Crafting mission-driven content and strategies.
The work
For two years, I worked with the American Red Cross on communications strategies, writing, editing, and public relations
Content Strategy
The organization’s San Francisco chapter organizes several large community events each year to encourage residents to get prepared in case of an emergency.
An event I worked on was a “preparedness rally” in the city’s famed Golden Gate Park at the California Academy of Sciences — an aquarium, planetarium, and natural history museum. The event was sponsored by the museum and California’s Pacific Gas & Electric utility company. Special guests were former Olympic gold medalist Kristi Yamaguchi and former 49ers football wide-receiver Jerry Rice.
My content strategy work for this project included:
- Creating a communications plan for media outreach, social media, and advertising during the six months leading up to the event
- Managing event publicity through social media accounts
- Planning and executing public relations strategies such as pitching to dozens of local media outlets in print, online, radio, and TV
Results included:
- Attendance: 2,000+
- Media mentions: 20+
- Social media retweets and shares: 100+
Storytelling
Storytelling was a key aspect of the organization’s content strategy, to encourage people to contribute time and money. Speaking to volunteers and sharing their experiences was a common theme for the content.
In Moore, Oklahoma in 2013, where more than 12,000 people had lost their homes to the third devastating tornado there in 14 years, it was patience and hope that kept people going as they rebuilt their lives.
I interviewed a mental health volunteer who spent time in Moore, to share her story. When she read the story, she said it was as if she could hear her voice through my words.