As child and family advocates, I understand what we’re up against in 2025 (and beyond) and… I’m feeling energized.
The challenges ahead of us are communications challenges, and at Forthright, we’re poised to meet the moment.
Here’s what I see as the work ahead:
Read MoreInformation overload. Unstable social media climate. And if that’s not enough, nonprofit leaders like you have to wade through polarization and disinformation.
Our audiences are dealing with a lot – so it’s more important than ever to clearly describe your work and your vision for the world.
You shouldn't wait until a press release or web redesign to sharpen the language you use everyday to describe your work.
In fact, every day is a great day to make your messaging strategy clearer, and this work starts internally.
Here’s how to build clear communications inside your organization so your message is clear outside your organization.
Read MoreParents and caregivers need our help.
I’ve led work that supports parents and caregivers for two decades.
I’ve also been a parent for nearly 13 years.
And over time, I’ve noticed a growing trend. Parents and caregivers are overworked, overstressed and overwhelmed – and it’s impacting their health.
As communicators and leaders, there are three easy guidelines you can follow to ensure your messages break through the noise to reach this overwhelmed (but critical!) audience.
Read MoreSo you just hired your new communications director (or other communications teammate, we aren’t picky about titles here at Forthright). First, congratulations! I’m so excited you found a great person for your organization.
Now, let’s set them up for success. Onboarding is just as critical as selecting the right human.
Studies show that solid onboarding is worth its weight in gold. Research shows that effective onboarding can improve employee retention and productivity by 52 percent and 60 percent, respectively.
Here are the ingredients of an effective onboarding.
Read MoreAre you finding yourself more easily distracted since the election? Feeling a tad foggier? Not retaining much information? Perhaps a tad more irritable?
Check, check, check and check on my end.
If you’re distracted, and we’re distracted, then your audiences are ALSO distracted.
Yet, if you’re like a few of our clients, the work can’t stop now. If you have urgent information to release, or outreach to do, there are a few things you need to keep in mind.
Here are three communications best practices from our teammates that are more important than EVER as we communicate during times of upheaval, uncertainty and crisis.
Read MoreAt Forthright, we condemn white supremacy, xenophobia, and all forms of hate and oppression. Alongside our clients and partners, we stand firmly committed to the fights for justice, equality and a sustainable future.
While it may be tempting to succumb to panic and emotional language given the very real challenges we’re up against, we want to invite you to take a deep breath and remember what you know – and be honest about what you don’t.
After these election results, it’s up to us to advocate even smarter and harder for and with those we serve. We’re not giving up. And I know you’re not giving up, either.
Here’s where to start.
Read MoreJust Google it. I’ll send you the link. Sign up online.
These days, we assume everyone has internet access at home. But here’s the thing. That’s still not the case. 2024 Pew Research Center data tells us about a fifth of homes in America still don’t have broadband access.
We’re including tips to reach these families – while celebrating your district – below.
Read More“Close your eyes, and imagine an America where we have gotten childcare right.
The Reimagine Childcare Project has spent the last two years co-creating and building a radical new Vision of childcare.
It imagines a future where childcare looks and feels abundant.
One where we make sure every child, parent, guardian, and provider is whole and happy. One where everyone has exactly what they need to become who they are meant to be.”
GAH, doesn’t it just give you goosebumps?
Read More“What are the best interview questions to ask a candidate for your open communications director position?”
“How do you manage a communications workload when you’ve got someone out on parental leave?”
“Who do you tell once a communications teammate gives you notice that she’s leaving your organization for a new job?”
We answer all these questions and more in our new FREE guide to hiring communicators.
Today, we’re tackling one of the most elusive and confusing parts of media relations: the exclusive.
Simply put, an exclusive is when you offer a story to one single reporter, and promise that you won’t share the story with anyone else until after your chosen reporter shares the news first.
Let’s break that down.
Schools have opened their doors for another school year. As a communications professional, I’ve been pleasantly surprised with the information sent from our new elementary school. I know exactly when school starts. We’ve gotten our school supplies list and know our teacher assignments and class schedules.
Yet, as a parent of a kindergartner and a first grader in a new school district, I still have so many questions! For example: What types of opportunities for free play are built into the day? How much screen time are kids actually getting each day? What if my kid falls asleep on the floor because she’s 5 and sometimes just needs a nap?
As a school leader, it’s important to realize that kindergarten parents and new parents are a rare breed. This audience doesn’t have the experience or insights that your returning families bring to a new school year. Everything is new for them, and your communications efforts must reflect that – not just during this back-to-school season, but throughout the year.
By helping families understand what their child’s day looks like during school, they become more confident and comfortable with their decision to share their children with you and your staff.
Read MoreAs communicators, it’s our job to deeply understand what came before us. For example, knowing about child care’s roots in chattel slavery can help you communicate effectively about workforce challenges. Knowing the history of de- (and recent re-) segregation can help public school communicators better connect around school closures and redistricting.
Great communicators are history experts and are constantly absorbing news and context. We're sharing tips about when and how to think about history here.
Read MoreA logic chain is a tool your team can use to align around:
what you want your audiences to understand about your work;
what you want your audiences to believe as a result of what they understand; and
the specific, concrete action you want your audiences to take.
Starting with a logic chain when creating a strategic communications plan or before conducting a communications audit ensures your messaging and strategies are laser focused on your end goal.
Here’s a full visual (and examples!) for how the logic chain works.
Read MoreGetting to the tactics phase of your communications campaign is exciting – you’ve selected your audiences, your messaging is on point and you're ready to put all that hard work out into the world and make change happen. *It's showtime!*
Of course, you need to make sure that those tactics go to work for you, and that means narrowing in on the biggest bang-for-your-buck activities that you can truly deliver.
And, as very busy leaders and advocates, you’re looking for reliable, simple, valuable, tried and true, foolproof options… you want the "easy button" plan.
Read MoreHere’s a conversation I’ve had many times throughout my career:
🙋Executive director: How big should my communications team be?
🤔Me: Well… that depends. How much of your mission relies on convincing people to take action?
We’ve seen it all: 10+ person communications teams, and one part-time person communications teams. A one-person shop could be perfect for some organizations, while others need the full comms squad. Here are the key points to consider as you decide how to invest in YOUR headcount.
Read MoreWorking parents are burned out.
They are can’t concentrate, take it one day at a time, can barely make butter pasta for dinner kind of tired.
You know the feeling.
That means it’s up to us as communicators to ensure we’re meeting burnt out parents where they are. We’re including three tips for how to do so as you return back to school!
Read MoreIn 2017, Stanford Social Innovation Review begged nonprofit leaders to “stop raising awareness already.”
They wanted action. They wanted change. They wanted advocates to take their work to the next level.
I think we can all agree that right now – in this chaotic year of 2024 – moving our audiences to take action is more critical than ever. No matter what your campaign, your call to action (CTA) needs to be powerful, or it won’t work.
That’s why we’re sharing quick tips (backed by data from Harvard and Stanford experts) on how to craft a strong CTA.
Bonus: we’re including do’s, don’ts and examples for every recommendation!
Read MoreI really like being a company founder and CEO. But my CEO position isn’t the most important thing about me. Instead, my most important roles are friend, daughter, wife, volunteer, potter and neighbor.
I love what I do all day for work – but the person I am outside of work is much more important to me. And that’s exactly the way it should be.
In fact, the time I spend outside of work caring for myself, my communities and my family makes me a BETTER CEO and a more effective communicator.
So when I started Forthright five years ago, I made a commitment to myself that my roles outside of work would be honored as important, if not more important, than my roles AT work. That’s what sparked our policy of charging more for work we perform outside of our business hours.
Read MoreI can think of a handful of my birthdays (or my wedding with Dan) when I looked around the room and all of the most meaningful people in my life were in one place.
Last Friday night, in New York City, I was honored to have the professional version of that experience when SO MANY Forthright teammates, both past and present, gathered together to celebrate our agency’s 5th anniversary.
Read MoreConfession: I love podcasts. I’m currently following *34* different podcasts, and I’m always looking for more to add to the list.
To me, the best podcasts take lots of research and data, add thorough reporting and beautifully crafted storytelling, and deliver episodes that make you think long after you’ve stopped listening.
Lately, I’ve come across several episodes that showcase communications best practices “in the wild.” They have me thinking about how we can better do the work we all do to support children and families. Today, I’m highlighting those episodes and the comms best practices they feature.
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