Communications & Outreach (Foundation Building Best Practice Study Excerpt)

This chapter explores the different approaches foundations take in communications and outreach.

Example 1: A Communications Plan
Esquel Ecuador Foundation
Example 2: Activity Reports, Brochures and Events that Link to Business
Philippine Business For Social Progress
Example 3: Activity Reports and Publications for Community Partners
Social Change Assistance Trust (South Africa)
Example 4: Awareness-Raising Material, Articles and Events
Abrinq Foundation For Children's Rights (Brazil)

What Is a Communications Plan?

Summary Points

An evaluation of communications efforts can provide a useful platform to strengthen and think strategically about these efforts. In the early stages of institutional development, it is often a challenge to find the financial and human resources to launch a significant communications effort. Over time, however, the foundation will likely find that it becomes more critical to its credibility to invest in its communications. FEE started a process of refining and deepening its communications efforts by conducting an evaluation.
Visual communications -- graphics, videos and events -- can help to reach a broader audience and translate to many constituents. In addition to choosing strategic media to reach their rural grantees all over South Africa, Scat communications speak in a number of South Africa's local languages.
Recognizing excellent accomplishments and publicizing them encourages others to follow suit. The Abrinq Foundation's annual awards ceremony gives recognition to the efforts that it wants to support and promote. This social recognition creates a credibility for these efforts and builds awareness.
Publishing the comments and perceptions of constituents outside of the foundation can be an effective way to demonstrate accountability. PBSP, for instance, includes the report of an external program evaluator in its annual report. FEE tells its story in the voice of rural villagers and social activists throughout Ecuador. Beyond verifying that the foundations are indeed living up to their claims, this method of exposition can make for engaging reading.

A Communications Plan is the way in which a foundation, through a variety of communications materials, makes known its objectives and programs to influence action or build support. Some communications materials are:

Activity reports are records of what the foundation has done. Annual reports -- published on a yearly basis -- are common
Financial reports are records of how the foundation spends its money. Audited reports have been reviewed by an external auditor
Brochures generally give basic information on what the foundation is doing and how to contact it
Guidelines for grant seekers communicate application procedures and a foundation's specific restrictions and priorities on grants it can make
News and opinion articles may be placed in local media to influence public opinion and support

Why Do Foundations Want to Communicate?

Communications materials are often produced to project the foundation's image, to raise funding or to increase the foundation's impact on a social or economic issue.

Project an image: for example, a foundation may publish an annual report as one method of telling the public what it has done.
Raise funding: Many foundations draw a strong connection between raising funding and being able to communicate what they are doing.
Increase impact: A foundation may use its communications as a way of opening public dialogue or focusing attention on a social or economic issue. In this way, communications become part of the foundation's program.

With Whom Do Foundations Want to Communicate?

The four foundations highlighted in this chapter seek to communicate with recipients of their grant support, their financial supporters and the general public. Philippine Business for Social Progress and the Abrinq Foundation both have success in reaching businesses, the Esquel Ecuador Foundation (FEE) promotes a strong non-profit sector in Ecuador and the Social Change Assistance Trust (Scat) focuses on building shared values and understanding with the community groups it supports.