Found 26 topics tagged ‘Advocacy 101’

Beat the Curse of Knowledge

The curse of knowledge is a cognitive bias that leads us to overestimate the knowledge of our audience. If you allow this curse to infect your writing, you may unwittingly leave supporters feeling confused an alienated. To...

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The curse of knowledge is a cognitive bias that leads us to overestimate the knowledge of our audience. If you allow this curse...

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Don’t Be a Hero (Make Your Supporter the Hero!)

I’m not saying don’t do heroic things. Keep that up! But when you’re telling your supporters a story of injustice, there’s only space for one hero—and it’s not you. Let me explain... Every story...

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I’m not saying don’t do heroic things. Keep that up! But when you’re telling your supporters a story of injustice, there’s only...

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Finding Common Ground: Old and New Supporters

How can you simultaneously meet the needs of both long-term and fledgling supporters in ways that don’t patronize or confuse anyone? Let’s apply common ground messaging theory to answer this question. Triggers: Long-term supporters value long-term...

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How can you simultaneously meet the needs of both long-term and fledgling supporters in ways that don’t patronize or confuse anyone? Let’s apply...

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Never Assume Anyone Knows What You’re Talking about

Imagine you’re seeing a 25% open rate on your emails. That means whenever you send a broadcast, 3 in every 4 recipients will be unfamiliar with what you sent last time. Some recipients will be new to...

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Imagine you’re seeing a 25% open rate on your emails. That means whenever you send a broadcast, 3 in every 4 recipients will...

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Show. Don’t Tell.

Your reader trusts their own mind way more than they trust yours. No offense but it’s true. Knowing this, try to avoid ‘telling’ people what to think. That includes making assertions that some things are cruel,...

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Your reader trusts their own mind way more than they trust yours. No offense but it’s true. Knowing this, try to avoid...

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Why ‘Busting Myths’ Often Backfires

How tempting is it to ‘bust myths’ and confront your opponent’s ridiculous claims head-on!? Hint: very. Proceed with caution—countering false claims can unintentionally reinforce them. However, if you can reframe the conversation, you get to own it...

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How tempting is it to ‘bust myths’ and confront your opponent’s ridiculous claims head-on!? Hint: very. Proceed with caution—countering false claims can unintentionally...

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