Strategic Communications
Effective communicating is more than making an announcement and moving on. Working with your team to understand your values and goals, I will create and execute an effective communications strategy, using the right vehicles, messages and messengers to reach the people you need to reach, and tell the story you want to tell. Services include:
- Research and analysis
- Strategy development
- Communications plans
- Message development
Case study: Marriage equality
From Massachusetts to the Supreme Court, from ballot initiatives to legislative campaigns, I shaped the communications strategy supporting the march to nationwide marriage equality. As Director of Public Affairs for GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders for twelve years, I used research, message development, press relations, and storytelling to get to the win.
Media relations
If you need to educate the public about an issue, toot your horn about a program, or pass a piece of legislation, I can help you find your stories and tell them to the world in the most effective way. In the end, your profile will be higher, you will have stronger relationships in the media, and you will be closer to your goal. Services include:
- Media campaigns
- Story development and pitching
- Media training
- Crisis communications
Case study: Higher education
Wheelock College, which educates students for teaching, social work, and other child-focused professions, needed to raise its public profile in order to attract more quality students, and establish itself as a thought leader. Over the course of the year, I placed multiple stories featuring faculty and students, including pieces about children and trauma post 9/11, interdisciplinary teacher training, and after-school programs.
Content creation
I’ve worked from the pre-fax era up to the digital moment, so I can create traditional materials like press releases and annual reports, as well as content such as blog posts and tweets – and make it all work together. I can create:
- Annual reports, newsletters and brochures
- Op eds, letters to the editor, press releases
- Social media content
Case study: Annual reports
I wrote the first annual report for the African Comprehensive AIDS Partnership, a project supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in Botswana.
Case study: Website redesign
I wrote much of the static copy for GLBTQ Advocates & Defender's redesigned website, using the "bite, snack, meal" model.
““Carisa is a rock star of the LGBTQ movement. She used smart communications strategy to advance equality at the state and national levels. I loved working with her during the Connecticut marriage campaign and while I served on the board of GLAD. I know that whatever she does, it will be stellar.””
““Carisa is one of the absolute best - so brilliant and generous. I have loved every project I have worked on with her, and hope we work together again.””