Say What Matters: A Communications and Marketing Conference

Annual reports are a great mechanism to share your organization’s impact and increase accountability with a wide range of audiences. They often include data, stories, visuals, and more. All organizations should publish an annual report that shares the right information in the right way with the resources they have. This session will highlight the key components of an effective annual report, give participants the opportunity to critique sample reports, present design tips and tools, and share how reports can be scaled to have maximum impact without draining valuable resources that take away from delivering your services.

This session is limited to 36 attendees.

Few nonprofit organizations have the resources to hire a team of communication professionals. Even then, professionals might need a creative kickstart every once in a while. We’ve been hearing a lot about artificial intelligence (AI) recently; some good, some bad. Is AI a useful tool for nonprofit communication? Well, it depends on the tool, what you want to create, and if you know how to use it. Join this session to see how AI was utilized for specific events, and hear from an expert who can show you the tips and tricks you need to know for AI to save you time.  

This session is limited to 36 attendees.

You probably have a strategic plan, maybe an implementation plan, and even a fundraising plan. You might be feeling “planned” out at this point. Do you really need a communications plan, too? The answer is yes. Whether it is incorporated into another plan or stands alone, the process of planning can be as valuable as the plan itself. Join this session to explore the various methods to raise your organization’s visibility by outlining your communications content and how to get the word out to the right audiences (your plan) in a way that doesn’t put your team to sleep.

This session is limited to 36 attendees.

Almost everything at this conference is focused on external communication and marketing strategies. But, without good internal communication, the strategies may not result in the best outcomes for your organization. This small group session is designed for Executive Directors, or their designee, who want to share their challenges and hear what works and doesn’t work in other organizations. The facilitator will share strategies to address the issues discussed during the session.

This session is limited to 16 attendees.

News about the nonprofit sector is a very small portion of the general media’s reporting, and a lot of organizations have their eyes on those spots. How great would it be to be featured in a local, regional, or national media outlet? It's a free promotion for your organization that reaches audiences who might never see/hear your story otherwise. Some organizations try and try again without getting a bite; others are fortunate because a reporter sought them out. In this session, you will learn best practices for garnering media attention and how to determine if the effort is right for your organization at this point in time.

This session is limited to 16 attendees.

This workshop will explore different communication/marketing tools and software programs that can help streamline your organization’s processes, saving your team’s time to focus on the mission. The conference organizers do not endorse specific software, but the presenter will review several tools such as mail systems, scheduling apps, graphics programs, social media platforms and/or others. You’ll learn the pros and cons of each, which programs are better suited to smaller or larger organizations, and important steps - like Search Engine Optimization - you must take to make them work for you.  

This session is limited to 36 attendees.

What you do matters, but often how you say what you do matters more because it helps you secure the resources you need to continue or expand your work. It doesn’t matter if your organization is large or small, well-established or newer using direct mail, social media, or one-on-one meetings with major donors - the way you tell your story can impact your ability to raise funds. What story should you tell, and how should you tell it? Join us to find out. You’ll review sample stories and even draft one of your own.    

This session is limited to 36 attendees.

Photos, videos, and infographics are a few of the many ways organizations can connect with followers, and potential donors, on social media. This session is geared toward organizations without a full-time professional communications staff, although larger organizations might enjoy the refresher. You’ll learn the basics of taking a good photo, writing engaging video scripts, and integrating visuals into your website. You’ll review sample infographics to identify what draws you in and what does not and leave with a list of tips and graphic design tools.

This session is limited to 36 attendees.

We bet that almost every organization attending this conference has sought out sponsorships or applied for grants to generate revenue. You follow the guidelines, but is that enough? What do funders really want to know, when is the best time and what is the best way to communicate with them, and what information matters most? There is no better way to find out than by hearing from the funders themselves. The panelists will share what their grant or sponsorship committees look for in a request and will respond to questions by the audience.

Anne Arundel County created the Nonprofit Center @ 41 Community Place (NPC) to provide capacity-building services, including resources and professional development opportunities, to local nonprofits. The renovated building, once complete, will offer a below market cost, collaborative, work environment for nonprofits to provide services that address the social determinants of health, and the accelerator program will assist smaller nonprofits with acquiring the skills and resources they need to grow. We are ending the planning phase, but there is still time for input. If you are interested in space at the center, or other capacity-building opportunities, join us to discuss how the NPC might be able to meet your needs.  

This session is limited to 16 attendees.

Yes, it’s a roundtable session at rectangular tables. This is your opportunity to network, discuss challenges with a group of 6-8 colleagues, and share how you can integrate what you’ve learned at the conference when you return to the office. There are separate spaces for different types of organizations.

Each room is limited to 36 attendees.