For Nonprofits and Foundations:

The Trainer for Do-it-Yourself Communicators

Steve Cebalt of HighviewHelp.com LLC, Fort Wayne, Indiana (260) 471-5870
 

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Tutorial Downloads just $19.95 each!  

 

 

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Highview offers a new way for do-it-yourself nonprofit communicators to get the training information they need, whenever the need arises! Scroll down this page for descriptions of our PDF tutorials and templates. These courses offer the same information that you'd get by attending one of our workshops or webinars. You'll find marketing plan templates, courses on newsletters and e-newsletters, Social Media Marketing, and much more!

 

To purchase a course, just complete the form under the course description and hit "Submit." You'll immediately be directed to a page with a link to your course, so you can download it RIGHT NOW. No need to pay now. We'll bill you later!  Go ahead. We trust you!

 
 

E-newsletters I

E-newsletters II  * Hot seller!

Storytelling  * New!

Double-Duty E-mails
 

Facebook, MySpace, Twitter
and Your Nonprofit

YouTube Your Site!

Research

Breakthrough Branding  * BEST seller!

Media Relations

The 1-Page Nonprofit Organizational Marketing Plan   * Hot seller!

How to Create a Blog

 
   

 

 

E-Newsletters I
How to determine whether e-newsletters are right for your nonprofit.
$19.95

 

A 9 Page PDF Mini-Course

This lesson is for you if:

  • You are deciding whether or not to start sending e-newsletters from your nonprofit

  • You want to know the advantages of e-newsletters vs. printed materials for nonprofits

  • You want to know how to transition to e-newsletters

  • You want to know the success rate of nonprofit e-newsletters

After reviewing the information provided in this PDF document (approximately 9 pages), you will know whether or not you want to begin sending out e-newsletters from your nonprofit, and how to make this transition. You’ll also gain a full understanding of the "pros and cons" – the many benefits provided with nonprofit e-newsletters as well as the reality of their readership. Below are a few of the topics covered in this 9-page lesson:

 

Key Points:

  • Choosing print vs. e-newsletters

  • Understanding the reality of readership

  • Analyzing the cost

  • Reaching a larger audience

  • Covering more information

  • Learning about your nonprofit's audience

  • Using a vendor program to create and distribute your e-newsletter

 

To order this course, simply complete this order and hit "submit," and you'll immediately be directed to a link so you can download your course right now; we'll invoice you and you can pay within 30 days!:

Course:                        

Name:                              

Organization:                   

E-mail:                             

By checking the "Submit My Order" button below, I understand that I can download this course right now, and I agree to pay the $19.95 invoice within 30 days of receiving the invoice, and I affirm that the information above is valid.

 

 

 

E-newsletters II

How to get people to open and read your nonprofit e-newsletter
$19.95

 

A 5 Page PDF Mini-Course

This lesson is for you if:

  • You have decided you want to do an e-newsletter

  • You already are doing an e-newsletter and want some advanced tips specific to nonprofit e-newsletters designed to enhance the number of people who actually read and respond to your e-newsletter

After incorporating the tips provided in this 5-page PDF document, your nonprofit will be prepared to create an exciting and innovative e-newsletter that will capture the attention of your specific audience. Getting their attention is key, and once you have it, your audience will be much more likely to open respond to your e-newsletter. Below are a few of the topics you’ll explore in this 5-page how-to lesson:

Key Points:

  • Understanding the most important fields in your e-newsletter

  • Choosing graphics and layouts

  • Focusing your content

  • Avoiding viewing problems that hamper readership and response rates

  • Testing your e-newsletter

  • Timing your distribution
     

To order this course, simply complete this order and hit "submit," and you'll immediately be directed to a link so you can download your course right now; we'll invoice you and you can pay within 30 days!:

Course:                        

Name:                              

Organization:                   

E-mail:                             

 

By checking the "Submit My Order" button below, I understand that I can download this course right now, and I agree to pay the $19.95 invoice within 30 days of receiving the invoice, and I affirm that the information above is valid.

 

 

Double-Duty E-mails
How to double your communication efforts with every e-mail you send –

for free

$19.95

 

A PDF Mini-Course of 10 pages.
This lesson is for you if:

  • You want to gain extra value from each e-mail your nonprofit organization sends, at no cost

  • You want your e-mails to work for your organization

  • You want to learn how to create e-mail signatures and branded-message PSAs to send out with every outbound e-mail

  • You want to double your communication of various nonprofit promotions and announcements at no extra cost

After following the steps provided in this 10-page PDF document, you will be an expert and using branded e-mail PSAs that go under your signature of every e-mail you send. When you consider the volume of routine e-mails sent daily be even the smallest nonprofit organization, you'll realize how powerful this simple idea can be! Branded e-mail signature "tags" -- that's what we call these messages -- are easy to create, you can do it today, it costs you nothing, and it does double duty for every e-mail that you send out from your nonprofit organization. Below are a few of the topics covered in this 10-page how-to lesson:

Key Points:

  • Conveying the usefulness of e-mail signatures and e-mail PSAs, called email "tags"

  • Defining e-mail signatures and tags

  • Making them successful

  • Implementing them into your e-mails

  • Advanced tip: Enhancing your e-mail tags with graphics
     

To order this course, simply complete this order and hit "submit," and you'll immediately be directed to a link so you can download your course right now; we'll invoice you and you can pay within 30 days!:

Course:                        

Name:                              

Organization:                   

E-mail:                             

 

By checking the "Submit My Order" button below, I understand that I can download this course right now, and I agree to pay the $19.95 invoice within 30 days of receiving the invoice, and I affirm that the information above is valid.

 

Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and Your Nonprofit
Sorting the bad advice from the good when it comes to online social media marketing
$19.95

A 22-page course comes with a 4-page Social Media Planning Template.
What you'll learn in this course:

Is it worth your time to create a FACEBOOK page for your nonprofit organization?

How about a nonprofit BLOG?

Can you afford to ignore TWITTER when 12 million people are using it ... and its numbers have been doubling EVERY MONTH in recent months?

 

I've heard more bad advice on this topic than anything in my career: Social Media. The term refers to online marketing tools like Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc.

Whether or not your nonprofit organization plans on using these online networking tools, there are certain things every nonprofit communicator needs to know in order to maintain a core competency in today's marketing environment.

The bad advice that I hear so often is that nonprofits should "experiment and play around with these tools ... see what works."

Folks, we can do better than that! In this economy, none of us has the time to experiment and play around with Social Media, when our to-do lists are overflowing with significant responsibilities. Do we?
So I've worked hard to isolate the Social Media tools that have already reached mainstream status and proven to be worth the time and effort for a local nonprofit. We’ll discuss online tools such as Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, Blogs, YouTube, GuideStar and Wikipedia. Unlike many of the experts, I'll take a stand and tell you where I think you should begin and how to prioritize your efforts. And I'll admit to some of you that after a rational evaluation, you may make a deliberate business decision to wait until some more best practices emerge before you divert time and energy from your to-do list to take on a new Social Media initiative. But I'll give you the information so that you can base that decision on facts, data, and evidence of "what works." And you'll be able to explain your decision to your boss, your board, and others who may be wondering what your organization is doing to take advantage of online marketing and networking.

The purpose of this PDF course is to provide you with that core competency in online marketing, also known as Social Media or "Web 2.0."

Objectives:

  • Plan on learning some surprisingly good, simple, effective uses of Social Media that are free and within the reach of any nonprofit communicator.

  • Consider downloading this course even if you aren't currently using Social Media, because a certain knowledge of this topic is essential for any nonprofit communicator today.

  • Plan to get a Social Media Planning Template that will help you determine where to start -- a decision that is different for every nonprofit organization.

Key Points:

  • Define key “Web” terminology (i.e., Web 2.0)

  • Explore blogs and social networks: MySpace, Facebook & LinkedIn, blogs, Guidestar, YouTube, Twitter, etc.

  • Determine goals for your nonprofit’s online presence

  • Determine which online media is best to reach your audience

  • Use a straightforward Social Media Marketing Planning template to identify your next steps
     

Course:                        

Name:                              

Organization:                   

E-mail:                             

 

By checking the "Submit My Order" button below, I understand that I can download this course right now, and I agree to pay the $19.95 invoice within 30 days of receiving the invoice, and I affirm that the information above is valid.

 

 

YouTube Your Site!
How to add multimedia to your nonprofit website for free using YouTube technology in 2 simple steps
$19.95

 

A 10-page tutorial

This 10 page lesson is for you if:

  • You want to place videos on your website at no cost whatsoever

  • You want to explore YouTube technologies

  • You want to use YouTube to promote your nonprofit

After exploring and using the information provided in this 10-page PDF document, you will better understand all that YouTube has to offer. Its professional purposes are quite useful to the nonprofit sector and can help increase the visual quality of your website. Below are a few of the topics covered in this 10-page lesson:

Key Points:

  • Finding relevant nonprofit videos on YouTube to add to your website

  • Exploring nonprofit PSAs on YouTube

  • Placing YouTube videos on your website: a step-by-step tutorial

  • Creating your own YouTube Channel for your nonprofit organization to boost your own website's visibility and increase your "digital footprint" online

Course:                        

Name:                              

Organization:                   

E-mail:                             

 

By checking the "Submit My Order" button below, I understand that I can download this course right now, and I agree to pay the $19.95 invoice within 30 days of receiving the invoice, and I affirm that the information above is valid.

 

 

Communications Research
Easy research and survey tools that work for do-it-yourself nonprofit communicators
$19.95

A 28 Page PDF Course
A course of 28 pages with 4 separate lesson modules

Module 1: How to get free or cheap market research to support your nonprofit fundraising, branding and awareness: from focus groups to online surveys and more.
Without research, a nonprofit can waste its efforts solving the wrong problems. Module 1 provides a brief overview of the various research methods and goals that are addressed more fully within the other three "how-to" lesson modules in this course. This course is especially helpful for the do-it-yourself communicator from a small, local nonprofit. The most important tool for a do-it-yourself nonprofit communicator is research. Why? Because you can’t afford to waste time on misguided efforts. As a small organization, you have to make sure that whatever you are able to do in terms of communications, you make it count. In working with clients, research is the No. 1 gap we see, resulting often in costly mistakes or missed opportunities. Research is often overlooked because it is a vague term and takes a little time. The solution, as you'll see in this overview module, lies in taking the mystery out of market research and identifying cheap or free do-it-yourself research methods that cost little or nothing and pay off big-time.

Module 2: How to make the most of free publicly available research data to support your communication campaigns

This lesson module will help you if:

  • You are launching a new project or program and want to find out how others have gone about it

  • You are creating a new program and want to fid out how others have measured their results

  • You want to know how to research a subject further through easily accessible resources for free

You have conducted your own research and are searching for secondary research materials for comparison
After experimenting with the tips provided in this module, your nonprofit will have found new and refined ways to research a topic. From learning the tricks of Google search to exploring resources that might have gone untapped, you’ll have plenty of resources from which to begin building a solid campaign.

 

Key Points:

  • Utilizing news alerts and other "delivered-to-your-inbasket" Internet research technologies

  • Joining the new online bookmarking sites

  • Finding keywords faster

  • Tapping into often-overlooked research sources

  • Advanced Internet search tips
     

Module 3: How to create and analyze your own online survey today for free
After completing the steps provided in this lesson module, your nonprofit will be empowered to develop, distribute and analyze a survey that anyone can have email access to today…for free.

This lesson module will help you if:

  • You know you need to collect research, but you haven’t had the information available to complete it

  • You currently have no budget to conduct polls or focus groups

  • You know a specific audience you would like to survey for a targeted purpose

Key Points:

  • Creating an online survey account

  • Choosing a question format

  • Wording questions successfully

  • Distributing surveys

  • Collecting data

  • Designing your survey

 

Module 4: How to uncover hidden opportunities and gain insights by conducting a nonprofit Focus Group with these simple, proven steps

The information in this module will give you the confidence and the specific skills to conduct effective Focus Group research yourself, with internal resources, at very little or no cost. This module will take the mystery out of Focus Group research. You will recognize the strengths and limitations of nonprofit Focus Group research; you will know the straightforward steps for planning and conducting one; and you’ll explore some very advanced tips for getting the most information possible from your session(s)

 

This lesson module will help you if:

  • You are a foundation or nonprofit with no research budget

  • Information from your stakeholders could help you do a better job

  • You have to provide data to your board or funders about client satisfaction with your programs

  • You are launching a new program and want to find out which program features would be most important to your users/clients

  • You are responsible for communications and want to understand people’s preferences for receiving information online vs. in the mail, how often, the type of information they want, etc.

Key Points:

  • Understanding what a Focus Group entails

  • Deciding who should participate in your Focus Group

  • Preparing the best question format

  • Facilitating group dynamics

  • Documenting and reporting the results

Course:                        

Name:                              

Organization:                   

E-mail:                             

 

By checking the "Submit My Order" button below, I understand that I can download this course right now, and I agree to pay the $19.95 invoice within 30 days of receiving the invoice, and I affirm that the information above is valid.

 

 

Breakthrough Branding
For foundations and nonprofits
$19.95

 

Managing nonprofit programs with a behavioral brand and a 15-minute communications plan. This online training course provides the small philanthropic foundation or nonprofit with a clear explanation of what branding really means in the nonprofit sector. Don't come looking for another discussion of the importance of a consistent logo, etc. This course goes many layers beyond that, to talk about things you can do today, yourself, to plan and build a well-branded organization. Please note that this course is written from the perspective of foundations and nonprofits in the social services, human services and education sectors; there will be a separate course in the coming weeks designed separately for the distinct needs of nonprofits in the Arts sector.

Product Description: A PDF Course of 29 pages.

This lesson is for you if:

  • You want to know what branding means, specifically as it applies to your small nonprofit

  • You have no money to spend on branding

  • You have encountered the word branding, but aren’t sure how it applies to your local nonprofit

  • You would like a clear and meaningful explanation of the term branding

  • You want some practical steps you can implement right away to strengthen your brand at no cost

  • You want to know the strategy behind planning for a brand

  • You want some tactical tools you can use to develop and maintain the brand of your small nonprofit, beginning today, for free.

More about this course:
Do you know what branding is? Do you think you know? Is branding simply about logos and slogans or is there something to the term, "behavioral branding?" Our definition is that branding = behavior. Having an effective logo is a great start, but you need to take it a few steps further, and we’ll show you how in this course. It’s all about behavioral branding…What is it? How do you determine what’s best for your nonprofit? And how do you work to develop this brand and then maintain it…at no cost? While we won’t go into detail on how to develop a new logo or slogan for your nonprofit (you can get that for free elsewhere), many more advanced branding and planning questions will be answered as we provide step-by-step information and practical tools to help you assess how effective your communications are and how to make them stronger.

Key Points:

  • Defining branding from the perspective of a small nonprofit

  • Defining behavioral branding

  • Discovering what may be holding you back from achieving your best communications practices

  • Learning how to get started when developing your brand – at no cost

  • Learning to identify potential problem gaps in your communications

  • Exploring how to maintain your brand identity

  • Discovering who needs to be involved in developing your new brand

Related Course:
This course focuses on Breakthrough Branding and Planning, but research is an integral part of this area as well. Please note that there is a course on this site on Communications Research that can be very useful in your branding and planning. That related course includes modules on Creating a Survey and Conducting Your Own Focus Group that are particularly relevant in a branding initiative.

Course:                        

Name:                              

Organization:                   

E-mail:                             

 

By checking the "Submit My Order" button below, I understand that I can download this course right now, and I agree to pay the $19.95 invoice within 30 days of receiving the invoice, and I affirm that the information above is valid.

 

 

Media Relations
For foundations and nonprofits
$19.95

 

Getting What You Want From The Media: Essential Skills.
This online training course provides some basics as well as advanced tips for managing a local media relations program. From press releases, press conferences and PSAs to pitch calls and follow-ups, we'll show you some of the Best Practices in nonprofit press and media relations.

Product Description: A PDF course of 17 pages with 3 inter-related lesson modules:

Module 1: How to build a relationship with the media and your nonprofit

This lesson module will help you if:

  • You want to gain perspective on media relations for small nonprofits

  • You want to enhance a relationship with the members of your local media

  • You want to learn how to sell your message to the media

  • You want to distribute your organization's message effectively

Key Points:

  • Enhancing your perspective on media relations

  • Emphasizing your relationship with the media

  • Setting message priorities

  • Using Push and Pull tactics to distribute your message

  • Distributing your organization's message in an easy and effective manner

 

Module 2: How to deliver your message to the media

This lesson module will help you if:

  • You want to learn the key steps to phone follow-up calls

  • You want to utilize op-ed articles as a PR tool

  • You want to use your organization's website as an online newsroom

  • You want to use a nonprofit TV Public Service Announcement

Key Points:

  • Making effective follow-up phone calls

  • Delivering your organization's message in an op-ed article

  • Utilizing your website as an online newsroom

  • Recycling your news release to get the media to pick up your story

  • Using grassroots media tactics to convey your message

  • Using the News Digest format to increase the frequency of your press contacts without increasing the number of press releases you have to write

  • Using the Media Memo format to help the media frame your issue the way you want them to.
     

Module 3: How to get better results from the media
Module 3 offers some more advanced tips on packaging your news with photos and effective headlines; attaching your news to state or national trends in the media; responding effectively to incoming calls from reporters; you'll also get a checklist that can help you decide which PR strategy to use every time, and then check off the steps needed for ultimate success so you don't overlook and of the small-but-important details.

 

Course:                        

Name:                              

Organization:                   

E-mail:                             

 

By checking the "Submit My Order" button below, I understand that I can download this course right now, and I agree to pay the $19.95 invoice within 30 days of receiving the invoice, and I affirm that the information above is valid.

 

 

The 1-Page Nonprofit Organizational Marketing Plan
A plan that you can complete today and use every day to make a difference
$19.95

 

A PDF of 8 pages, including a tutorial and a 1-page marketing-plan template tool.

 

This 8-page lesson is for you if:

  • You do not currently have a written marketing plan and want to create an effective one very easily.

  • You want to create a plan that assures the support of your organizations top leadership and board.

  • You want a marketing plan that assures that your marketing efforts support your organization’s most important goals.

In a recent survey of small, local nonprofits that serve their local communities – many in smaller cities or rural areas – 8 out of 10 have no written marketing plan at all. That’s not necessarily a terrible thing. One of the advantages that small nonprofits have is that the staff, board and volunteers all work closely enough that priorities are pretty clear and well understood.

BUT, it is better to have a plan. If you spend a little time thinking specifically about your organization’s marketing and committing your thoughts to a plan, you are much more likely to reach your goals.

The good news is that planning need not be a cumbersome chore. We believe in practical, street-smart solutions, and we have created on for those of you who do not have a marketing plan.

If you follow the easy steps in this document, you can go from having no plan at all to having an effective plan – today, with a document that is just one side of one sheet of paper. Then, as you go forward, you can refine this and continually update it, getting better and better as you go. The key to good planning, in fact, is planning fast and keeping it simple. As General George S. Patton said, “A good plan executed now is better than a perfect plan later.” So we’re not advocating a textbook marketing plan that takes weeks or months to prepare and then sits on a shelf in an indexed binder. We’re talking about a street-smart plan that works for small nonprofits with very limited marketing resources – no more, and no less.

Key Points:

  • Discover the easy and effective way to create a marketing plan

  • Learn why a 90-day plan is the most effective format

  • Use a 1-page planning template that makes planning easy for the do-it-yourself nonprofit marketer

  • Enjoy the support of your board and top leadership for your marketing efforts

  • Skip the labor-wasting, non-essential parts of planning and focus on what really matters – getting things done (the right things!).

Course:                        

Name:                              

Organization:                   

E-mail:                             

 

By checking the "Submit My Order" button below, I understand that I can download this course right now, and I agree to pay the $19.95 invoice within 30 days of receiving the invoice, and I affirm that the information above is valid.

 

 

How to Create a Blog
Why blogs are the first best step for nonprofits wanting to expand their online presence, and how to create one in the next 20 minutes.
$19.95

 

 

A PDF course of 23 pages.

 

This lesson template is for you if:

  • You want to a planning template build a presence on the web without the hassle or cost of a webmaster

  • You want to add an element to your website that you can update as often as you want at no cost

  • You want to replace your electronic newsletter or printed newsletter

After following this step-by-step tutorial you will be able to create your own blog at no cost using blogger technology. Also, you will have total control over your ability to communicate on the web. You will learn why blogging is the first step in getting started in social media marketing and all of its advantages. Easy to update, cost free, and powerful in the online world, blogs are an important asset for any nonprofit to be using. Below are a few topics covered in this 23-page course:

 

Key Points:

  • Conveying the advantages of free blog technology

  • A step-by-step template for creating a blog for your nonprofit

  • Bonus Tip: Adding more flair to your blog

Course:                        

Name:                              

Organization:                   

E-mail:                             

 

By checking the "Submit My Order" button below, I understand that I can download this course right now, and I agree to pay the $19.95 invoice within 30 days of receiving the invoice, and I affirm that the information above is valid.

 

 

Storytelling
Shortcuts To Success for Nonprofit Communicators
$19.95

 

10 ways to get people to take action using effective storytelling shortcuts

 

A PDF Course of 17 pages.

This lesson is for you if:

  • You are an executive director, fundraiser, PR manager, or program manager of a small nonprofit charged with "getting the message out" and other aspects of marketing and public relations.

  • You produce a lot of your own communications material and would like some professional ‘shortcuts” on telling your story effectively.

  • You would benefit from 10 writing “templates” that give you different ways to frame your information and make your communications easier to produce and more effective at moving people to action.

Your communications will be MUCH easier after you’ve read and practiced some of the techniques in this short module. This course module will reframe the concept of “storytelling” in a way that is useful by getting you to deliberately and intentionally choose a storytelling device before you prepare any communication.

A device is just another way of saying “shortcut.” It’s a formula, template or structure that gets you going and makes your writing MUCH easier and faster to produce. More importantly, the right device will provide a structure that actually moves people to action. And the use of shortcuts will actually make you more creative by giving you more alternative ways to shape your message.

Course:                        

Name:                              

Organization:                   

E-mail:                             

 

By checking the "Submit My Order" button below, I understand that I can download this course right now, and I agree to pay the $19.95 invoice within 30 days of receiving the invoice, and I affirm that the information above is valid.

 

 

CONTACT Highview

HighviewHelp.com LLC serves clients nationwide with webinar training and support. We're located in the heart of the Midwest, where overhead costs are low and the friendliness quotient is high.

Steve Cebalt

HighviewHelp.com LLC   Fort Wayne, Indiana 46825  

Phone: (260) 471-5870    E-mail: info@HighviewHelp.com