How the CA Drought Can Make Us Better Communicators

Ah, summer. The season of flip flops, sweet stone fruit, county fairs and Slip N Slides. But here in California—where Cause calls home—this summer marks the fourth consecutive year of a major drought. Residents of the Golden State are constantly reminded of the lack of water and all of the measures we should be taking to conserve this precious resource. Still, as someone who prefers to see the glass half full (an expression that feels especially decadent in this context), I can’t help but reflect on how this scarcity of water has also brought an abundance of lessons when it comes to being an effective communicator. Our garden hoses may have slowed to a trickle, but there is a steady stream of communications best practices just waiting to be tapped.

LA’s Save the Drop campaign has raised awareness about the drought, providing communications lessons along the way. Image via lamayor.org

Here are four ways the California drought can teach us to become better communicators.

Get the right spokesperson. Your message matters, but so does the messenger. Have you noticed how often Governor Jerry Brown has been out there on the frontlines of drought-related communications? By positioning Governor Brown as a spokesperson—rather than using a staffer or lesser-known water expert—the messages are delivered with authority and gravitas. Here in Los Angeles, Mayor Garcetti has tapped actor and comedian Steve Carell to narrate one of the city’s Save the Drop campaign videos. The warmth and familiarity of Carell’s voice is inviting and keeps us watching the video long enough to absorb the message. Brown and Carell were strategic choices, and nonprofit communicators need to be just as thoughtful when selecting who should represent their cause. The right messenger is essential for connecting with and influencing the behavior of your audiences.

Tailor messages to your audience. The Save the Drop campaign in Los Angeles has kept its target audiences in mind when creating content. Messages are framed in a way that encourages people to treat water like they’d treat a friend, appealing to one’s loyalty, empathy and commitment. Think of how resentful we’d be if all of the messages we heard took on a demanding, prescriptive tone that makes water conservation feel like a chore. Additionally, making these campaign messages and conservation resources available in Spanish helps ensure even more people receive this information. Customizing your message for your cause is essential if you want the value of your work to be understood and if you want to build a community of engaged advocates, volunteers and donors.

Visit CauseClarity.org for tips on how to manage your contacts.

Be more efficient. Tips on how to conserve water are everywhere. My favorite? Toilets account for more than 25% of a household’s indoor water use, so swapping out your regular toilet with a low flush model will save money and water. Increasing your efficiency is just as important in communications. In the social sector, time often feels like a commodity as rare as water—and goodness knows we’re always trying to do more with less when it comes to budgets. One of the best ways to bring greater efficiency to your organization is to develop a functional system for organizing and managing your contacts. Doing so can improve workflow, facilitate information sharing and help you engage those contacts strategically.

Offer an incentive. Water utilities in Southern California are now offering rebates to homeowners who remove their water-guzzling lawns, creating a financial incentive for those who answer the state’s call to action. In the nonprofit sector, effecting a behavioral change or convincing someone to support your cause also requires providing some sort of value to your audience. An incentive doesn’t have to be a tangible reward, but you do need to help your audience understand what’s in it for them and why they should care.

We’ve drawn the connection between the drought and good communications, but how do you put these best practices into action? Check out Cause Clarity, an initiative of Cause, for three-minute “How-To” videos and downloadable worksheets. These bite-sized courses in communications cover 15 topics, including those mentioned here.

We might not see the neighborhood kids glide across a Slip N Slide on the front lawn this summer (especially after their parents replace the grass with native cacti), but we can use communications to advance great causes and make those kids’ world a little better for many summers to come.