Your co-op is incorporated, your board is trained, and your co-op is ready to work towards some initial goals.
This is a great time to create a communications plan.
Communication is a key function of any business or organization and involves developing and delivering messages and information to the people who need to hear them. Co-ops have several audiences they’ll need to reach with messages about their business – members, customers, suppliers, employees, investors, and more.
Having a plan that outlines what you want to say about your co-op and how you will say it is crucial. And because co-ops are owned and operated by a group of people, having a plan will ensure everyone is on the same page about what the co-op’s messages are and how to communicate them.
To create a communications plan for your co-op, get your board together and follow these steps:
First, what are you trying to accomplish? There may be several things the co-op is trying to do at once, and these things will change over time as your business grows and progresses.
Think first about your goals – broad statements about the direction you want your co-op to go. What does your co-op need to do right now? Is it most important that you grow your membership? Raise money? Introduce your co-op to the community? For this exercise, choose your most pressing goal – the one that will have the biggest impact and help the co-op build momentum.
Now, set some objectives. These are more specific statements about what you are going to accomplish and should help you reach the goal you’ve identified.
For these, you can use the SMART formula – make your objectives Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-based. An objective can be something like “gain 15 co-op members by May 30th”, or “raise $50,000 by the end of the year”.
Now that you know what you want to accomplish, who do you need to communicate with to make it happen? Is it one audience or more? Understanding those you need to reach will help you figure out how to reach them and what kinds of messages will resonate.
To help with this, answer the following questions:
Now you know who you’re talking to and what you want from them, it’s time to figure out what you need to say to get them on board.
A value proposition comes in handy here.
If the audience is your co-op’s membership, this should be straightforward: because you’re a co-op, the members will likely be people like you who have similar goals. You created the co-op because you shared a common problem with others, so you’ll already know what this group wants and needs to hear.
If you need to reach funders, investors, or others, think about how your co-op can help them reach their goals. Do you need local people to invest in your co-op? A good message might be to tell them how your co-op will benefit the local economy and help sustain the community.
When telling your co-op’s story, it’s good practice to think of your audience as the hero. The hero has a problem. Your business is the helpful guide that will help the hero succeed.*
Re-write your value proposition to centre your audience and say how your business can help them reach their goals. Remember to include a “call to action” in your message. What do you want your audience to do?
You now have a central message that you want your audience to know. Make sure your whole board knows the message and is comfortable delivering it – being consistent as you share it.
You know your audience, what you want them to do, and what you want to say to them. Now – how are you going to get your message to them? Have some fun with this, and think about what the group likes and how they communicate. For example, young audience members might prefer social media, while older members might like traditional methods like newsletters or community bulletin boards. Also, think about the kind of information you want to share. If it’s urgent, email might work best. If it’s educational, a blog or video might be better.
It’s also important to think about how well each channel works. Social media is popular, but not everyone sees posts. Emails and messages go straight to people, but you need to keep contact lists updated. Using a variety of channels can help you make sure you get your message to everyone.
Some ways you can share your message include:
You should now have a good outline of a communications plan – but how will you carry it out?
As a board, take an inventory of the skills around the table. Is one of your members a good writer? Photographer? Tech or social media-savvy? You may have one or more members who can volunteer to put communications materials together and get them out to your audience, based on what you’ve decided above.
However, your board is also busy, and it’s important to do what you can manage. It might take a lot of work to keep social media updated, for example. If your board isn’t able to do it, think about whether you could hire someone to manage social media accounts, write newsletters, design a website, contact the media (or do any of the other tactics you’ve decided on).
You’ve set goals and come up with ways to achieve them – the last piece is figuring out how you’ll measure your success.
You can use both numbers and personal feedback to see how you’re doing. For example, you can look at website visits, likes or shares on social media, or how many people sign up for memberships or buy from your co-op. Asking your audience for their opinions through surveys or interviews can give you a deeper understanding of their feelings about your message.
It’s also a good idea to establish a timeline for checking in on your progress. This way, you can keep track of how things are going and change your plans if needed. Make it a point to regularly review the information you collect and share your results with your team and members. By consistently improving your approach based on feedback, you’ll ensure your communications plan is effective and you’re always engaging your audiences.
Are you a new co-op in Western Canada? We can help you create your communications plan!
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