Writing To Make The News
9 a.m. to noon, Thursday, March 18
$95 REGISTER
Learn the basics and more: how to write a press release, the difference between a media alert, news release, and pitch letter, and how to produce polished versions of all three. Along the way, Alton Miller, author, press secretary to the late Harold Washington, and Columbia College dean offers insights into effective public relations. Learn:
• Pre-writing and preparation
• Editing to strengthen your writing skills
• How to deliver your messages in the context of an integrated marketing communication campaign
If you struggle to communicate your story ideas to the media, then it’s time to learn new writing techniques. Learn successful techniques to write clearly and concisely in ways that help deliver your messages starting as soon as your next news release.
Trainer: Alton Miller is currently associate dean of the School of Media Arts and a tenured associate professor at Columbia College Chicago, where he teaches public relations writing and political PR. The first half of his PR career (1965-85) was in the performing arts. From 1985-87 he was press secretary to Chicago mayor Harold Washington, and his PR work has continued in politics and arts advocacy, including work as communications director for Sen. Carol Moseley Braun, City Treasurer Miriam Santos, and the Illinois Arts Alliance. He is the author of three nonfiction books, including a memoir, “Harold Washington: The Mayor, The Man.” In 2005 he received his M.F.A. in Writing from Goddard College. His thesis was a political novel, “Chicago Power & Light.“
Take Social Media to the Next Level
9 a.m. to noon Thursday, March 4
218 S. Wabash – Rm 806
You have the Facebook page, you’re on Twitter, and you’re dabbling with many other social media platforms. Now, learn to use the tools to the max to tell your organization’s stories better and faster than you thought possible.
In this training you will learn how to:
• Assess which social media tools are right for your organization and strategy
• Craft a brand message to move online audiences to action
• Connect social media to existing/traditional advertising and communications
• Coordinate social media tools so your blog, Facebook page, Twitter feed, etc. present the same message
Adam Thurman has used social media and other strategies to help Court Theatre achieve some of the highest grossing productions in their more than 50-year history. He recommends this workshop for leaders who can make strategic decisions about your social media and overall policies.
Register Today! Cost $95
About Adam Thurman
Adam is president of Mission Paradox, a consulting firm that focuses on marketing and branding issues. As part of Mission Paradox he has led presentations and workshops for Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs, the Civic Knowledge Project and the Arts and Business Council.
He is also director of marketing and communications at Court Theatre, one of the largest nonprofit theatres in Chicago. During his tenure as director of marketing the theatre has had some of the highest grossing productions in their more than 50-year history.
Adam is a former board member of the League of Chicago Theatres and has served on the Illinois Arts Council’s Advisory Panel. He has been recognized as an Emerging Leader by Americans For the Arts and the Theatre Communication Group. He has also been featured in Time Out Chicago, the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Artist Resource.
Emily Culbertson lead a "social media need to know" workshop and Sue O'Halloran presented her popular storytelling workshop in Lansing in November.
Learn to tell stories that sing and use channels that work!
When: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday, March 4 DATE TBA!
Where: ARISE Detroit, 5830 Field, Detroit
We’ve postponed the next in our popular series of day-long conferences on nonprofit communications to make sure that we have enough time to get the word out about the event and that folks are able to make time in their schedules to get there! If you have questions, please contact Gordon Mayer.
Want more information? Read about a similar event, held in Lansing in November, here. See feedback from participants at that event here.
Co-sponsored by Michigan Nonprofit Association and ARISE Detroit, underwritten by Charles Stewart Mott Foundation.
Social Media Need To Know For Managers
9 a.m. to noon, Wednesday, Feb. 17
What we need to know about social media changes all the time as nonprofits change how we use online tools and share. This workshop will help those who supervise work with external audiences as well as those doing it day to day to think through some of the challenges it presents to the organization as well as one or two of the most significant new hands-on skills to have.
In this session you will learn:
• How and why nonprofits are leading in adopting Facebook, Twitter, blogs and more social media tools
• Listening techniques—simple ways to ensure your organization is participating in online conversations that relate to you and your work areas
• Common issues that come up as nonprofits add social media to their communications toolkits and how to lead your organization through them
Whether you run your organization or not, find out what kind of changes using Web 2.0 tools such as Facebook, Twitter, and blogs may bring to your organization and assess how to lead you’re your group through those changes.
Register Today!
About Emily
Before moving to Chicago in 2008, Emily Culbertson was Web managing director at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, where she co-led a re-launch of RWJF.org in June 2008 and helped coordinate the foundation’s social media. Prior to that she was a senior account manager and eHealth strategist at I-SITE, a Philadelphia-based web agency, and she began her web career as a multimedia editor for the University of Pennsylvania Health System’s consumer Web site. She has also covered federal courts for the Associated Press, several Philadelphia suburban daily newspapers and Philadelphia’s legal daily newspaper. Culbertson is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania with a bachelor’s degree in urban studies.
Getting On Air, Online & Into Print
9 to 11 a.m. Tuesday, January 12
Presented by Demetrio Maguigad, REGISTER
Learn to incorporate the 2010 Getting On Air, Online & Into Print media guide into your communications plan as well as how to get the most from the digital portion of the guide, from installation to basic and advance media searches along with other tips and tricks. LuAnn Wing of Aid Africa’s Children said of this session recently, “I learned about sources to check out and examples of how people solved their marketing/PR problem. It was very helpful in understanding how things work.”
Sign up now for Professional Media Relations
9 a.m. to noon Fridays from January 22 to February 19
Hardly anyone ever went to school to learn how to lead communications for a nonprofit—this workshop is as close you can come.
Participants in PMR, which has been delivered for 20 years now, have gone on to make careers as communication directors at large nonprofits and foundations. Find out why this cornerstone workshop has been called a nonprofit communications university. Updated to keep up with changes in news, the sessions will cover: Read the rest of this entry »
Monday, November 9th @ 2 p.m. to 3:15 p.m. – Webinar / Register Today!
Spending time and money trying to market your nonprofit or its programs without a strategy in place is a big waste of both precious resources. But who has time to create in-depth, well-researched strategies when there is so much “mission” work to do?
During this webinar, you’ll learn how to find the middle ground – to create a “quick and dirty” marketing strategy. You’ll learn the steps that you need to go through to create marketing strategies for your nonprofit organization as a whole or for a specific campaign or program. Even if you only spend a couple of hours drafting your strategy, you’ll greatly increase the likelihood that your efforts will work. You’ll also gain a better understanding for when “quick and dirty” isn’t enough and you do need to embark on a more intensive planning process.
During the webinar, Kivi Leroux Miller will walk three participants through the process of creating a quick strategy.
Register Today
Monday, November 2: 9AM to 11AM – FREE WORKSHOP
218 S. Wabash- Rm 919
The event is FREE but registration required
http://www.gifttool.com/registrar/ShowEventDetails?ID=1253&EID=5167
Learn to incorporate the 2010 Getting On Air, Online and Into Print media guide in building your communications plan. You will also learn how to use the digital version of the media guide from installation to basic and advance media searches along with other tips and tricks to maximize your usage of this tool.
Trainer Demetrio Maguigad is New Media Manager at Community Media Workshop, where he leads on producing Getting on the Air, Online & into Print and on all things new media. Previously he was Educational Director for Video Machete and a Communications Specialist for American Friends Service Committee in Chicago. He has presented his work at various institutions and conferences including the Midwest Social Forum (Milwaukee), Making Media Connections (Chicago & Detroit), Contested Spaces at University of Chicago, Grant Makers in the Arts for the Open Society Institute, the Museum of Television & Radio (New York), and AOL-Time Warner Foundation among others.
Search Engine Optimization For Success
Friday, November 6: 9 a.m. to noon
218 S. Wabash- Rm 919
Register Today!
http://www.gifttool.com/registrar/ShowEventDetails?ID=1253&EID=4956
This workshop covers a variety of tips and techniques you can use to increase search engine ranking and subsequently steer traffic to your site. Based on content from his upcoming book on digital marketing for Focal Press, workshop moderator Tim Frick will discuss blogs, content management systems, RSS feeds, social media, and a wealth of other topics, all of which can help grow both your online presence and your nonprofit. Register Today! http://www.gifttool.com/registrar/ShowEventDetails?ID=1253&EID=4956
Trainer Tim has provided creative media services to an extensive client list since the early 1990s. His work has received numerous awards and has appeared in many publications, web sites, and television broadcasts as well as at Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art. He has held positions on the board of the Association for Multimedia Communications, the Advisory Committees of the Illinois Institute of Art’s Animation and Interactive Media Departments, and the Interactive Media Department of Columbia College. Tim is the author of Managing Interactive Media Projects, an interactive media process guide from Cengage-Delmar Learning. For more information, check out Tim’s blog or his profile on LinkedIn.
Recognize these brands? The Red Cross, United Way and the YMCA…
There’s a conscious effort for nonprofits to build their brand. If your nonprofit needs a jump-start, we’ve got the training for you! Register for Branding for Nonprofits.
Tell us who you think is doing a great job branding their organization. Does your logo speak well to your mission? Does your messaging use the right metephors? Tell us…
