When the news gets out about a great grant made by The Communities of Coastal Georgia Foundation, its a win-win situation. You, as the nonprofit recipient, receive the spotlight for the important work you are doing, which can spark the interest of other donors. The Foundation and its donors are recognized which promotes more investment in community programs and support for the permanent Coastal Community Endowment fund. Other local nonprofits learn about our grantmaking and are encouraged to contact us.
We publicize grants by issuing press releases to local media throughout our service area as well as featuring grant stories in our newsletters and annual reports, not to mention our website and our annual meeting. But we need your help to do that more effectively.
Your staff, board members and donors are the ones most familiar with what you have achieved and continue to work toward with a grant from the Foundation. Newspaper editors like to hear directly from a nonprofit and the people it benefits. If we work together, we can increase our success in spreading the word about both the work of your organization and the Foundation.
Tips for Publicizing your Grant
- Include news of your grant in any publications you produce for internal or public distribution. This can include brochures, annual reports, newsletters, etc. You can follow this link for our logo, and please contact our staff for quotes or background material.
- Contact local newspapers, daily and weekly, special interest publications, using either a press release, email, or phone call. Include contact information from key staff in your organization and appropriate quotes in the release.
- Include the Communities of Coastal Georgia Foundation name and logo on signs or plaques that recognize donors at your events or in facilities or publicity materials related to the program.
- Provide a link to the Foundation on your website. You can use the Foundation logo and set the link there.
- Follow this link for a list of media outlets and contacts. Feel free to send us a copy of your press release for quick review if you desire.
- Forward any clippings of articles or information about coverage in broadcast media. This helps us determine our success and build relationships for the future.
- Submit a couple of photographs that showcase your grant project. Please use high definition electronic versions, making sure that you have permission from the subjects to use the images. We will consider using them on our website, newsletter or annual report.
Photo Tips
There's no doubt that adding photography to your stories and articles will help convey the story of your work and the experience of your organization. The following tips were gathered from collectivelense.com.
Use photos to tell a story: "A picture is worth 1000 words," as they say. Imagery can go much further than written text to bring out the events and emotions of a particular cause or issue. One photo can describe a pressing situation, warm the heart of the viewer or cause your audience to react and respond. Furthermore, with multiple photos organized into a photo essay, an entire story can be told from the big picture to the smallest details in an efficient and effective manner.
Use photos to grab the attention of the viewer: In today's media-driven society, words alone cannot compete for the attention of your desired audience. With television, movies, YouTube, texting, and millions of competing websites, your message must make an instantaneous impact. This is especially true if you are vying for the attention of today's youth. If your message is text only, you should not expect most people to read more than five sentences. Lead with a powerful photo.
Use photos to create an emotional impact: Human faces attract the viewer's eye faster than any other subject matter. Use this to your advantage, and display photos that showcase the human impact of an important issue and the work that your organization is doing around it.
If you have any questions about publicizing your grant or would like to submit publicity samples or photos, contact Ellen Post at 912-268-2561.