Getting Started in Communication:

A Practical Guide For Activists And Organisations

by Michael Norton and Purba Dutt 
Publisher: Sage Publications (2003)
ISBN: 0-7619-9819-5 (US)
ISBN: 81-7829-289-0 (India) 

 

Many non-profits neglect communications, yet it is often the starting point for a successful programme of resource mobilisation.  If people don’t know who you are, what you do and why, they are unlikely to support you.

This book is aimed at non-profit organisations working in development and advocacy. 
 
It was published in India and uses many examples from the sub-continent, but it will be of interest and value to organisations working throughout the South.

The five sections of the book deal in turn with:

• why communication is so important, who you need to reach, and with what messages
• your own materials including print, websites and video
• how to get coverage in the mass media
• useful techniques like writing and public speaking
• getting feedback and measuring response

The book is both comprehensive and immensely practical with lots of checklists, case studies and illustrations.  Anyone wanting to understand how to raise the profile of a cause or an organisation will find much help in these pages.