Hi Reader, If you showed your organization's website to your grandmother, your neighbor, anyone who may know you run a nonprofit but not much more than that, would they get it? Would they be able to tell you in 1–2 sentences what your organization does? Or more importantly, why it matters? If they can't, you have a clear messaging issue. And it's not your fault—it's hard to read the label from inside the jar. Here's what you can do about it. Rooting for you, Jordana PS: Try the grandmother...

Hi Reader, You know that friend who only reaches out when they need something? No one likes that friend.But sometimes our organizations act like that friend when we don't communicate with our people between fundraising asks. In leading your nonprofit, you should be thinking about your next ask, but it's important to reach out to your supporters when you're not asking too. Otherwise, they'll start to think of you as the friend who only shows up when you need something. Here are four ways to...

Hi Reader, "Hiring a consultant always ends up being a lot of work for us," one nonprofit executive director told me. Then she hired me. She wasn't wrong about the work, but she also understood that putting in the effort on a messaging guide now is an investment in a more effective and efficient future for your organization. The messaging guide process asks real things of your team: a detailed questionnaire, strategy calls, and honest reflection on who you are and where you're headed. It's...