Framing the Call to Action: Corporate Disaster Giving

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By Kate Olsen

Step 4: Frame the Call to Action.

Once your company’s disaster team has completed steps 1-3 of effective disaster giving campaigns, it’s time to communicate your call to action to the right audiences. 

How you choose to engage different stakeholder groups will depend on the unique ecosystem in which you conduct business, and the communications approach will differ by audience. Your disaster response, however, should look and feel coordinated across audiences, even if the specific calls to action (donate, volunteer, etc.) are different.

No matter the call to action, your company’s invitation to join the response should be clear, tangible and time-bound. Vague appeals with no emotional connection to the individual reading the message and no concrete deadline for action will do little to drive impact. 

Your appeal must spell out any special requirements for participation.  Define matching grant thresholds and eligibility. Declare what portion of proceeds will support which nonprofits. State how much will be donated for each status update on social media.

Be specific and transparent – and willing to address feedback in real time.

In the information turmoil following a disaster, it’s important to communicate through channels that are familiar and proven effective. If your employees are conditioned to check the company Intranet for important news, then a posting on the homepage will result in higher employee participation in a giving campaign. If your customers like to follow you on Facebook, then posts about how they can help will spread further and faster on social media than via an email.  If your customers primarily engage with you offline, then supplement online communications with physical announcements in retail stores.

When a disaster strikes, your customers and employees are likely confused about how they can help and what action would matter the most to those affected.  Your company is in a unique position to clear up that confusion and focus attention on relevant calls to action and organizations to support.  It’s up to you to communicate that message effectively to customers and employees and facilitate their support.

Learn all 5 Steps! Download our FREE eGuide: How to Help: 5 Steps to Effective Corporate Disaster Giving Campaigns.

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