Courses |

Communications

Communications fundamentals

Are you a new communicator who wants to build your nonprofit’s communications on strong content foundations?

Are you an experienced communicator who has been so busy with tactic delivery that you’re no longer sure you have the fundamentals in place?

If you answered yes to either question, this course is for you.

To deliver strategically sound communications with cohesive, compelling messages, you need to have strong foundations. Your brand, website, and storytelling are fundamental because they provide a roadmap for messaging and content development, a digital home base for your organization, and an opportunity to deliver your nonprofit’s narrative over time.

In this course, we’ll start by revisiting the role of your strategic plan and priority audiences in guiding marketing communications decisions. Then, we’ll take a broad scan of your content foundations: your brand messaging, website content, and storytelling approach. Along the way, we’ll consider how you can leverage these elements to use resources efficiently and feel more confident and effective as a communicator. You’ll also have opportunities to reflect upon the state of your organization’s communications fundamentals, identify gaps, and consider actions you can take — big and small — to build or strengthen your content foundations.

This course will benefit nonprofit communications professionals of all levels, as well as executive directors or other leaders responsible for marketing communications.

Learning objectives

Brand messaging

Understand specific ways that your brand can guide – rather than limit – your communications planning.

Website content

Learn how to prioritize your website content, strengthening your digital home base.

Storytelling

Strengthen your approach to storytelling, so you can deliver a strategic narrative over time.

Curriculum outline

• Course overview and activities
• Strategic alignment and audiences
• Brand messaging
• Website content
• Storytelling
• Course recap and action plan

Anticipated time to complete

NTEN courses typically require about 60 minutes of video content to complete, while optional content varies by course.