Unresponsive Audience 
Communications Strategy 
 
 
 
Tim Snyder, Hannah Rice, Cailin Haggerty 
 
 
 
 
 
This  communications  strategy  was  created  for  the  Salus  Center  of  Lansing,  MI.  It  is 
meant  to  function  as  a  set  of  guidelines  on  how  to  communicate  with  unresponsive 
audiences  who,  due  to  their  personal  identifications  and  ideologies,  feel  uncomfortable 
or  unwilling  to  associate  with  the  Salus  Center.  ​This  guide  will  help  the  organization 
anticipate,  identify,  and  resolve  any  conflicts with such audiences. It will help eliminate 
negative  perceptions  of  the  Salus  Center  and  demonstrate  the  best  ways  to  emphasize 
the  organization’s  status  as  an  inclusive  and  welcoming  space  for  people  from  all 
backgrounds. 
 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 1 

TABLE OF CONTENTS 
 
Goals & Objectives  2 

Audience  2 

Key Messages  4 

Strategy  4 

Modes & Media  10 

Needs  12 

Assessment  12 

Conclusion  13 

Works Cited  14 

Appendices  15 
   

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 2 

GOALS & OBJECTIVES 

 
The purpose of this communications strategy is to demonstrate how the Salus Center 
can improve its relationship with audiences who are apathetic or otherwise 
unresponsive to the organization’s mission. It is meant to help the Salus Center portray 
itself as a welcoming space where people of all identities feel comfortable and included 
and fulfill its mission of being a “space for learning, teaching, community, support, and 
service.” The specific needs and desires of a particular audience can vary, so this guide 
focuses on the discovery and implementation of tactics that will appeal to an 
unresponsive audience. 
 
To achieve this goal, the Salus Center must fulfill several objectives: 
 
● Determine who the apathetic audience members are and obtain demographic 
information such as age, race, sexual orientation, gender identity, etc. 
● Conduct research to determine which strategies the audience segment in 
question will respond to 
● Build a new strategy based on the aforementioned research 
 
It is likely that the Salus Center’s staff will notice when a specific audience segment is 
difficult to reach. As such, the first objective does not require any formal research, but 
rather a mere observation of trends. If the organization’s staff members notice a 
problem, it’s most likely worth investigating. Such a problem could take the form of 
decreased participation, decreased volunteer interest, or directly expressed apathy or 
even hostility. T​ he second objective is the most complicated overall.​ A majority of this guide 
is focused on learning more about the unresponsive audience segment1 in question. The 
final objective will appear rather straightforward once the Salus Center collects enough 
information. Some general tips on developing a new strategy are provided in the 
Suggestions​ section under ​Strategy​. 
 
AUDIENCE 
 
In broad terms, the audience the Salus Center intends to reach with this strategy 
includes any and all unresponsive groups. Once the problematic group is identified, 
there are many ways to learn about how to best reach them. 
 

1
​A ‘segment’ is created by lumping together different groups of individuals based on a commonality. 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 3 

● Consult written resources. T ​ here are countless written and online resources that 
offer insight on how to reach particular audience segments. For example, 
Chapter 5 of Levinson, Adkins, and Forbes’ G ​ uerilla Marketing for Nonprofits 
details the different values and motivators of generational groups and how that 
factors into marketing towards them. Discerning the differences can be 
complicated, but doing so is critical for targeting a specific demographic. For 
example, the Salus Center might communicate in a way that appeals to 
millennials but repels baby boomers. Those generations share some similarities 
but also possess several key differences. To appeal to both groups, one must 
respect both their similarities and their differences. 
 
● Develop personas​. Create some fictional people who belong to the audience 
segment you want to reach. Give them jobs, hobbies, family, friends, pets, etc. 
The more detailed, the better. Personas are made by observing audience trends 
and make it easy to peer inside audiences’ minds and learn how they might 
respond to certain communications. This strategy also makes it easier to 
remember that audience members are dynamic and complex, not just a collection 
of statistics and traits on a piece of paper. Here are some questions to ask oneself 
when using a persona: 
○ What would make the Salus Center appeal to this person? 
○ Why does this person feel repelled by the Salus Center’s current methods 
of outreach? 
○ Why doesn’t this person care about the Salus Center’s work? 
○ What might this person better respond to? 
 
● Gather feedback.​ Responses and opinions from audience members can help 
clarify their thoughts and viewpoints. This could provide the Salus Center with of 
guidance on how to solve the largest problems. Specific methods for collecting 
and using information from audience members is provided in ​Strategy​ section. 
 
Intersectionality is central to addressing issues of unresponsiveness, too. For example, if 
the problematic audience segment is white, middle-aged lesbians, it is not enough to 
merely research how to reach out to lesbians. Their race and age can have significant 
impacts on their preferences and opinions, so it is necessary to study all aspects of a 
group’s identity. What works for one segment will not always work for another. 
Furthermore, it is important to remember that groups are not all located in the same 
place and it might require some effort to discover the best way to contact a group.  
 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 4 

KEY MESSAGES 
 
According to Chapter 4 of B​ randraising​ by Sarah Durham, the concept of ‘positioning’ is 
“what makes your organization unique, and what the big idea is that you hope to 
establish in the minds of your audiences” (60). The ‘big idea’ in this case is the key 
message that audiences should receive from the Salus Center’s communications. This 
message should make audiences care about the Salus Center while remaining broad and 
easy to understand. It should also feel inclusive to all audiences, rather than centered on 
only one or two relevant groups. 
 
For the purposes of this plan, the key message should make audiences care about issues 
that do not necessarily impact them. One key message to shoot for is: “The Salus 
Center’s work is immensely important for a lot of people and [unresponsive 
demographic] should care about it because [compelling reason].” 
 
Compelling reasons can become evident as the Salus Center collects data and identifies 
trends. They can also vary between audiences. Compelling reasons can range from 
examples of how the Salus Center can help the audience in question to examples of 
important work the Salus Center needs help to accomplish. The key is to provide 
audience segments with reasons that are s​ pecifically relevant to them​ and successfully 
argue that s​ omething needs to be done​. 
 
STRATEGY 
 
The following tactics and suggestions serve as different avenues through which the 
Salus Center can learn about unresponsive audience segments. It would be in the 
organization’s best interests to use these tactics at least once. However, if the center 
observes no change in its relationship with the audience in question, it is recommended 
that the Salus Center allocate its resources to study or assist a different audience 
segment. 
 
Listening Campaign 
A listening campaign is an easy, inexpensive way to reach out to the 
community and offers insight as to why audiences may not be responsive. 
Listening campaigns typically involve meeting with members of a 
community whose voices you want to emphasize. These individuals are 
encouraged to speak about their experiences and viewpoints so that others 
might understand their history, opinions, and struggles more thoroughly. 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 5 

Appendix A​ provides more information about this type of campaign as 

well as a toolkit for successfully executing one. While a listening 
campaign itself is fairly easy to conduct, it has many moving parts that, if 
left unchecked, can halt the entire process. It is important to have a clear 
organization board (org board) that volunteers and members may refer to 
if ever the process should go askew. The following is an example of an org 
board: 

 
Figure 1: T
​ his figure is an example of a traditional nonprofit organizational structure. 
http://www.hurwitassociates.com/nonprofit-organizational-charts/traditional-nonprofit-organizational-structure 

 
This org board is realistically something that can be recreated and used 
by the Salus Center, depending on the organization’s needs. An org board 
is important because it can further cement the roles each volunteer, 
member, and board member plays, and will allocate jobs, questions, and 
concerns to other people, before reaching Phiwa. A great example of an 
org board for the listening campaign is:  
 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 6 

 
 
Figure 2​: The following organizational board was created to demonstrate the communication hierarchy that can be used within 
the Salus Center for a future Listening Campaign. 

 
 
While this example is small and can (should) be expanded, it can give the center a 
sense if it is moving in the right direction. 
 
When considering this tactic, the Salus Center should carefully construct a 
calendar or timeline of each of the strategy’s milestones, including the start, 
response, and end dates. It is important to note that the campaign can be 
conducted both digitally and physically. 
 
Some example qualitative questions to consider, depending on the type of 
information the center hopes to receive, are: 
 
● Do you identify as trans or non-binary? 
● If not, how do you identify? 
● What are your feelings on people who identify as trans or non-binary? 
 
A large part of the listening campaign is actually listening. Once the Salus Center 
has acquired the data from the qualitative questions, it is up to the center what to 
do with it. Hate responses should not be considered unless they provide insight 
into why certain groups may feel segregated or uncomfortable. Answers such as 
“I don’t like trans people because I think they are weird,” will not count towards 
the campaign, as they are intolerant messages without backing. 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 7 

 
It is important to consider that with qualitative data, differing opinions about 
severity may lead to differing results. In this case, it is recommended that the 
Salus Center’s volunteers understand the implications of audience’s responses 
and how to classify them. More information on preparing volunteers for this task 
is available in the S
​ uggestions​ section under ​Volunteer Training​. 
 
Another group of volunteers could research an audience segment by contacting 
local organizations who may already have this data or by referring to local census 
data, although the census does not include the opportunity to select transgender 
or non-binary as the respondent’s gender. For this part of the campaign, it is 
important to have a mini calendar within the larger calendar for data milestones. 
Some items featured in this calendar may include: 
 
Task  Date 

Contact [Organization Name]  [DATE] 

● List the organization's mission 
● List the data they have 

Refer to Census data about [certain unresponsive group]  [DATE] 

Have data from both [organization] and census collected and  [DATE] 
analyzed 

Send data to the surveying group  [DATE] 

 
The actual dispersal of the campaign can be done by volunteers either through 
the Internet or in-person. Again, a mini milestone calendar may help keep this 
group on task and prevent the campaign from halting. Items on this calendar 
might include: 
 
Task  Date 

Data from previous group should be ready  [DATE] 

● If this is not the case, have the volunteer refer to a 
higher up listed in the org board. 

Target [specific area 1]  [DATE] 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 8 

Target [specific area 2]  [DATE] 

Target [specific area 3]  [DATE] 

Target [specific area 4]  [DATE] 

Stop collecting survey responses (Date)  [DATE] 

 
The final and most important part of a listening campaign is to recognize the 
data and validate the thoughts and opinions of the groups contacted. The easiest 
way to do this is via external communications, though some internal 
communications may change as well. 
 
Depending on the data collected during the campaign, the Salus Center might 
want to host several events or release different media addressing the concerns of 
the unresponsive groups. For example, if the center notices that a large segment 
of cisgender lesbians dislike the trans identification because they believe it is tied 
to mental illness, it may be beneficial to host an open forum or presentation that 
tackles identity and mental health.  
 
It is important to include this last step to show that the center was listening to 
the concerns of the unresponsive audience segments. These steps make groups 
feel heard and validated, but will not deter the center from its primary goal of 
helping those in need. 
 
Suggestions 
 
Volunteer Training 
Training volunteers is essential to the development and efficiency of every 
nonprofit. Some suggestions made for the Salus Center are included: 
 
● Create an organizational board: This will set up a clear hierarchy 
for volunteers to refer to if they have questions or concerns. 
 

● Create committees/chairs: This comes alongside the org board 

and further defines the relationships and communication 
hierarchy. 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 9 

● Hold private training sessions: According to the committee the 

volunteer is placed in, have the chair of the committee train 
them. 

● Get chairpeople on board: It may be appropriate to start a 

Volunteer Training Chair that all other chairs refer to when 
training their volunteers. This helps maintain organizational 
standards and will make volunteers feel confident in the 
organization. 
 
 
Pride Month 
Pride Month is a great time to fully engage with members of all 
demographics and will provide an opportune moment to collect data. Have 
a group of volunteers, armed with specific questions and ways to record 
answers, ready to ask as many questions as possible about the 
unresponsive group the center hopes to reach. Please refer to the 
communication strategy regarding ​Pride Month​ activities. 
 
Social Media Development 
Social media has become a beneficial source of external communication 
recently. It is highly recommended that the Salus Center uses suggestions 
given in the E​ xternal Communications​ and ​Social Media​ strategy guides. 
However, it would be beneficial for the center to modify specific labels 
that may limit audience members. For example, Trans Yoga can be simply 
changed to Trans & Friends Yoga. This way more people feel comfortable 
coming to the yoga nights who may have felt they were not welcomed 
before, or who believe that only trans people were welcomed on those 
nights. 
 
Once the Salus Center obtains enough information about an unresponsive audience 
segment, it’s time to put the plan into action. Any and all research should go straight to 
the Salus Center’s communication committee. The information will enable the 
committee to produce more effective outreach materials. Additionally, the research 
obtained should be available to everyone in the organization. This is simply in case 
someone needs it to better target an outreach project or event. 
 
The Salus Center should also refer to its research when determining the best way to 
distribute its new materials. Audience statements and personas could both hint at a 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 10 

solution. It’s important to understand where, when, and in what context the audience 
segment is most likely to respond positively to the new materials. 
 
Additionally, the Salus Center should take a slow and steady approach with this 
strategy. A panicked, reactionary campaign could further alienate audience segments. 
Gather information carefully and methodically, only moving forward when the path is 
crystal clear. 
 
A specific example of this plan in action is available in​ ​Appendix B​. 
 
MODES & MEDIA 
 
“Modes and media” are the types of documents the Salus Center will produce through 
the use of this strategy. This section is divided into two parts: Documents produced for 
research, and documents produced for outreach once the research is complete. 
 
Research Materials 
There are not many research materials needed to contact unresponsive audience 
members. Of the tactics and suggestions listed above, the center may need to 
provide each volunteer with a stack of surveys, a clipboard, and some writing 
utensils. Online surveys, on the other hand, require Internet access (on the Salus 
Center’s as well as the respondents’ parts), a complete list of survey questions, a 
list of people to send the survey to, and a link to the survey. 
 
To create a paper survey, one of the Salus Centers’ staff members or volunteers 
need only to type it in a word processor and print it. Online surveys are a bit of a 
different beast. There are countless online survey tools, but a free and simple 
option is Google Forms. Examples of what a Google Forms survey looks like are 
provided in​ A
​ ppendix C​. The following steps describe how to produce a survey 
in Google Forms. 
 
1. Go to h ​ ttps://drive.google.com/​ and sign in. If the Salus Center does not yet 
have a dedicated Google account, click on the “Go to Google Drive” 
button and follow Google’s steps to create an account. 
2. Once signed in, Google Drive’s main interface will appear. At the top left 
of the page, there is a blue button labelled “New.” Click on it to make a 
drop down menu appear. 
3. At the bottom of the menu, click “More,” then select “Google Forms.” 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 11 

4. A blank survey should appear in a new tab or window. Experiment with 

the available tools. Nobody else can see the survey yet, so this is a great 
time to play around. 
5. When the survey is complete, click on the “Send” button near the top right 
of the page. 
6. In the window that appears, click on the second button in the “Send via” 
row. It looks like a chain. This will provide the Salus Center with a link to 
share with potential respondents. 
7. Click on the “Copy” button, which is located at the bottom right of this 
window. 
8. Paste (using Ctrl+V or Command+V) the link into an email addressed to 
potential survey respondents. 
9. Send the email and wait for responses to pour in! 
 
Outreach Materials 
The outreach materials the Salus Center produces through the use of this 
strategy will largely depend on its findings throughout the research process. 
There isn’t a “one size fits all” approach here. However, in Chapter 5 of Kivi 
Leroux Miller’s ​Nonprofit Marketing Guide​, the author noted that there are a few 
basic needs that outreach materials need to fulfill: 
 
1 Include some sort of emotional pull. This could be a story or a simple 
.  picture. It must be easy to connect with. Emotional appeals aren’t 
malicious by any means. They help humans understand the weight of 
concepts in a way that statistics and numbers can’t. 

2 Tap into the segment’s personal identity. 

. 

3 Include some statistic or some basic logical appeal. Make sure these 
.  elements are easy to comprehend, however. 

4 Add a clear call to action. (Donate! Get involved! Come talk to us!) 
.  This will give audience members some guidance as to where they 
should go next. 

5 Make it all about the audience segment. Appeal to the values specific 
.  to their demographics. Any research will come in handy here. 
 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 12 

 
NEEDS 
 
This strategy mainly requires a different use of resources the Salus Center already has at 
its disposal. Those who study audiences will continue to do so, and those who produce 
marketing materials will simply need to utilize some research findings in their projects. 
If the center intends to conduct a survey through mail, it might be necessary to set aside 
a small budget to finance it. Aside from that, though, the largest investment required is 
time. This strategy will take time to conclude, so it’s important that the Salus Center 
schedule effectively. 
 
Below is a calendar with some general guidelines as to when certain phases of this 
strategy should occur. If certain segments produce excellent results and need to 
continue for longer, it won’t hurt to stretch that segment out for longer. Similarly, the 
Salus Center could shorten a phase if it proves infeasible or produces few worthwhile 
results. 
 

 
 
Figure 3​: This image shows a calendar with some general guidelines as to when certain phases of this strategy should occur. 

 
ASSESSMENT 
 
To assess the success of this strategy, the Salus Center should look for an increase in 
participation from the formerly unresponsive group. Do audience members become 
more active at the Salus Center itself? Do they interact with the organization on social 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 13 

media more often? Do they provide more donations of time and/or money? If the Salus 
Center sees a surge in any of these factors, then it’s safe to say that the strategy was a 
success. 
 
If assessment reveals that engagement from a particular group hasn’t changed, there 
isn’t a need to grow discouraged. The strategy still yielded useful information, but it 
might be necessary to accept that a particular audience segment isn’t interested in the 
Salus Center’s services. If a certain number of attempts bear no fruit, it might be more 
prudent to invest further effort into audience segments who actually care and could 
benefit more from Salus Center’s services and efforts. Colleen Dilenschneider’s article 
“Marketing Your Nonprofit to Audiences That ACTUALLY Matter” provides more 
information on selecting the most relevant audiences. A link to this article is available 
in the “Works Cited” section. 
 
CONCLUSION 
 
With the strategies and processes described, the Salus Center should expect to see an 
overall increase in participation, interest, and empathy from the groups they’re trying to 
reach. Whether these groups are currently an issue or may be troublesome in the future, 
striving to include them furthers Salus Center’s perspective that all groups are a part of 
the whole. An uptick in online or in-person activity and an improvement in these 
audience members’ attitudes are indicators that the organization is taking steps in the 
right direction. The opposite is also true: continued apathy and lack of participation 
should serve as hints to reconsider the current strategy. While reaching and interacting 
with every audience segment is the ideal situation, the board members and volunteers of 
the Salus Center should not be discouraged by subtle or slow changes. Changing the 
attitude of unresponsive audiences doesn’t and shouldn’t have to come at the price of 
serving and helping the groups that have been receptive and helped by the Salus 
Center’s events so far. Effort and other resources that are being used in a so-far 
unsuccessful strategy are not lost, but rather should go toward a reworking of that 
strategy or toward groups that will undoubtedly benefit from them and further the Salus 
Center’s mission. 
 
 
 
 
 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 14 

 
WORKS CITED 
 
Dilenschneider, Colleen. “Marketing Your Nonprofit to Audiences That ACTUALLY 
Matter.” Colleen Dilenschneider, 26 June 2017, 
www.colleendilen.com/2013/03/13/marketing-your-nonprofit-to-audiences-that-a
ctually-matter/​. 
 
Durham, Sarah. ​Brandraising: How Nonprofits Raise Visibility and Money through Smart 
Communications​. Jossey-Bass, 2010. 
 
Gutas, Thembani Lawrence. “The Mayor's Listening Campaign in the Integrated 
Development Planning Process: A Case Study of the City of Cape Town.” Dec. 
2005, 
scholar.sun.ac.za/bitstream/handle/10019.1/1750/gutas_mayors_2005.pdf?sequenc
e=1&isAllowed=y. 
 
Levinson, Jay Conrad., et al. G
​ uerrilla Marketing for Nonprofits: 250 Tactics to Promote, 
Recruit, Motivate, and Raise More Money​. Jere L. Calmes, 2010. 
 
Miller, Kivi Leroux. ​The Nonprofit Marketing Guide: High-Impact, Low-Cost Ways to Build 
Support for Your Good Cause​. Jossey-Bass, 2010.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 15 

 
APPENDICES 
 
Appendix A--Example of a Listening Campaign: 
The following comes from The Poverty Alliance’s own Listening Campaign and can be 
easily tailored for the Salus Center. 
www.povertyalliance.org/userfiles/files/Listening%20Campaign%20Toolkit.doc  
 
Appendix B--Sample Outline of Action Plan: 
1. Goal 
a. Effectively communicate with middle-aged, white, cisgender lesbians who 
don’t necessarily care about the Salus Center’s mission. Allow the 
communication to focus on marginalized groups but don’t unintentionally 
exclude other people under the LGBTQ+ umbrella.  
2. Objectives 
a. These are the same as listed earlier. Step 1 is already complete! 
i. Figure out who your apathetic audience members are 
ii. Conduct research to determine what strategies the audience 
segment in question will respond to 
iii. Design a new strategy around your findings. 
3. Audience(s) 
a. Per Phiwa’s email, we want to better communicate with primarily white, 
cisgender lesbians of the baby-boomer generation 
b. Consult written resources for advice 
i. This could include published research, information published by 
organizations that include your audience, and strategies used by 
others to reach the same audience(s)  
c. Develop personas 
d. Gather feedback and opinions from audience members to clarify their 
thoughts and viewpoints 
4. Key Message 
a. The Salus Center’s work is immensely important and relevant to 
middle-aged white lesbians because [compelling reason]. 
b. We can’t conduct research on this scale, so we can’t provide a concrete 
message. However, one suggestion is: “The Salus Center supports equal 
rights for transgender people, but it doesn’t do so at the expense of any 
other group. There are some policy and public opinion differences, but the 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 16 

Salus Center does not and will never assign one group more importance 
than another. 
c. Positioning older LGBTQ+ individuals as trailblazers or mentors could be 
helpful. 
5. Strategy 
a. Listening Campaign 
b. Volunteer Training 
c. Pride Month 
d. Social Media Development 
6. Modes/Media 
a. This heavily depends on the results of the research. 
b. Place our example documents here. 
7. Needs 
a. More of a time commitment than a financial one 
i. Need to get volunteers or existing board members involved 
ii. Don’t need many physical resources (paper, internet connection 
should suffice for the most part) 
8. Assessment 
a. If you notice a decrease in apathy, you’ve done well. 
b. If you don’t see any changes, you probably still did well, but this might be 
a situation that can’t be helped. 
c. Determine whether you want to conduct more research, or move on to 
audiences who are more likely to care about the Salus Center’s mission. 
 
Appendix C--Sample Google Forms Survey: 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 17 

 
  
Non-Responsive Audiences 18