One of the most underappreciated and overlooked factors that go into successfully engaging decision makers is identity. Identity is so powerful. It shapes how we see the world, and ourselves. It shapes how we relate to the w…
As a nonprofit leader, you probably have a lot of experience with public policy that often fails to serve the best interests of the people you serve, and the work you do to help them thrive. And when the time comes that you…
Almost every aspect of a nonprofit's work is touched by public policy in some way. And sometimes we come to the realization that the way to achieve a particular goal or to solve a particular problem is that we need a new or …
As advocates and leaders, a big part of our job is to successfully engage both decisionmakers and members of our own teams to join us in pursuit of a goal. And when we’re at our most effective, we can feel that we’re operat…
Even when you've figured out the most effective messaging in the world, sharing that with the rest of your team and helping them to use it to produce the results you want can be a huge challenge. What definitely does not wor…
Tell me if this sounds familiar. You've identified what you want from a decision maker and you're ready to make your case. You got your facts all lined up. Your logic flow is great. You’ve got your slide deck and your one-p…
If your nonprofit receives any sort of program-specific federal funding, you are likely subject to at least three levels of decision-making about that money and possibly more. If you don’t know exactly what the decision-maki…
The right wing is generating and amplifying a lot of fear-based, demonizing messaging that is driving polarization. And for many of the purveyors of this messaging, polarization is part of the point. It's one of the strategi…
One of the most underrated and underappreciated tools in the toolkits of the most effective nonprofit leaders is vision. The truth is whether it's in nonprofit land or anywhere else, nothing big ever happens without a vision…
You probably already know that client voices can be a key part of influencing decision makers. But it's not automatic. How that messaging is structured has a huge impact on how effective it is and whether it helps cause deci…
Having a strong cadre of powerfully influential champions is a huge asset that can dramatically accelerate your advocacy success. And when you have a key decision maker themselves operating as your champion, that takes thing…
Anyone who's been part of the coalition knows that it can be a complicated set of relationships. Some coalition experiences are fantastic. Others not so much. The best thing is when you and your coalition partners are fully …
If you’ve ever said to yourself, “If only I had a paid advocacy person/team, everything would be great,” you’re in good company. But you might be surprised by the path you need to take to get there. It’s not as intuitive a…
I frequently hear from nonprofit leaders that they feel overwhelmed by the amount of strategic relationships they're trying to build. And they get both frustrated and exhausted trying to move them all forward at once. And it…
Whenever you have the opportunity to meet with your US Representative and Senators in Washington DC, you want to make sure that you get the greatest possible impact for your efforts. A lot of time and expense goes into that …
If I told you that up to 85% of your overall messaging may be undermining your goals for engaging key decisionmakers, you might be alarmed, or you might be skeptical. But many nonprofits are in this situation and don’t real…
To achieve your advocacy goals, you need decision makers to work with you to get that done. They're not going to do that if they don't know you, don't like you and don't trust you. So our number one job in strategic relatio…
A key driver of advocacy success is the effectiveness of your messaging. If your messaging isn't landing, the decision-maker won't engage. It's that simple. But when your messaging is dialed in to that decision maker, they'r…
Whenever you're engaging a decision maker to get them to agree to do something, usually something around money or policy, you're likely to encounter some resistance or objections along the way. You can't make this not happen…
I had the opportunity to interview Dorella Walters, who is the Chief Business Development Officer for God’s Love We Deliver in New York. Her job is basically to prospect for, and develop revenue-generating partnerships that…
Whether you love it or hate it, negotiating with decisionmakers is part of the job of a nonprofit leader. You have to negotiate with funders, contracting partners, policymakers, and more. Like most things, negotiation is a…
If you've ever invited policymakers and other decisionmakers to visit your program, and then been disappointed that it didn't lead to any tangible results, it may be that your design for those visits needs an upgrade. In tod…
I had the opportunity to interview Gilda Nardone, who shared how she built a leadership and advocacy training and support system that helped her organization’s program graduates become powerful advocates on issues they care …
If you’re ready to have a breakthrough advocacy year, 2024 can be that year. To make it happen, you need to apply four main keys with your advocacy team. Today we dig into each of those keys and lay out how you can set yo…
