8 Steps to a Team of Powerful Messengers

Be aware that this strategy is likely to be a significant cultural shift (tearing down formal or unspoken silos with your organization), and the transition in full may take some time.

Open the conversation by sharing your vision. Then emphasize these immediate benefits and longer-term gains:

• Benefit: Greater accuracy and consistency of messages conveyed in conversations and communications across audiences and programs.
• Gain: Clearer, quicker connections with more of your target audiences.
• Gain: Increased likelihood of motivating the actions you need.
• Benefit: Improved understanding of organization goals and priorities across the organization.
• Benefit: Enhanced ability to harvest and share relevant information and feedback with the right colleagues across the organization — on programs, audience preferences and values, and more.
• Gain: Stronger connections leading to greater giving, via acquisition of broader and deeper audience insights and cross-departmental collaboration.
• Benefit: A more highly skilled group of staff and board members.
• Gain: Greater employee and board satisfaction.

3. Introduce the concept to your colleagues. It's always best to start dripping an idea like this out in casual hallway or drop-by conversations (or the virtual equivalent). You learn what resonates with your colleagues and what doesn't, so you can fine-tune before rolling out the program more broadly.