Some people say that promotion and campaigns become irritating only for bad targeting. Others complain about privacy concerns of targeted online marketing. Ethical issues aside, proper targeting is the best option for the best use of limited resources. Long story short - communication in 2022 will demand laser sharp targeting from non-profit campaign managers. Or else ... another non-profit campaign will collect digital dust in an invisible corner of our attention.
Research after research confirm that people trust people, much more than they trust brands or organizations.
Experts estimate that word-of-mouth (some call if referrals, reviews or even “yelpification”) is ten times more effective than other forms of marketing communications. The most effective brands cleverly build upon human connections to win digital hearts and minds. For a social mobilisation campaign, the trust effect decides between success or failure.
So far, so good - a naive campaign manager may say. Instead of investing in expensive production and media buying, we can base our campaign on the people we know. That is the moment when the communication art and several scientific disciplines can help. The famous Ice Bucket Challenge from 2014 was a great example of a social media campaign, brilliantly initiated to get visibility and fundraise for research of a complex health issue. My favorite moment of that campaign was the video of the actor Patrick Stewart, writing a check, and using the ice with his drink, instead of spilling a bucket of ice on his head. Depending on the angle for this analysis, the total sum fundraised of 115 million may seem modest, having in mind that some 17 million people worldwide posted videos about joining the challenge. Non monetary value yielded through this campaign, measured in gained media space and public attention was worth the effort though. A more demanding analyst will also ask, did the campaign really capitalise from such media attention to educate people about the ALS and the related research. If the campaign had awareness raising about ALS as a main objective, the best way to check its effectiveness was to evaluate the public perceptions about that disease, or to analyse the media narratives. Having no interest in doing it, I can only draw a parallel with non-profit campaigns I witnessed.
For some 15 years I worked in the same office with a dear colleague, who also has a short name of four letters, beginning with N. At some point we were joking about the confusion some people make with our two names: Nina and Nela, so we produced a fusion name “Nila” to ridicule it. We realised how serious this was one day when we received an email addressed to both of us starting with “Dear Nila, can you please ….” Both of us wanted to do it, but we both assumed the other one would do it, as it concerned a simple and easy response. The result was obvious - none of us responded. Luckily, the colleague who sent it decided to repeat the plea, this time calling one of us directly. Similar situations repeated so many times, that we stopped counting and correcting - our tacit decision was to prioritize clear, and direct communication coming our way. Similar situations happen so many times with generic messages and poorly targeted communication campaigns. With the increase of available contents coming our way, the only possible response is to - ignore (most of) it.
Maybe the most tragic example of this phenomena, quoted so many times in social psychology textbooks as a bystander effect, is the unfortunate story of Kitty Genovese. That fatal night, her screaming did not compel any of the observers to react, call the police, or get out of their apartments to help her. Some reports say that 38 bystanders could observe the incident when the assassin stabbed, raped, and robbed the unfortunate girl, before somebody called the police a couple of hours later. The moral of the story relativizes the power of exaggerated marketing, and calls for clarity and direct targeting in communication intended to motivate people’s reaction.
Luckily, lack of effectiveness in communication does not often have such dramatic consequences. Most of the time, targeting is just a bridge for a message to help its delivery, like an exact address on the email intended to an interested recipient. On the contrary, a message, a campaign or a call-to-action risks getting lost, misplaced, or disregarded.
Does it have to be difficult? How to decide or define a specific target audience? Most of the time, this decision goes deeper than the communication strategy. The strategic direction of communication is a decision rooted in the mission statement, values or organizational vision.
The earlier the campaign planners establish the link with the strategic direction, the better results of a campaign will be.
My humble intention is to help clarify that for as many non-profits as I can, so that the campaigns calling for crucial changes, win as much as possible digital hearts and minds. Only with socially responsible campaigns designed to reach, inspire and engage audiences, the noble goals to change public perceptions and policies can yield desired outcomes.
More details about my methodology developed following years of practice, and refined consulting the available knowledge, I am putting on my newly launched web page. Let me know should you like to get in touch and learn more.
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