Brianna Gallett and Amanda Draxton

• Why craft a communications plan?

• Elements of a communications plan

• Putting it together: Example plan

• Questions

1. Provides a roadmap for PROACTIVE activities

2. Supports STRATEGIC messaging

3. Gives DIRECTION for content development efforts

4. Sets a BASELINE for measurement

5. Establishes RESOURCE requirements – people, money and time

• Who We Are & Situational Analysis

• Goals

• Target Audiences & Their Motivators

• Key Messages & Spokespeople

• Strategies & Tactics

• Execution Timeline

• Measurement

• Resource Allocation

Key attributes of defining Who You Are:

• Specificity

• Honesty

• Differentiators

Questions to ask when defining who you are:

• How does our mission differentiate us from other

organizations?

• What statistics do we have that may compel

audiences to move/react?

Transparent Eats is the first food program of its kind in Minnesota. We work with more than

50 retailers and farmers around the state, helping thousands of customers annually to navigate

today’s confusing food landscape. We work collaboratively with individual retailers and the

Midwestern Co-op Foundation to publicly interpret food labels, raise awareness for and

promote ingredient transparency, and encourage sustainable agricultural practices.

Our cooperative, grassroots approach helps Transparent Eats achieve its mission to improve

the local community’s relationship with food by educating retailers, customers and cultivators

about today’s complicated food industry, and providing resources to take actionable steps

toward more informed – and as a result, healthier – eating.

Key attributes of Goals:

• Focused

• Realistic in quantity

Questions to ask when drafting your goals:

• What does our organization need to accomplish

(i.e. business goals)?

• What are our priorities? Which are most important?

• What goals can communications help achieve?

Organizational Goals:

• Build broad awareness of Transparent Eats in the Twin Cities Metro, as well as in the

communities where we hope to expand

• Increase our network of retailers

• Strengthen resources to attract, educate and retain organizations and individuals committed

to advocating on behalf of, or donating to, Transparent Eats

Communication Goals:

• Create awareness beyond the Twin Cities into a number of rural retailers, especially in

Southern Minnesota communities.

• Create an accurate depiction of the facts and politics behind food labels through ongoing

media outreach and strengthened communications with retailers.

Questions to ask when defining your audiences:

• Who is our target audience? Are there primary and secondary

audiences within this group?

• What do we know about our audience? What gets them

motivated? What do we want them to know about us?

• Where can we reach our target audience? What channels

(social, events, email lists) do they frequent? Do we have these

channels available to us?

Questions to ask to determine what motivates your audiences:

• What do we want them to THINK, DO and FEEL?

• When should we reach out? Is there a good time for your

organization – for your audience?

• Prospective retailers

• Local farmers/food cultivators

• Program advocates and prospective partners in local communities

• Board/staff members

• Donors and the broader public

Key attributes of Key Messages:

• True

• Concise

• Memorable

• Human

• Call to Action

Key attributes of a Spokesperson:

• They must be willing to do it – even excited to do it

• They must have a tough skin and ability to stand up to the spotlight

• They must reflect your organization’s values and image

• They must be willing to learn and adapt

+• Planning

• Large Scale

• Why

• Difficult to Copy

• Long Time Frame

+• Doing

• Smaller Scale

• How

• Easy to Copy

• Short Time Frame

+• Engage the following advocates to help

tell our organization’s story by:

• Recruit and retain volunteers by:

• Maintain communications with key donors by:

• Build our organization’s reputation by:

+• Newsletters, email blasts

• Website and social media

• Podcasting

• Advertising and brochures

• Special events and speaking engagements

• Media relations and blogger activations

THIS IS A STRATEGY

• Identify and share compelling stories in our communications that showcase the impact

Transparent Eats has on Southern Minnesota communities.

• Create engaging content and orgaizational key messages that share information and drive

conversation around food labeling.

…these are not

• Identify local key media and bloggers who regularly cover food or agriculture, and begin

building a relationship with them

• Identify local meetings or other influencer gatherings during which we could tell the

Transparent Eats story

TACTICS:

• Story Mining

• Key Message Development

• Talking Points and Spokesperson Q&A

• Social content Development – images, copy, editorial calendar

• Media Training for Spokespeople

• Media List Development, Pitches and Outreach

• Retail Partners/Volunteers Communications Materials

Timeline: What are your opportunities to communicate?

• Key legislative issues

• Release of relevant study or research

• Start of new program

• Major organizational milestone

• Cultural moments (local, national or global)

Resources: What resources will we allocate to this plan?

• Staff time, volunteer time, budget

Measurement: How will we monitor progress and measure success on

our action plan?

• XX increase in donations or members, event attendance

• Positive news coverage appearing in XX publication

• Board and volunteer participation

The communications plan will be guided by several measurable objectives, including:

• Increasing earned media coverage featuring Transparent Eats in 2019 by 30 percent in key

outlets that your target audience views

• 80 percent pull through of Transparent Eats key messages

Timeframe Key Activities/Deliverables

PHASE I: ESTABLISH PLAN AND KEY MESSAGES

January● Background and Immersion Meeting

● Communication planning session

February● Finalize communication plan

● Schedule key messages, media training and social media sessions

March

● Receive plan input and approval and present to Transparent Eats board

● Conduct key messages session, story mining and complete pitching grid

● Finalize media list

● Update volunteer and donor communications strategy

PHASE II: SHARING AND EXECUTION

April

● Finalize key messages; Conduct media training

● Prioritize pitching grid and establish timeline for executing collaborative media outreach efforts

● Finalize list of retailer and partner development tactics and establish timeline for deliverables

● Develop retailer communication materials; Establish outreach calendar for communications

May

● Conduct social media audit and coaching

● Execute traditional and online/blogger media relations outreach in alignment with growing season, staff interviews in partnership with Transparent Eats

● Develop the Fast Facts media sheet

● Execute volunteer and donor development tactics

June - November● Execute traditional and online/blogger media relations outreach, with a focus on mindful fall harvest and labels going into the winter preservation season

● Execute retailer and partner development tactic

PHASE III: MEASUREMENT

December ● Evaluate against objectives and begin planning for 2020