Standing out from the crowd isn’t always easy to do, but for charities, it can be the difference between gaining attention and support or not.
Day in and day out the CharityComms team find themselves in awe of the way that charities in our network share the amazing work they do, and how they communicate the vast range of support they provide. Here are just a few that have inspired us lately with their bold and impactful messaging:
Ageing Better- Continually campaigning to change attitudes and behaviour
In the middle of so much bleak news, charities are working hard to shift the dial on urgent and sometimes complex issues. So, I was delighted to see the charity Ageing Better launch a new campaign confronting deep-rooted ageism that exists across society.
The campaign highlights how ageism affects people of all ages, but is felt most strongly as people age, whether through discrimination in the workplace or being denied access to potentially life-saving healthcare. The campaign simply and powerfully shows that we all have a stake in changing attitudes and behaviour and invites us to be part of an Age-friendly Movement across the country.
Adeela Warley, CEO
RNLI – Creating highly adaptable, varied content across a wide-range of channels
The RNLI ‘launched’ their TikTok channel on 11 July with a video of one of their lifeboats launching into the sea. That first video has had 2.7 million views and they’ve gained more than 114k followers over the past few weeks to become the sixth most followed charity on TikTok. Their content is varied and always interesting with unique videos, such as showing how a lifeboat gets winched back up the slipway or what you might find in a lifeguard hut, mixed with emotive rescue videos and 999 calls as well as tips such as how to stay safe on the beach. A brilliant example of making the most of their content and adapting it for a TikTok audience, to show the reality and importance of their life-saving work.
Sarah Clarke, Head of membership
Save the Children UK – Delivering no-nonsense comms on social media
Head over to Save the Children’s social media channels if you want to see no-nonsense, impactful messaging that goes straight for the jugular. From the realities of drought in Somalia, to hunger in Afghanistan, we think you’ll agree how captivating their posts are in campaigning about the issues affecting children across the world – perfectly aligning to their mission.
As action on the cost-of-living crisis becomes ever more urgent their clear repeated messaging highlights the impact to families and calls for investment in social security. A great example is this TikTok which demonstrates how everyday costs have increased immensely since 2019 – utterly mind-blowing considering they are set to rise even further:
Adel Hanily, Digital content officer
Pregnant then screwed – Using bold, clear calls to action that inspire activity
Pregnant Then Screwed is dedicated to ending the motherhood penalty. Last year, they helped over 81,000 women with tailored support, and successfully campaigned for change. Their social media posts are bold, feature clear calls to action, and quickly inspire activity – last year these posts were engaged with over a million times, and they had 416 mentions of their work in national and international media. They’ve also had great success with getting cut through in Government, with their work being raised in Parliament by an MP or Minister every 11 days. Most recently, they’re using their voice to warn the Government that the childcare sector is on the brink of collapse. Their childcare campaign saw over 100k people sign their petition for an independent review of the childcare sector, triggering a Westminster Hall debate on the issue with cross-party support.
Vanessa Weddell, Head of events
Child Poverty Action Group & Realities Partnership – Showing the power of partnerships
There is no mistaking that charities’ voices are getting louder in this current costly climate. However, showing that two heads are better than one these two charities have worked in collaboration and chosen to use colourful depictions to get the message: “How much longer can we continue to squeeze…” across. Although their illustrations have been categorised as zines, their minimal-written message style is impactful as it challenges an individual to come to terms with the dire fact that some people will be affected more than others. Gaining attention can be difficult with so much content being thrown at audiences at any given time so numbering your words and relying on imaging, can really help get impactful messaging across.
Jolene Asante, Finance officer
RNIB – Tackling discrimination and big issues that are important to people
Getting your charity’s message across can feel like an impossible task at times. But this is an important area to focus on especially if your organisation wants to tackle discrimination and address issues that are important to people. The RNIB have achieved this fantastically over the last twelve months, raising important issues, highlighting discrimination and system failures and actively challenging people to think differently in order to ensure a fairer and more inclusive society for the visually impaired. The important work the RNIB does is particularly evident on their LinkedIn page, where they choose a topic, say for example regarding something that has happened to a visually impaired individual, that is important and is a clear breach of the law and highlight this to everyone. More than that they also address how these issues can be challenged and overcome. The result? An incredible highlighting of the importance of inclusivity, fair treatment and ultimately respect for all individuals regardless of disability.
Mark Maddison, Membership assistant
Discover which other charities are being bold on social media with Social Media Network: Being bold and managing risk available on-demand.
Our next Social Media Network will explore – Social media marketing: back to basics.
You may also enjoy reading: Charities using their social media voice to address big social issues.
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