“Eighty-five million people live in Egypt and less than 1,000 people died in this revolution,” said Wael Ghonim, according to Monday’s New York Times. Ghonim, a 31 year old Google executive, is credited with a key role in the on-line social media campaign that helped topple Hosni Mubarak last week.

Gauging the grief of 1000 families as good news is a legitimate political-economic calculation. But it underscores the seriousness of the business Ghonim and his colleagues have undertaken. More broadly the calculation underscores the seriousness of the business of belief which is at the heart of media in all forms.

The wave of change in North Africa and the Mideast is a story about media as well as about politics. As the story of mass protest in Tunisia broke in the U.S (a month after it Al Jazeera started covering it nightly), it was played as another Facebook story.  Your humble blogger has opined before about the value of viewing today’s shifts in media through political-economic lenses rather than peering at the phenomenon, one-eyed, through an economic monocle.

Our trade, in media, is moving minds. Political-economic exchange rates render all costs and benefits “fungible” or inter-changeable. Political-economics fundamentally concerns the interaction of destructive forces, productive forces and the motivating factor of belief. Thus media is central to political-economics.

In Egypt, a full spectrum of communications, from “eye catching posters” to Facebook groups, deployed by anti Mubarak forces and major news outlets, mobilized masses of Egyptians to create the experience and spectacle of protest events. This sudden recognition of the possibility of change was achieved with limited expenditures of productive or destructive force, and was critical in precipitating Mubarak’s ouster.

The works of Gene Sharp reportedly influenced the communication strategies of the leading anti-Mubarak groups according to the New York Times. Sharp, an advocate of non-violent strategies and tactics to promote freedom and democracy writes that “the means do exist for populations to free themselves” but that members of an oppressed population must first recognize of their own real power to contribute to collective action.

At our best, in media, we are empowering people with good information. Officially, “you can make money without doing evil” is proclaimed by Mr. Ghonim’s employer, Google, as one of Ten Things We Know. The unofficial “Do no evil” is more direct but still seems timid. "Do good" seems more to the point. That's why your humble blogger has always seriously endeavored to turn good information into good business.

Labels: business of belief, do no evil, Gene Sharp, good information into good business, integrated marketing

Keep influencers in mind, make the benefits emotionally appealing and be systematic if you want to motivate adults to come out and donate money to your cause. As a board member of a local non-profit, the Wright- Locke Farm Conservancy I saw how an event promotion on a tiny budget executed by volunteers could work like a charm.

The pitch was pure emotion. A warm and fuzzy promotion was designed for kids and for parents looking for good experiences for their kids. The copy: “Pat an alpaca, cuddle a bunny and kiss a pig…dance…search for prizes….explore this special place.” The visual: an evocative photo of the Farm barns.

As always, methodical marketing paid off. Our vice chair, Sally Quinn, an experienced community organizer, executed an integrated campaign using print, PR, email, a road sign, flyers and email all with the same benefits and visual.

The distribution of email was critical. Sally made sure she had some email lists from various sources that had a high percentage of likely prospects – the type of people who hmmm… might be active in local school issues and environmental groups. She rounded up 12 lists in total representing interests from improving playgrounds to protecting ponds. Our volunteer IT guy deduped the lists. She sent only two well timed emails so as not to annoy anybody. The text explained the events and sent people to the website for further information.

The print distribution got into the right (little) hands. Sally convinced five local pre-schools to give an attractive printed invitation card to every student. And she personally distributed the card to families attending children’s theater performances.

The PR effort focused on highly targeted outlets: Announcements were place in seven PTA Newsletters. Listings were posted on two online community calendars and two community broadcast outlets.

Signage was equally targeted. Posters with the same image and offer as the cards went up in seven schools, four preschools, several high traffic local stores and a couple of churches with big Sunday School programs. Knowing that posters that are sent out don’t always go up, Sally personally drove around with a second batch of posters which she personally posted. And the site of the event had a big sign out front.

No possible source of attendance was neglected. Every board member was exhorted to give invitations to friends and family and given an email to forward to their own contacts.

This marketing model applies to any event at any scale. Good emotional appeals to decision makers and influencers; an integrated plan; consistent copy and graphics; good lists and distribution; a multi-media campaign; and the personal touch, all combined to motivate action. And the cuddly concept definitely helped. The result was a good crowd, a lot of fun for all and a nice pile of money!

Labels: integrated marketing, marketing events on low budget, Non-profit fundraising