How to create messages that change the world
Written by Katie Test Davis
I’ve been thinking a lot about framing lately.
No, not the nailing-together-lumber kind of framing, but the communications version. Framing is how you talk about an issue – it’s both what you say and what you don’t.
As experts who focus on messaging, we’re always advising our clients to make strategic choices about the information they share, the comparisons they make, and the words they use. Knowing more about framing can help you win campaigns, change hearts and minds, and move your work forward.
There are typically three framing scenarios that communicators face when leading a campaign. Let’s dive into them:
Framing
The first scenario you may find yourself in is also the least-likely scenario. It’s when you get to define an issue, typically early in a situation.
For example, in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, health officials made a communication framing choice to position social distancing, masking, and hand washing as the go-to preventative measures. In North Carolina, this was dubbed “The 3Ws – wear, wait, wash” – a personal responsibility frame that focused on what individuals could do.
No narrative existed, so leaders could create what was most important through their framing choices.
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Doubling Down
The next messaging scenario you may find yourself in is that a definition (or frame) about an issue already exists, and you like it. If you’re building a communications campaign for an issue, this means you get to lean into the current narrative and reinforce it.
For example, as a recent study from the Hunt Institute shows, keeping schools free of guns, physical violence, and bullying is a widely accepted priority amongst parents and voters. Child advocates have public support, so now we must repeat, repeat and repeat the framing that is working.
Reframing
Typically, our clients find themselves advocating for an issue that needs a reframe. They engage us to help them fight against the existing narrative, redefine an issue on their terms and gain public support.
Reframing an issue helps us see it from a different perspective and invites our audiences to see something from a new point of view. An often-cited example of reframing is the product safety shift from “buyer beware” to “consumer protection”.
When crafting messages for a reframe, consider:
Using a metaphor or storytelling
Shifting the conversation to solutions or strengths
Elevating your vision of a brighter world
Resources
There’s so much more on message framing, and if you’re looking for more, here are some of our go-to resources:
To learn more about framing, we recommend taking a look at the amazing resource library offered by a friend of Forthright and researcher extraordinaire, the FrameWorks Institute. Check out Framing 101 to get started.
The “slow elevator” example from this Harvard Business Review article has always been helpful to me and has some great how-to tips.
