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When to tell your ‘movement story’

Call it what you will. It’s the idea that when we work together, we’re part of something bigger than ourselves. If achieving

GDPR & list building: the essential guide

The General Data Protection Regulation (commonly, GDPR) came into effect in May 2018. It impacts all businesses and organizations, everywhere in the world,

Don’t let these ‘cognitive biases’ hurt your conversion rates

Cognitive biases are powerful mental distortions that affect the way we think and behave. They are so powerful that they can lead

How NOT to use bold type...

Bolding the odd word or phrase can help skim readers catch key ideas you don’t want them to miss. It’s also great for

Beat the curse of knowledge

The curse of knowledge is a cognitive bias that leads us to overestimate the knowledge of our audience. If you allow this curse

Why ‘busting myths’ often backfires

How tempting is it to ‘bust myths’ and confront your opponent’s ridiculous claims head-on!? Hint: very. Proceed with caution—countering false claims can unintentionally

This little trick will increase your conversion rates

Whether your call to action (CTA) is a button or a link, don’t get too clever. Speak directly to your supporter and tell

A beginner’s guide to email analytics

Most email broadcast systems come packed with standard analytics. Just to be clear, here’s what we care about: Recipient volume This is the

Why you need to stop talking about yourself

Imagine you’re at a party. There are plenty of new people you could meet and talk to. There’s a guy talking himself up.

Email preview text: what you need to know

Preview text appears in most email clients in the form of a few words after or below a subject line. While it doesn’t

How to combat supporter fatigue

Don’t wait for supporter fatigue to set in before creating a plan to mitigate it. Nice idea, right? Most of us only recognize

Are you prioritizing the right list building entry points?

There’s more than one way to build an email list. The various types of digital assets you can use to attract people to

A beginner’s guide to digital pipelines

Think of digital pipelines as pathways that lead your supporters down progressively deeper levels of engagement. Without designing your pipelines intentionally, your supporters

Please, abandon your action lists

As changemakers, it’s our job to dream up all the ways our supporters can get involved to help our cause or win

6 things that stop people opening emails

I know what you’re thinking. “Subject lines”. And you’d be right. Subject lines are hailed as the ‘be all and

Take your time.

In the pursuit of saying more with less, I’ll admit—not every big idea can be reduced to a snappy soundbite. Sometimes there really is a lot to say. Still, there are better options than trying to say everything in one interaction. Readers will find it hard to retain dense information. And rarely do we need to place this much pressure on ourselves.

Pace yourself

Whether you’re communicating through your email list or your social media feed, remember that you’re in an ongoing relationship with your audience. You don’t just get one shot at this. When there’s a lot to say, try saying it over a series of linked emails, web pages, or social media posts. Break up your content into bite-sized ideas and deliver them over time to deepen impact. This will reach more people and give each idea its own time and space to resonate.

Think of digital communications like conversations, not lectures. Be the conversation partner that your supporter wants to come back to.

From: Say more (by saying less)

Karen Nilsen

Hi there! I’m Karen. I’m on a mission to reach my former self. Had I known 10 years ago what I know today, I could have achieved more good, made fewer mistakes, and had more weekends. Every time we share what works, we win faster. Let’s create digital experiences that move people — that grow our base and fuel our movements. Are you with me? Please share this with someone you know who wants to up their digital game!

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