1) Keep the Target Audience in Mind
Before the first line of code is written, determine the primary audience for the website. A clear understanding of the target will provide the lens through which the rest of the website design will be viewed. Every word and graphic on the site should be geared towards the target audience. For example, The Restoration House website targets potential donors, volunteers, and mentors. Each page of the site has been carefully designed with that audience in mind (see tip #4 below).

2) Create a clean and easy-to-read front page
Striking just the right balance between information and clutter on the front page can be tricky. If there isn’t enough content, potential donors may not bother clicking any further. A front page filled with too much content can make the site hard to read and even harder to navigate. Resist the temptation to put too much information on the front page, but be sure to include the organization’s positioning statement. Strive to create front pages that are visually engaging without being overwhelming.

3) Tell a Story
Everyone loves a good story. Non-profits who fail to capitalize on the power of their own stories are missing out on an incredible opportunity to inspire people to come alongside them and help. The Restoration House has captured countless inspiring success stories on video. We placed some of these videos on a page entitled “Stories,” which can be accessed on the navigation bar from any page on the site. (We admit that even we got teary watching them as we were testing the site.)

4) Make it Easy to Take Action
Once people have made the decision to help, it is essential that this process be as fast, easy, and painless as possible. If a non-profit is able to receive donations online, make sure that process is easy to complete and absolutely secure. If a potential donor has to fight with the website to make a donation, the odds are good that the donor will take their money elsewhere. Online forms should only ask for essential information. The shorter the form, the greater the chance that people will actually complete it.

5) Make it Google Friendly
Count up all of the non-profit organizations in your city… your county… your state. Out of fingers and toes? In Knoxville alone there are more than 2000 nonprofit organizations. And they are all competing for the same dollars, the same volunteers, and the same web traffic. It is critical that a non-profit’s website be easy for people to find when using search engines like Google. High search rankings can be achieved through search engine optimization, otherwise known as SEO. There are proven methods that will help any website perform well in Google searches. For more information on this, check out our blog post entitled “25 Tips for SEO”.

Greg Adkins, Director of Web Services
Girl on the Roof

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• a change of scenery (escaping the routine helps you approach strategic planning with greater focus and creativity)
• the presence of all key team members (board members, staff and other key stakeholders who can speak honestly and openly)
• a skilled, objective facilitator (because no matter how strong her vision or how advanced her facilitation skills, it is impossible for one person to both facilitate and participate in a strategic planning session)

The staff and board of Girl on the Roof recently returned from a multi-day strategic planning retreat. What was conceived as a fun European vacation to see longtime friend (and Girl on the Roof associate, Iris Cole) evolved into a full-fledged business trip complete with two agenda-heavy board meetings, an ardent discussion about personal strengths, a SWOT analysis conducted on a lengthy train ride, the identification of three strategic initiatives (critical success factors) and a promotional video shoot. The trip was far from the relaxing European vacation we had initially conceived. But the result was a stronger team standing atop a stronger Roof.

On the long plane ride home, as I lumbered through pages of notes from our various meetings, I empathized with my clients who face the daunting task of developing action plans for their critical success factors. Typically my role in strategic planning is the facilitation of the process; the clients bear the weight of the plan drafting.  Now, bleary-eyed and jetlagged, this strategic planner is being forced to take her own medicine. Fortunately, one of the key strategy points identified by the team was for me to delegate more… So guess what I did with the plans?

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I quickly visited Doxie’s website and their troubleshooting guide said that the best way to contact them was to send them a tweet. At 1:15 pm I sent the following tweet to @doxiecare:



I went on with my day, figuring that I would possibly hear back within the next 48 hours or so. At 3:05 that same afternoon I received an email informing me that they had received my tweet and that a brand new Doxie was already on the way, along with a $30 leather case just for the inconvenience. Again, all I sent them was a single Tweet! I didn’t show a receipt, give them my name, my address, or anything else. Their customer service department looked up my name on Twitter, searched their order histories, saw that I had indeed ordered a Doxie back in January, and sent one off to the address they had on file, no hesitation, no questions asked.

In a world where we hear every single day about companies who are doing customer service wrong (Comcast, I’m looking at you) it is refreshing to find a company who does customer service so right, and over Twitter no less. Well done.

And seriously, you should get a Doxie.

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Like most people, I was amused by this massive snafu happening before my eyes on quite literally, the world’s biggest stage. In that moment, I did something I suspect many other people were doing… I pulled out my phone to see what people were saying on social media. My Twitter feed did not disappoint… lots of snarky comments blaming the power outage on everything from Beyonce Knowles to George W. Bush. At 8:48 pm, one particular tweet caught my eye. The tweet which has since gone viral with over 15,000 retweets was from Oreo Cookies.

I know what you’re thinking… “Why do you follow Oreo Cookies on Twitter?” to which I would reply “don’t judge me!”. What I was thinking however was “How in the world did Oreo put this tweet and graphic together so quickly?” Well, it turns out, Oreo, along with their ad agency was ready and waiting for just such an event.

“We had a mission control set up at our office with the brand and when the blackout happened, the team looked at it as an opportunity,” 360i ad agency president Sarah Hofstetter said. “Because the brand team was there, it was easy to get approvals and get it up in minutes.” Hofstetter went on to say “The big question is, what happens when everything changes, when you go off script? That was where it got fun.”

What a great attitude. When things veered wildly off script, Oreo had a team of people ready to respond quickly and efficiently. The result was one of the most creative tweets of all time, not so much because of the content, but because of the timing. Content is important, but when it comes to social media, especially twitter, timing is everything and when you add great content to great timing, magic happens.

The Super Bowl power outage lasted 35 minutes. Oreo sent their tweet 11 minutes in. That’s 11 minutes to create a concept, design the graphic, get it approved, and send it out into the world. 11 minutes! Can your brand do that? Are you ready to respond to whatever comes your way at the speed of light… or in this case… at the speed of dark?

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To maximize your website’s search engine optimization (SEO), we always ask these questions as we construct and create content for your new website. These all contribute to your search engine ranking:

1. Have you identified strong keywords (through positioning, searching competition, using Google External Keyword Tool, etc.), and do you use them properly?
2. Do you have a solid positioning statement that includes your keywords, and do you pull from that language throughout your site?
3. Is the page content optimized for web copy (with embedded links) v. print copy?
4. Is the name of the organization written near the top of the home page in true text (v. just a logo)?
5. Do the domain name and overall link names throughout the site make sense and incorporate keywords when possible?
6. Is it clear from the home page where the organization is located?
7. Are you making the most of your “above the scroll” real estate with searchable content?
8. Do you put your most important information first (and your most important pages no more than 1 click off the home page)?
9. Does your home page have a dedicated section, like a blog, for content that changes (to remain current, relevant, trending with “hot topics”) while also providing static information about your positioning?
10. Does the home page include meaningful images/videos that are meta-tagged?
11. Does your home page avoid the use of Flash and heavy graphics containing unsearchable text?
12. Does the backend of your website utilize an SEO-boosting widget?
13. Is your site optimized for use on iPhone/iPad and Android?
14. Is there a clear path to answers or actions visitors are most likely seeking?  (Consider: What 3 questions will they want answered? What 3 actions would they want to take?)
15. Do you feature success stories and testimonials that engage users and keep them on the site longer?
16. Does the site look professionally done? Is it cohesive, with consistent usage of fonts, styles, colors, margins, etc.?
17. Do you maximize usage of page titles (for browser windows) and page descriptions in the coding?
18. Does your site have the ability to capture email addresses? Do your on-line forms request sufficient (but not too much) information?
19. Is it easy to contact staff?
20. Do you routinely (and quickly) purge out-of-date content?
21. Do you maximize opportunities for in-bound links (e.g. partnerships)?
22. Do outbound links open a separate browser window (v. directing traffic off your site)?
23. Do you have a substantial social media presence with “likes”/”followers” who retweet/repost/link to your content?  Do you have content for them to link to?
24. Is there a comprehensive site map that considers different motivations/patterns of thinking by users and makes the site easy to navigate with as few clicks as possible?
25. Do you monitor the analytics of your web site (e.g. Google Analytics) and adjust as needed?

Happy Optimizing!
-Carol Reeve, marketing strategist and Girl on the Roof

Content based on both primary and secondary research (including a few tips from  The Nonprofit Marketing Guide by Kivi L. Miller)

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“The message you craft and promote for an organization must be consistent with what they can actually do. Or you’re setting them and yourself up for failure.”

I realized in that moment that my passion for excellence, my propensity for leadership and my disdain for mediocrity… come with a dark side. I work tirelessly (literally over holidays and through the night) to position my clients as leaders, to push them to fulfill what I perceive as their calling. But Stanley’s truth is real. Some organizations simply… aren’t… there. That doesn’t mean that they can’t be. It doesn’t mean that they won’t be. It simply means that, for now, they may just not be ready.

Those who know me well often refer to me as The Lorax, because I help give a voice to individuals and organizations who do not have one. (“I am the Lorax. I speak for the trees…”)  The name Girl on the Roof stems from this principle. I can craft a message worth shouting; I can call the press, cue the lights, sound check the microphone and thrust it in my client’s face.  But what if they choose to remain silent?

“The message… must be consistent with what the organization can actually do.”

My desire for an organization to lead will not propel them into leadership. Preparing the message will not necessarily give them a voice. And as a marketer and a roof-shouter, that’s a hard truth for me. But as a counsel and confidante to those I aim to serve, I must buck up, build up and wait for their real moment to come.

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We hug our children and pray for those who can’t. We look for someone to blame.  We speak of evil and the need for less of this and more of that in our society.  We talk about guns and we look at our neighbors and the creepy guy in the grocery store line… and we wonder: Could it happen again… to us?

The answer is, of course, yes.

Therapists and grief counselors in the news advise against telling our children that this could never happen to them. Because it could. It could happen to any of us. Newtown, CT had a low crime rate. This isn’t about crime.

On Saturday morning, I muted the TV when my daughter entered the room during some news coverage on the tragedy.  I tried to distract her from reading what was on the screen, but she immediately said, “I heard that something bad happened in a school yesterday.”  She was looking to me for information. I was speechless.  I nodded.  She kept staring, expectantly. “What happened?”

I said a quick prayer and responded slowly, “A man entered an elementary school in Connecticut yesterday and shot people. A lot of people died.”

“Did any children die?”

“Yes.”  My voice cracked, and I look away so she would not see the tears in my eyes.  I couldn’t say anything else.

“Who did it?” she asked, “and Why?”

“We don’t know why, honey, and we probably never will know. But I believe he was very sick; his brain didn’t function right. That’s the only explanation I can come up with.”

My hope, my prayer, is that before people move on with their lives, we will all consider this:  If Adam Lanza is the answer, what is the question?  What should we be doing as a country,  as a culture, to prevent this from happening again?  I don’t think it’s just about guns, though that’s a conversation worth having.  I think the bigger conversation is about mental health and how the system failed Adam Lanza, his mother and the 26 others who were killed.

Please join Centerstone Research Institute in the conversation on Facebook and Twitter or make a donation toward mental health research.  And read the below articles from those who speak first-hand of mental illness and the misperceptions we all have about it.

I Am Schizophrenic 

I Am Adam Lanza’s Mother

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I lead a lot of strategic planning sessions for organizations, both nonprofit and for profit.  One goal of those sessions is to help leaders grasp the Why, How and What of their organizations.  This is articulated well in Simon Sinke’s Golden Circle model. Without the Why, How and Why, it’s difficult to assess Where the organization should be heading or Who it is best equipped to serve.

Once we have gone through the entire process and identified Critical Success Factors (which will become committees, each with a chair), it’s time to get down to brass tacks… the formation of action plans.

There are as many approaches to strategic planning as there are facilitators and consultants who claim to do it.  For me, I’m not about the fancy document. Don’t get me wrong; I’m happy to develop the beautiful words and packaging that surround the plan.  But I myself do not write strategic plans.  I facilitate the process of writing strategic plans.  Why?  Because plans that are written by an outsider are rarely, if ever, implemented.  People need to have ownership of a plan if they are going to be a part of its implementation.

That said, I do have very strict rules about how these plans are written. Each plan must be comprised of specific, detailed and measurable tasks.  Each task must have a due date and a champion.  What surprises me is how often I review action plans that contain vague, non-measurable goals.  For this reason, I now build time into the last strategic planning session (and in the syllabus for the college course that I teach) to review measurable v. non-measurable goals.  I did this last night with a group, and it proved to be very helpful, so I thought I would share some examples here.

Examples of Measurable Goals

Identify volunteer opportunities at XYZ Org and develop job descriptions for each position.

Develop board member orientation program and binder.

Conduct training within 4 weeks of new members joining the board.

Research, develop and present to the board a competitive pricing report for similar services in the region.

Determine feasibility of a quarterly computer class for seniors that is open to the community.

Identify equipment plan (bring your own computer? seek to have leasable laptops donated or underwritten)

Identify meal sponsor (box lunch)
Identify trainer
Confirm curriculum
Confirm date for event
Recruit 5 volunteers to assist in the class
Develop a flyer for the event
Each committee member to distribute the flyers in 5 locations.
Develop a press contact list (local media, community newspapers, etc.)
Issue press release
Set up for event
Conduct post-mortem review of event (what went well, opportunities for improvement, etc.)

Examples of Non-Measurable Goals

Increase awareness.  (Instead, outline the specific steps for marketing and PR elements like the web site mapping, content development, construction and launch;  print material concept, content, layout and production; press contact list development, press release draft and distribution)

Research best practices.  (Be specific:  Identify 3 organizations for best practices and a list of 10 questions for each. // Assign organizations to committee members to call. // Committee members to provide written report to committee chair following their organizational interviews.  // Committee chair reviews makes recommendations to the board based on learnings.)

Keep web site updated.  (Define the frequency and expectation:  Remove outdated content and add a new blog entry to the web site every first and third Monday.)

Recruit volunteers.  (Provide a deliverable:  Identify volunteer opportunities and write volunteer job descriptions.)

Look for sponsors.  (Be clear when a task is complete:  Develop sponsorship packages for event.  //  Develop list of potential 10–15 sponsors. // Pitch to sponsors. // Confirm sponsors.)

Although I measure my own success by the impact I have on others, measuring the success of an organization for longevity requires this more disciplined approach.

Happy planning!

-Carol Reeve, Girl on the Roof

The post To the Measure appeared first on Girl on the Roof - Knoxville, TN strategic marketing firm for business and nonprofits.

To maximize your website’s search engine optimization (SEO), we always ask these questions as we construct and create content for your new website. These all contribute to your search engine ranking:

1. Have you identified strong keywords (through positioning, searching competition, using Google External Keyword Tool, etc.), and do you use them properly?
2. Do you have a solid positioning statement that includes your keywords, and do you pull from that language throughout your site?
3. Is the page content optimized for web copy (with embedded links) v. print copy?
4. Is the name of the organization written near the top of the home page in true text (v. just a logo)?
5. Do the domain name and overall link names throughout the site make sense and incorporate keywords when possible?
6. Is it clear from the home page where the organization is located?
7. Are you making the most of your “above the scroll” real estate with searchable content?
8. Do you put your most important information first (and your most important pages no more than 1 click off the home page)?
9. Does your home page have a dedicated section, like a blog, for content that changes (to remain current, relevant, trending with “hot topics”) while also providing static information about your positioning?
10. Does the home page include meaningful images/videos that are meta-tagged?
11. Does your home page avoid the use of Flash and heavy graphics containing unsearchable text?
12. Does the backend of your website utilize an SEO-boosting widget?
13. Is your site optimized for use on iPhone/iPad and Android?
14. Is there a clear path to answers or actions visitors are most likely seeking?  (Consider: What 3 questions will they want answered? What 3 actions would they want to take?)
15. Do you feature success stories and testimonials that engage users and keep them on the site longer?
16. Does the site look professionally done? Is it cohesive, with consistent usage of fonts, styles, colors, margins, etc.?
17. Do you maximize usage of page titles (for browser windows) and page descriptions in the coding?
18. Does your site have the ability to capture email addresses? Do your on-line forms request sufficient (but not too much) information?
19. Is it easy to contact staff?
20. Do you routinely (and quickly) purge out-of-date content?
21. Do you maximize opportunities for in-bound links (e.g. partnerships)?
22. Do outbound links open a separate browser window (v. directing traffic off your site)?
23. Do you have a substantial social media presence with “likes”/”followers” who retweet/repost/link to your content?  Do you have content for them to link to?
24. Is there a comprehensive site map that considers different motivations/patterns of thinking by users and makes the site easy to navigate with as few clicks as possible?
25. Do you monitor the analytics of your web site (e.g. Google Analytics) and adjust as needed?

Happy Optimizing!
-Carol Reeve, marketing strategist and Girl on the Roof

Content based on both primary and secondary research (including a few tips from  The Nonprofit Marketing Guide by Kivi L. Miller)

Nonprofit and small business marketing firm

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Developing a marketing plan isn’t rocket science.  But here are some important points to keep in mind.

A good Marketing Plan should…have its foundation in a solid Strategic Plan that was professionally facilitated with key shareholders including all board members. It should NOT be written by an outside consultant, because the board and committee members will not have ownership of the plan. Without ownership by these stakeholders, the plan is unlikely to be executed.

A good Marketing Plan should… be championed by 1-2 individuals, with tasks assigned to all members of a committee.  It should NOT be drafted from scratch by a full committee (which takes a lifetime; instead, brainstorm together, draft alone, review together).  It is also not the full responsibility of the Executive Director.

A good Marketing Plan should… be written, proactive and comprehensive, covering all touchpoints with the public.  It should NOT be spontaneous, reactive or limited to just a newsletter print schedule.

A good Marketing Plan should… be a “living, breathing” document that drives actions and decisions; and it should be reported on at every board meeting. It should NOT be printed once and never updated… or worse yet, relegated to the “circular file.”

A good Marketing Plans should… be measurable and specific (in tasks, champions and due dates), NOT ambiguous, subjective or lacking accountability.

A good Marketing Plan should… span 24 months, NOT just a season… or 5 years (because who are we kidding?).

A good Marketing Plan should… include post-mortem reviews of events and other initiatives.  It should NOT assume that initiatives will be repeated “because we’ve always done that,” or that next year the committee will remember what there were not enough forks at the annual dinner this year.

Carol Reeve
marketing strategist

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