Here’s the beginning of a narrative arc. It’s not ‘the’ narrative I’m suggesting; it’s a template to spark the conversation.
December: Introduction. Beginnings. Who we are (as an institution and as individuals that the audience will be hearing from over time). Lay out the story.
This is a story that begins in our recession struck neighborhoods, isolated rural areas, ignored reservations, resource starved schools and universities, and consumerism captivated enclaves. But it will end with a might roar of people power in Detroit, a roar powerful enough to push back against Wall Street, K Street, the Halliburtos, Walmarts and Goldman Sachs stalking our land. We invite you to be our partner, our strength, our wisdom and our inspiration.
Establish some emotional themes: USSF as a welcoming place, a comfort and an inspiration for movement people.
Asks: donate now, as much as you can to set us off right. Be one of the first 100 sustainers. Our sustainers spread the word to at least 10 email addresses on our tell a friend form, OR give $20 a month for 6 months, or give $100 before the end of the year.
January: Exciting start to a new year. Emotional tone: energy and work is getting done. Share plans about our progress. Who is hired, what committees have accomplished, how much we raised and need to raise, preparations in Detroit. Think about some metrics: goals for how many people from different parts of the country. Highlight local efforts – city or constituency based efforts to draw people in.
Test messaging to determine best language for asks.
Asks: focus on sustainers. Roll out pledge pages. Make it possible for people to fundraise for their own participation, or better yet, for cash that can be used for group travel and lodging.
February: Detroit as a theme. How the city is changing because of our plans, how we might be changed by the city. Emotion: determination in the face of a cold hard winter and economy.
Celebrate sustainers. Stories about people looking forward to attending for the first time.
Asks: focus on pledging, group fundraising efforts. Experiment with regional asks – ‘50% of all funds raised this month will be used for youth scholarships from New York.’
March: Spring. Rebirth. Joyful resistance. Images of USSF Staff at work, in person Detroit folks, report backs from local organizing efforts. Test videos for fundraising impact.
Escalate the ‘I’m going to Detroit and sharing my journey’ stories that are shared on social media. Consider: scholarships awarded via raffle, in exchange for promotional efforts, friend and fundraising efforts, blog promotions, etc.
Asks: focus on ‘make your plans for the summer right now.’ Start working with existing donors to expand the circle. ‘You donated. Can you find one more donor? Use this language.’
April: Travel. Plan, train, car, bus, or what? Use transport language so folks are visualizing how they are getting here. More concrete language about what attending will look like. Describe what attending will be like, using Detroit landmarks, vip surrogates talking about what they hope to get out of it, snapshots of interesting sessions being planned. Lots more video please…. Theme: on the road to Detroit.
May: Urgency. People are on the edge. To go or not to go? We need your help to expand the circle of attendees. Emphasis: local efforts constituency efforts to build participation. Highlight stories about people ‘deciding to come after all.’ Fundraising might focus on things that help others make it. ‘Can’t make it? Help someone who wants to come but needs help.’
June: celebration. Lots of content. Focus on messaging about the political goals of the social forum, prepping the network that will relay Forum events, blog posts, live video feeds, etc.
July: help us close out properly. Raise money for Detroit hosts, pay back debt, produce documentary, etc.
GENERAL notes…
- Emails should be short and have specific asks that vary over time. Most weeks, we should only send one email; that email should be linked to a previous email, and set the stage for a future email.
- Different constituencies want to be heard/recognized in our messaging. That’s great! Think about how to fold them in to an existing sequence. For example, Palestinian supporters mark May as Nakba day. So we can plan on using a surrogate like Nadia Hijab to author the fundraising email around that time, and allow for some messaging about solidarity. But not a special email only about that….
- There could be an email that is more like a newsletter, with notes about working groups activities, etc. But that should go to the smaller constituency that is highly engaged. The larger list we build should NOT be like a newsletter, with multiple stories and lots of different options for what can do. Each email pushes a primary link to be clicked on, with perhaps a secondary link mindful of who is excluded. (example: an appeal for funds can include opportunities for ‘friend raising’.)
- Note that we’re constructing a story where the USSF is at the center, not the periphery. So instead of starting and ending with national politics or international events, we’re pushing OUR story of the USSF. There are other messengers on our behalf who will write more thoughtful pieces about how this connects politically, etc. We can link or mention the best of those efforts. But it’s not the job of this group. (my opinion, of course….)
- We should think about realistic goals. How many donors? How much raised?
