The Smart Communications Podcast - podcast cover

The Smart Communications Podcast

Big Duckbigducknyc.com
The Smart Communications Podcast helps busy nonprofit leaders build their communications skills and develop their organization’s voice. Every episode shares insights and practical tips to help you leverage strategic communications to advance your nonprofit’s mission.

Episodes

Episode 187: How can you shape your AI brand footprint?

How does AI perceive your nonprofit brand? Farra Trompeter, co-director, is joined by George Weiner, founder and chief whaler at Whole Whale, to explore “AI brand footprints” and how to proactively shape your visibility in tools like ChatGPT and Google’s AI search. They explore how traditional SEO is shifting and what you can do to revisit your content strategy.

May 29, 202519 min

Episode 185: How can you approach AI with an equity lens?

Are you curious about using AI without compromising your values? In this episode, Farra Trompeter, co-director, chats with Meena Das, founder of Namaste Data, to unpack findings from the AI Equity Project and offer practical advice for nonprofits navigating this evolving technology.

Apr 30, 202525 min

Episode 184: Should your organization consider a merger?

What happens when two mission-aligned nonprofits decide to merge? Farra Trompeter, co-director, chats with Idealist’s founder and executive director, Ami Dar, about their recent merger with VolunteerMatch—and what other orgs can learn from it.

Apr 16, 202524 min

Episode 183: How can you break free from being busy?

Are you constantly busy but never feel accomplished? Farra Trompeter, co-director, and Kishshana Palmer, author, discuss Kishshana’s book, Busy Is a Four-Letter Word: A Guide to Achieving More by Doing Less, what it means to work smarter, not harder, and offer practical insights for how personal development is professional development

Apr 02, 202530 min

Episode 182: How can you build resilient nonprofit organizations and teams?

Resilience isn’t just a buzzword—it’s essential for nonprofit success. Farra Trompeter, co-director, and Peter Heller, founder of Heller Fundraising Group, explore what it means when staff are resilient and supported, and how leaders can support their teams, adapt to change, and fundraise for a strong future.

Mar 19, 202519 min

Episode 181: How do we foster healthy group participation?

Healthy participation is a process not an outcome. How do we create spaces where everyone feels valued and engaged? Sarita Joseph, director of accounts, and Josh Kelley, senior account manager, explore the importance of this topic and share practical tips to enhance collaboration, inclusivity, and effectiveness in nonprofit settings.

Mar 05, 202516 min

Episode 180: Is it time to reboot your communications strategy?

Is it time to reboot your nonprofit’s communications strategy? In this episode, Kivi Leroux Miller, founder and CEO of the Nonprofit Marketing Guide, and Farra Trompeter, co-director, discuss the latest nonprofit communications trends, the need to focus, evolve, and reflect on approaches, challenges staff face, and why nonprofits may need to reboot their communication strategy.

Feb 19, 202522 min

Episode 179: How can a language guide help your nonprofit?

Language shapes how nonprofits connect, engage, and drive impact. Ally Dommu, director of service development, and Ryan Gerhard, copy director, explore why a language guide is helpful, how it differs from a brand guide, and the steps needed to create one.

Feb 05, 202518 min

Episode 178: How can values strengthen your organization?

Is it the right moment to update your organization's values? Brenda Perez, Senior Account Manager, and Claire Taylor Hansen, co-director, explore how values can unify teams and organizations, guiding both internal culture and external communication. They share tips to create meaningful values that reflect your mission and spark alignment, whether you’re in a nonprofit, worker-owned cooperative, or other organization with shared beliefs.

Jan 22, 202519 min

Episode 177: How can you engage your community with campaigns?

Farra Trompeter, co-director, talks with Nicholas Bruneau, communications consultant and author of Engage with Impact. Together, they explore how nonprofits can use the AGILE framework to create effective campaigns, deepen community engagement, and drive real-world change. They share actionable tips for nonprofits to foster collaboration, and turn social media followers into active partners.

Jan 08, 202520 min

Episode 176: How do you plan and communicate about leaving an organization?

Is succession and continuity planning a standard practice in your organization? Farra Trompeter, co-director, joins Sarah Durham, founder of Big Duck, to explore why it’s smart for executive directors and senior leaders to plan their eventual departures. They discuss the key factors that influence decisions to leave, strategies for communicating exit plans effectively, and how to approach thoughtful, phased succession planning that ensures organizational stability.

Dec 11, 202423 min

Episode 175: Should the media be an audience for your brand?

Media coverage can expand a nonprofit’s reach, but with limited resources, it can be hard to know where to invest. In this conversation, Ally Dommu, director of service development, and Michelle Behar, senior strategist, explore practical tips for nonprofits to evaluate if media outreach is worth the investment and share strategies on building relationships with journalists, measuring impact, and more.

Nov 26, 202422 min

Episode 174: How can nonprofit leaders build strong organizations?

Farra Trompeter, co-director, is joined by David Rhode to discuss his book, Passion Isn't Enough: A Practical Guide for Nonprofit Leaders. They explore strategies and actionable steps that executive directors, CEOs, senior staff, and board members can take to strengthen and grow their organizations.

Nov 13, 202416 min

Episode 173: How can you use AI for strategic communications?

How is artificial intelligence reshaping the nonprofit landscape? Alexandra M. Merceron, executive vice president at RUBENSTEIN, joins Farra Trompeter, co-director, to explore the impact of artificial intelligence on nonprofits. They discuss emerging themes, risks, ethical concerns, how to navigate AI’s challenges, available safeguards, and three key implications AI has on nonprofit communications.

Oct 30, 202422 min

Episode 172: What is the role of fundraisers in creating social change?

What lessons do fundraisers need to learn and unlearn? Farra Trompeter, co-director, is joined by Mari Eva Mendes, chief development officer at LEAP and founder and principal of MEM Consulting, to discuss the role of fundraisers and the need to challenge problematic practices. They also explore how to partner with donors to honor their investments and ensure that their resources are contributing to systemic change.

Oct 16, 202420 min

Episode 171: How can you start treating donors as partners?

Fundraising can involve communicating to people with wealth or power with uneven dynamics. Farra Trompeter, co-director, is joined by Emily Bishop Runeari, founder of EBR Consulting, about how to shift conversations with donors to a more partnership-oriented approach, and ways you can educate groups of prospects and donors.

Oct 02, 202415 min

Episode 170: How can you conduct marketing and fundraising ethically?

Doing fundraising and communications work more mindfully requires us to move at a slower pace, ask multiple people for feedback, and truly listen to what's being shared. Farra Trompeter, Co-Director, is joined by Karen Lundgard, Interim Chief Executive Officer for Girl Scouts of Greater New York, Lindsey Cosgrove, Chief of Staff at Greenwich House, and Sasha Prado, CFRE, Senior Manager of Major Gifts at Robin Hood, to chat about their work with Girl Scouts of Greater New York's Troop 6000. They ...

Sep 19, 202434 min

Episode 169: How can you plan an inclusive and welcoming project?

Integrating inclusive practices into your projects leads to better outcomes. Farra Trompeter, co-director, is joined by account managers Josh Kelley, and Brenda Perez to discuss how to create stronger and welcoming projects from the outset. They share insights on ways to keep engagement and offer strategies for measuring success through an inclusive perspective.

Sep 04, 202429 min

Episode 168: How can framing inform your strategy?

Farra Trompeter, co-director, is joined by Dr. Nat Kendall-Taylor, CEO, and Carinne Wheedan, director of communications, at the FrameWorks Institute, to discuss how framing can inform a nonprofit’s communications strategy. They share practical ways that organizations can effectively apply framing to their messaging or campaigns and provide general tips for those in the mission-driven sector.

Aug 21, 202430 min

Episode 167: How do you activate change in a network?

Join Farra Trompeter, co-director, and Stacy Van Gorp, PhD, partner-owner at See What I Mean Consulting, as they discuss how change comes about in a network, how good communications is essential to creating change, and activation moments, tools, and activities related to communications that you can integrate into your everyday work.

Aug 07, 202425 min

Episode 166: How did DEI go wrong and what can we do now?

DEI work is about building bridges across differences. Join Farra Trompeter, co-director, and Minal Bopaiah, founder of Brevity + Wit, as they discuss the state of DEI four years after the murder of George Floyd and share tips for how organizations can build a strong internal culture that advances DEI efforts on an ongoing basis.

Jul 24, 202424 min

Episode 165: How can my nonprofit benefit from launching a podcast?

Farra Trompeter, co-director, is joined by Marcus dePaula, audio engineer, podcast producer, and consultant, as they explore what an organization needs to launch a podcast as a part of its nonprofit communications strategy. They discuss factors organizations should consider before starting a podcast series and tips for how to manage podcasts once you get started.

Jul 10, 202418 min

Episode 164: How can you design and facilitate incredible workshops?

Join Ally Dommu, Director of Service Development, and Dr. Myriam Hadnes, facilitator, and founder of Workshops Work, as they discuss the power and importance of facilitation. Discover steps facilitators can take to harness benefits and create respectful and inclusive spaces.

Jun 26, 202416 min

Episode 163: When and how should you share branding work in development?

Farra Trompeter, co-director, is joined by Sarita Joseph, director of accounts, to discuss sharing nonprofit branding concepts and what questions to ask before inviting others to view and provide feedback on branding work in progress. Get tips on what to avoid and what to emphasize.

Jun 12, 202417 min

Episode 162: What is the smallest viable audience for nonprofits?

Join Farra Trompeter, co-director, and Michelle Flores Vryn, CFRE, head of development at iNaturalist, as they discuss how to prioritize audiences and share examples of how being more limited in your approach to audiences ties to branding and communications.

May 29, 202419 min

Episode 161: How can you challenge the power and practices of philanthropy?

Farra Trompeter, co-director, talks with Lisa Pilar Cowan, vice president of the Robert Sterling Clark Foundation, about the concepts of trust-based philanthropy, new ways some funders are working with nonprofits for more authentic relationships, and the connection between the community's role and the donor's role in guiding an organization.

May 15, 202419 min

Episode 160: Why does your website need a content strategy?

Farra Trompeter, co-director, is joined by Natalie Yelton, content strategist at Kanopi Studios, to delve into content strategy and how to create an engaging nonprofit website. They share key performance indicators to use while writing new content for your site and insights on how to lead with accessibility.

May 01, 202416 min

Episode 159: How can you better position your organization for funding?

Farra Trompeter, co-director, is joined by Sheleia Phillips, founder and principal consultant of SMP Nonprofit Consulting, to talk about how to better position your organization to secure funding. Hear examples of nonprofits that have better positioned themselves to receive funding and find out what the shift looked like that led to their success.

Apr 17, 202420 min
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