6 Tips for Refreshing Your Communications Strategy this Fall
Autumn is undoubtedly one of my favorite seasons of the year. The crisp cooler air coupled with the return of football, sweater weather, changing leaves and everything pumpkin spice – each year I look forward to refreshing my décor to vibrant fall hues.
As we transition into the fall season, it’s also a good time to take a fresh look at your communications strategy. Here are six ways to dust off your organization’s communications efforts and squash your Q4 goals:
- Freshen your messaging
If you haven’t reviewed your organization’s key message framework recently – or if you don’t have one – now is the perfect time to revisit it. A message framework is a foundational piece that guides all future communications. It helps your audiences understand what your organization does, the unique benefits you provide, and the value proposition to those you serve. It also ensures leaders are aligned and talking consistently about the brand with key stakeholders.
- Identify unique media pitching and storytelling angles
Is your organization celebrating a key milestone in the coming months? Do you have a unique perspective to offer on a new trend or hot button issue? Does your employee have a powerful story to share? Host a story-mining session with your team to brainstorm timely, relevant and newsworthy angles to pitch to the media, post in a blog, or highlight in a thought leadership piece. Organize ideas in an editorial calendar to help prioritize and look for opportunities to tie pitches and stories in with larger events or observances.
- Conduct a digital audit
Your website and social media channels are among the most visible elements of your business or organization. Invest the time to thoroughly audit your platforms to ensure links are working properly, identify opportunities to refresh visuals and content, and optimize for SEO. Create a report to identify what’s working well (e.g., what content is driving the most engagement, how are users navigating your website, etc.) and where there are opportunities for improvement.
- Leverage social or paid advertising to amplify messages
Social media and paid advertising are effective ways to amplify your messages beyond organic reach to further build awareness and encourage conversions. Consider running a targeted advertising campaign to reach specific audiences (we call that “creepily targeting”), leveraging creative messaging and ad creative, and identifying clear KPIs.
- Evaluate your internal communications strategy
Don’t forget to look inward to evaluate how you’re communicating with your employees – after all, employees are often your organization’s best ambassadors. A strong internal communications strategy helps build employee engagement, nurture a positive culture, and support employee retention. Evaluate the communications vehicles you’re using to communicate with employees (e.g., Teams, Slack, intranet, email, etc.), the frequency of communications, and identify opportunities to recognize employees while celebrating key accomplishments or milestones.
- Get creative with new ways to promote your brand
Use the last few months of the year to think outside the box and explore new ways to captivate your audience and make a lasting impression. Video and animation are powerful tools to communicate your message in an engaging way. Or, consider partnering with strategic influencers who can share an authentic review about your product or business (get inspired with this influencer case study). Unconventional collaborations with other brands, contests and giveaways, or immersive experiences are additional ideas to keep your organization top of mind.
In an ever-changing business landscape, elevate your brand this fall by reviewing current communications initiatives, identifying new creative opportunities, and adjusting your strategy accordingly. Not only will it help raise awareness of your organization with new audiences, but it will also help maintain the trust of existing stakeholders. Are you interested in starting Q4 with a refreshed start? Contact Inspire today.