Welcome to the second blog post! You’re now considered an early adopter and a trend-setter!

Last week I wanted to share a bit about me and Signify, so you’d have a little context for our budding relationship. So, I hope you had a chance to read that post, but if not, you can do that first by clicking here.

Now, we’re going to get right to work!

I’d like to spend the next six weeks on a series I’ll call “Foundations.” These are my go-to pieces of advice. They are the things I continually talk organizations through, both for- and non-profit, and I believe they are, well, the foundations of any successful business. (Clever name, huh?) Some of them will probably be easier for you than others, but all will be well worth your time. Whether your organization has been around for many years, or you’re still in the concept stage, consider this your “Start Here” series because you likely need improvement in at least one of these areas.

Okay, so straight out of the gate, I’ve decided to give you my number one tip for just about everything. That’s right: Business, personal, relationships. Pretty much anything except sugar and carbs can benefit from this advice, which is really unfortunate for me, and sugar, and carbs. But it’s so important that it tops my list. And that is . . . drumroll, please . . .

CONSISTENCY.

Free Up Time and Energy to Be More Consistent

That’s right, repeat after me, consistency. It’s one of the top mistakes, if not the top mistake, that I see people making. And that could show up in a number of ways, but for this purpose, we’ll discuss it in relation to your marketing and communication efforts.

I don’t have to tell you that good intentions really don’t get you anywhere, and they’re certainly the enemy of consistency. I’ve spoken with scores of well-meaning individuals who had good intentions for a weekly blog post, daily social media content, an updated website, new head shots, monthly white papers, or ______. (Feel free to fill in the blank.) But every day, our To Do list spirals out of control, co-workers drop by with the latest news, customers or donors call to complain, coffee breaks or lunches linger—and on and on and on. So, before you know it, all you’re left with is a pile of ideas and no time left to execute them.

IF YOU WANT PEOPLE TO PAY ATTENTION TO YOU AND YOUR CAUSE, YOU NEED TO BE CONSISTENT.

Your supporters want updates. Did you hear that? They WANT updates. They don’t need them, they want them!

Now, if you consider yourself a business that doesn’t need any more fans, followers, supporters, donors, customers or friends, you have my full permission to stop reading now. You’re nailing it, and we’re all looking forward to your upcoming class. But if you find yourself lacking in any of those categories, you probably need to work on your consistency.

Think about it: Do you want to know when your favorite brands are having sales or launching initiatives or holding events or celebrating milestones or building wells or rescuing survivors? Yes—you do! And that’s because you’ve signed up for their updates. So, why wouldn’t you return the favor for your fans?

Maybe you’re great at Facebook, but not so much with Twitter. Maybe your email list hears regularly from you, but your social media is quiet. Maybe your website is new and beautiful, but you haven’t actually directed anyone there. Maybe you have an event coming up in a few months, but have done nothing to promote it.

Take a moment to assess your strengths and weaknesses. Write it down somewhere, physically or digitally. And then make a plan to start making small, regular improvements.

If you’re just starting out, don’t get caught up in what you’ve heard about how frequently you should be doing any of these things. That will lead to overwhelm and frustration if you start falling behind. To begin, just figure out what is realistic for you and build from there. Then, make adjustments as you go.

CONSISTENCY BUILDS CREDIBILITY.

Work toward consistency. Your fans will take notice and grow. And you’ll be able to deepen your relationships with them as well. Because let’s face it, if you’re only talking to them when you need something, you’ll become a bad taste in their mouths.

One of the push-backs I often hear in regards to this strategy is, “What if I don’t know what to say, or run out of things to say?” Good question!

I used to work at a public relations firm. And I spent a lot of time both announcing news, and making it up. The latter is because we didn’t want to be out of sight, out of mind with the fans of our clients. I know you don’t want that either, and I realize it’s a valid concern. But the truth is, you can always make something up. I don’t mean to be deceptive, of course, but there is likely information you’re sitting on that you didn’t think about releasing. For example, you can give a shout out to your employee of the month, show a photo of the company office, relay a famous quote that fits your mission, or remind people of other places they can follow your brand online. There really is always something.

No one knows your brand like your employees, but often we treat fans as if they are employees, disregarding that they need further education, or at least a reminder.

So, there you go: Consistency is key. It’s my number one tip. And if we had a conversation, I can almost guarantee that it would come up at some point.

Do yourself a favor and take a look at your current marketing and communications efforts to spot the areas lacking in consistency. This one concept can be a game-changer! Yes, it’s hard to do, whether you run solely on volunteers or have 5,000 employees. But it’s something you owe your organization and your fans.

And if you are consistent at something, by all means, brag about it! Share it in the comments below.

By the way, I also touch on this idea in my guide to the "5 THINGS TO STOP DOING THIS WEEK" to jumpstart your marketing and communications if you’d like to dig a little deeper.

Read the other posts in this series:

PIN THIS POST FOR LATER:

Kristi Porter, founder of www.signify.solutions

I'm Kristi Porter, and I started Signify to provide writing, consulting and strategy services to nonprofits and for-profit organizations with a social mission, primarily through copywriting, marketing and business communications. I believe that cause-focused organizations like yours are the future of business. You're proof that companies can both make money and do good. And I'm here to help you get noticed and grow. When you succeed, we all win.

Well, hi there! Thanks for reading my very first post! To kick things off, I just wanted to share a little about me and why I decided to create Signify. Let’s consider this a get to know you kind of thing—like a first date, but way less awkward.

The founding of Signify—writing, consulting and strategy for nonprofits and for-profits with a social mission.

I’m Kristi Porter, the founder of Signify. I’ve been a professional writer for 13 years, which includes both full-time and freelance work. I’ve written for the hospitality industry (primarily restaurants), lifestyle profiles, churches and ministries, an environmental foundation, a Christian events and curriculum company, a footware retailer, a skincare company and spa, a Christian event planner magazine, a frozen yogurt company, and a few others—and that was all before Signify! I think good writing translates across just about any industry, so I took advantage of most every opportunity that came to me.

Through those varied experiences, I realized that my most fulfilling work came from collaborating with cause-focused organizations. That is, for- and non-profit companies that began with, or centered, on a social mission. (If you need some examples, take a look at my stellar clients.) Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of working with a number of them, and often, it began with friends.

I am lucky to have a number of friends who started nonprofits, social justice organizations and social enterprises. And in learning from them and others like them, I kept coming back to the same conclusions. First, most all of them got into their profession because they had a heart for the work, and were fantastic at their mission, but few had any real marketing and communications training. Second, because many of them were small, they couldn’t afford to hire someone like me permanently, but they could often find the funds for project work. Third, there were a lot more businesses out there like them.

So, when I began thinking about leaving my full-time position as an Event Marketing Director, all of these thoughts kept running through my mind.

I loved what my friends were doing.

I wanted to help.

I had the skills to do so.

And Signify was born. (Ok, more or less born. This took months to flesh out!) But my friends were my inspiration, as has been true so many times in my life, and these were the types of companies that I wanted to succeed so others would support them too.

I chose the name Signify after months of agonizing. I love single words with multiple meanings, so I did a lot of brainstorming, stream-of-conscious writing, and looked up about a thousand words on thesaurus.com. I liked Signify right away, but still sat with it for a couple of weeks before telling anyone. This is so much easier when it’s not your own company, am I right?

SIGNIFY MEANS TO MAKE KNOWN,

TO SYMBOLIZE,

AND TO BE IMPORTANT.

I didn’t want to just name the company after myself, which is totally fine, but I wanted it to represent more of the synergy between myself and my clients, and the community of do-good organizations everywhere who are championing a purpose and mission to make things better. So, I felt Signify did that . . . all in one little word.

One final note is that I especially love small businesses. I’ve worked in a number of them. They’re scrappy, interested in learning, and teach employees a variety of skills instead of just focusing on one. They’re budding with potential, and often just need some knowledge and a nudge in the right direction. Now, don’t get me wrong, if you’re huge and have piles of money to throw at someone, I’m your girl! But I try to remain reasonably priced and accessible so I don’t leave the little guys behind. They got me to where I am!

Ok, so that’s a bit about me and Signify! Questions? Ask me in the comments, and I’ll do my best to answer. You can also read a few fun facts over on my About page.

If you’re a nonprofit or purpose-driven for-profit organization, I'd love to keep in touch. I want to help you FOCUS your message AND SHINE in the world!

Get Weekly Tips, Advice, and Trends to Support Your Cause

PS: A big shout-out to my inspiration: Katrell, Latasha, Eryn, Anne, Jeff, Patti, Holly, Nelli, Mark, Meier...and the others I’ve undoubtedly forgotten (So sorry)! You are amazing, and the world is a better place because of your work—and so am I!