Found 26 topics tagged ‘Advocacy 101’

SPOILER: it’s not good. Sure—you know you’re writing an email to 5,000 people. But your task is to make your reader feel like you’re writing only to them. When ‘broadcasting’ language slips into our writing,...

What draws people to your cause? What motivated your supporters to take their first action? What did they feel when they first donated? Why do you exist? The answer to all these questions is the same. And...

Cognitive biases are powerful mental distortions that affect the way we think and behave. They are so powerful that they can lead people to act against their own best interests. If you understand them, you can...

The curse of knowledge is a cognitive bias that leads us to overestimate the knowledge of our audience. If you allow this curse to infect your writing, you may unwittingly leave supporters feeling confused an alienated. To...

For several years, I drove a strategy at Animals Australia to send ‘thank-you’ emails to action takers that were jam-packed with followup asks. This is not an uncommon approach. And on the surface, it’s easy to...

Imagine you’re seeing a 25% open rate on your emails. That means whenever you send a broadcast, 3 in every 4 recipients will be unfamiliar with what you sent last time. Some recipients will be new to...