It ’ s Our Story, Now Tell it Well

KNOWLEDGE SHARING WORKSHOPS Bureau for Legislative and Public Affairs

It’s Our Story, Now Tell it Well

How to Write right for FrontLines, Impact Blog and other USAID publications



Workshop Outline

• How to Write for USAID

•USAID’s Different Communications Vehicles

• Story, Not a Story?

• The Submission Process


Why tell the USAID/Development story?

• It’s a fantastic, humanitarian activity.• Unless it’s understood, the public and Congress may

not continue to support it.• To communicate clearly and simply to a mass

audience how USAID uses taxpayer money to help people develop and improve their lives.

• The better we communicate, the more support we’ll

generate, and the more lives we’ll save.


What Makes an Effective Story


General Story-Telling Must Haves

• Have a narrowly focused pitch (a good way to measure this is if you can explain your story in one sentence),

• Use powerful statistics; communicate progress;

• Tie your story to USAID’s larger Mission, and

• Bring it to life with a personal narrative.


AID-Speak and Communication

Gayle Smith, Senior NSC advisor, speaking June 9 at a meeting of the Advisory Committee on Voluntary Foreign Aid, said:

• “We need translation at the NSC – I asked USAID people not to speak ‘USAID-ease’ at meetings.”

• “There is a lot of jargon in use. The more development is seen as boring” the less support it gets.

•“We need to translate.”

• “We need to figure out how to talk about [foreign aid] with colleagues in the foreign policy community so we do not come across as money movers.”


Magazine/Narrative Writing vs. Contracts, Dissertations

• Not academic• Not technical• Considers how people read, maintains attention• Uses anecdotes• Uses a specific example to illustrate a larger issue• Clear writing, but can use floral language


USAID’s Main Communications Vehicles

• Frontlines

• The Impact Blog

• Transforming Lives


The Redesigned FrontLines

Main Differences•Thematically focused•Longer Feature-style Articles •Exclusive Interviews•Produced every two months instead of monthly•No in-house news•More robust web presence


Online Edition

Internet Edition hs 30,000 unique pages views per month since redesign


FrontLines: What Are We Looking For?

• Interesting, creative angles that highlight our important work in long, “feature” form

• Powerful statistics/Results

• Human Interest Angles, Good, non-technical Quotes,

• Descriptive Language. Make the reader feel like he/she is there


What are we NOT Looking For?

• No technical papers

• No “Process Stories” or “Inside Baseball”

• No mere program descriptions or a laundry list of achievements.


Transforming Lives

The Old “Telling our Story”


Transforming Lives: What Are We Looking For?

●Stories that show broad-scale sustainable development projects, [no one-offs, and nothing that is not being or cannot be scaled

●Stories that relate to Presidential Initiatives, FTF, GHI or GCC;

●Stories that highlight new, cutting-edge development innovations; and/or

•Stories that highlight the USAID Forward Reform


Photos and Social Media


What makes a good sharable blog?

• Timeliness, why is this relevant right now? • Write for the general public- using plain language (i.e. avoid acronyms, technical jargon, and AID-speak) • How many lives were changed? Focus on impact, not budgets• Tell the larger story of why aid matters- you know better than anyone! Have a hook, show results• Is it relatable? Use quotes and first-hand accounts of aid recipients• Don’t make your reader search for more information: always include links


Promoting your blog


Story? Not a story?


Ethiopian Burial Societies Join Fight Against HIV/AIDS


Eggplant Grafting Transforms Life In Guatemala


“Magic Traps” Increase Farmers’ Profits in BangladeshMethod uses chemical that mimics pheromone of the female melon fly


Strategic Development Communication Impact Expands Development

USAID’s K Program and World Bank Affected


Sandy Smith Sworn In as Kundu Mission Director


Afghanistan Infant Mortality Rate Falls 25 Percent after USAID Intervention, Hopkins Study Shows


Poor’s Participation in Mainstreaming Gender Empowerment for Civil Society Stakeholders Promotes Country Ownership of Good Governance for Community-Driven Sustainable Development


Economic Development Expert Paul Collier Meets with Senior USAID Officials


When Aid is Blocked, Can Nations Intervene?


Partnership Alliance with Major Oil Co. Launches $300M Initiative in Ghana


FrontLines: Submission Guidelines

• Generally, stories should be submitted through USAID Communications POC according to themes

• Send your 2-sentence “pitch” for your article to FrontLines at ([email protected]).

• For the subject heading, use a brief slug for your article followed by the the word “pitch” (i.e., India Mealyworm Pitch)


Blog: Submission Guidelines

All blog submissions must be directed to [email protected] and should be submitted at least two days before desired post date.

Please include the following:

•Title of the article•Author’s name & title or bureau•Links leading to relevant content (Read USAID’s linking guidelines)•An image with caption & photo credit •Clearance sheet (Must include LPA Strat Lead)

If you would like to include additional multimedia (like a photo slideshow or video) please contact us in advance for guidance on accessibility compliance (section 508).


Transforming Lives: Submission Guidelines

•Stories must be submitted through your USAID communications contact at either the mission (the DOC), or Washington.•No template needed; word doc ok•300-600 words. •Must contain a title, subtitle, pull-quote, and photo with caption and credit

Documents

It ’ s Our Story, Now Tell it Well