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One of the observations that came from our recent survey of the
field was: Public awareness about microenterprise is generally low,
and there is a consensus that microenterprise needs to better make
the case for its impact on local communities. Survey results recommended
that our field launch a statewide public relations campaign as a
way to increase public awareness and support.
We all know that forming good relations with media contacts is vital.
Good media coverage and public relations help us to:
· build an individual donor base
· recruit program volunteers and board members
· rally supporters to speak and write letters to policy makers
· raise our public profile to help develop funders and partners
· reach out to prospective customer microentrepreneurs
Many of our California microenterprise programs are masters at public
relations. Julie Abrams, Executive Director of Women’s Initiative
in San Francisco, offers the following words of wisdom for developing
good media relationships:
· Make it a real story.
· Give it the face of a client—make it locally relevant.
· Know who to pitch it to, and what they usually cover.
· Make friends with people in the media.
· Say thanks if they give you nice coverage.
· Call, call, call!
Stories of clients’ successes
Client stories continue to be a great way to capture the media’s
attention. But how do we tell client stories so they inspire people
to do something positive for microenterprise development? I acquired
some valuable insights from a workshop led by the consulting firm
Douglas Gould & Co., Inc. They are directors of a Ford Foundation
project, “For An Economy That Works for All.” Their
research showed that advocacy groups need to frame their message
in a way that appeals to fairness for everybody.
Client stories that appeal to people’s sympathy for struggling
clients may backfire. Like it or not, the general public commonly
believes that personal pathologies are at fault for a client’s
barriers to success and it’s the individual’s responsibility
to get over his or her own problems. The general public also holds
other beliefs that get in the way of acting to change system inequities,
such as, “The economy is like the weather and there is nothing
we can do to change it.” Douglas Gould suggests that we reframe
our media message to focus on fairness and responsible planning
for a community that produces employment opportunities for families
in the future. The project has developed a media tool kit that provides
guidelines on message framing for poverty advocates. I highly recommend
you check it out at www.economythatworks.org/toolkit.htm.
CAMEO has published a public education document that can be freely
used by CAMEO members to assist with media campaigns. This document
appeals to the general public and frames the message using the One
Economy guidelines. It includes client success stories, California–based
program statistics and an appeal to the general public for action
on behalf of microenterprise programs. If you'd like a copy, call
CAMEO. Another source of information is Client
Success Stories: The Fundraising Edge in the Microenterprise
Program Library.
A nonprofit strategy of keeping a low profile and shunning the
spotlight in order to prevent an overwhelming demand for microenterprise
services no longer serves us. Telling client stories that appeal
to the public sympathy may backfire. What would happen if everyone
in your community knew that microenterprise services were available
when they wanted to start a business? Maybe, just maybe, a microenterprise
program would be a standard community service as well known and
accepted as a standard community service like a public library or
a community college. What if the general public became outraged
over funding cuts to the microenterprise program? Now that
would be a story!
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