So, about some of these attempts to market to Ward 7 & 8

Are you a marketing director, community engagement manager, public affairs officer, etc. and you are constantly being asked, "is our message reaching the Ward 7 and Ward 8 community?" Or worse, have you been accused of not sharing vital information with the east of the river community or not sharing it in a timely fashion? 

Sound familiar? 

It may be time to add another tool to your marketing and community engagement toolkit. And if you are reading this, clearly you are getting the message. 

I've spent the past decade providing community engagement and marketing services directly to the east of the river community so I know it can be a challenge, especially if you are new to the community or have a reputation (earned or not) of not sharing information.

But that said, long gone are the days where you could get away with the, "but we told the ANC" excuse. Printing out a few flyers and leaving them on randomly selected tables throughout Ward 7 and 8 is NOT a comprehensive community engagement strategy. Posting a tweet 1-hour before your event is scheduled to begin is also not adequate community engagement. 

Now what I am about to tell you I am going to give you for free (because if you've read The Rules then you already know my policy on that). Your east of the river marketing and community engagement strategy needs to be online and offline, relevant, timely, and most importantly, respectful of our community. It also doesn't hurt if some of these graphics you put out actually include photos of people who live in Ward 7 & 8. Some of these stock photo selections have left me scratching my head more than a few times. 

Lucky for you, in celebration of our 10th anniversary, Congress Heights on the Rise has expanded our advertising policy and options.  

I've thought long and hard about this and watching some of you struggle has inspired me to expand the types of groups (including government agencies) that I allow to advertise here. That said, one thing will NEVER change. If your program, project, service, agency, charter school, development, etc. is not going to bring a POSITIVE benefit to the community then don't even reach out. I am not going to let anyone attempt to exploit the community through this domain. But if you are authentic in your desire and need to inform and connect with my amazing neighbors then hit me up.  Click the button below for more details, I'm including a graphic you can share with the marketing and/or community engagement team in your organization. 

P.S. East of the river nonprofits have always qualified for reduced advertising and consulting rates. I've decided to include Ward 7 & 8 charter schools in that group as well. If you are unsure if your organization would qualify for the reduced rate, drop me a line. Thanks!