospective supporters about the fundraising effort. The ultimate goal should be to get targeted constituencies to “buy into” the project.

Target Audience(s):
Who is the plan designed to influence? Evaluate all potential sources for support and sort into relevant, distinguishable and identifiable groups. Then prioritize those constituent groups.

Key Messages:
Decide the key message or messages. Keep these simple, straightforward and easy to impart. Make the messages germane to the organization as a whole, the project specifically, and finally relate them to the fundraising effort. It may help to break the message into components to formulate the complete message, implementation and impact.

Strategies:
Decide on the methods for getting the message across – taking into account the message. Considerations include:

• Content / Ideas – What ideas do you want to convey? What arguments will be used to persuade?
• Language – What words will you use to get the message across effectively? What words should not be used?

Tactics:
The tactics are the specifics of the methods used to accomplish the goal(s) of the plan. There are many considerations including:

• Source / Messenger – Who will deliver the message? Who will be seen as a credible and respected advocate?
• Format – What is the best way to deliver the message for maximum impact? Is it:

- Brief formal meeting
- Informal face-to-face meeting
- Letter
- Fact sheet
- Brochure
- Announcements
- Speeches
- Printed materials
- E-mail
- Media

• Time / Place – when should the message be delivered for maximum impact? Where is the most credible place from which to deliver the message?

It is our hope that using some or all of the suggestions in this format will help you construct a basic publicity plan for your capital campaign. From this will emanate specific actions needed for your particular situation. In the end, your prospective donors will be better informed and educated about the project and the necessity of the capital campaign. This should translate into stronger support, more money raised, higher average gifts and a high rate of participation.

Roy P. Wheeler, Jr. is Executive Vice President and Elizabeth Skelley is Director of Marketing at Custom Development Solutions, Inc. (CDS). CDS has become one of North America's best and most sought after fundraising consulting firms specializing in the strategic planning and tactical execution of capital campaigns for non-profits throughout the United States and Canada. More information on CDS can be found on the web at www.cdsfunds.com. If you have a fundraising question for Roy or Elizabeth (Libby), please call 800-761-3833 or send an email to rpw@cdsfunds.com or lcs@cdsfunds.com.