Your sustainability efforts are having a big impact on the planet — but they haven’t made as big of impact on your reputation. Now what?
Sustainability goals alone don’t tell the whole story
September 19, 2021
Author Archives: Lee Carter
The Good Words Project
September 19, 2021
Some of the most satisfying language work I’ve done, however, has been pro-bono on behalf of small, local nonprofits working to support worthy causes. In my time here, our team’s Good Words initiative has embarked on projects that include.…
The language strategy behind communicating gene therapy
August 18, 2021
Health is so personal, and talking about illness with a group of strangers isn’t an easy thing for everyone to do. But often, we at m+p get the opportunity to listen to these very personal stories and pass them directly onto the companies creating life-saving medicines. It’s incredibly meaningful in and of itself. And sometimes we get the honor of sharing that work even more broadly than with just our immediate client.
Sustainability as a journey
August 9, 2021
Through our research, we’ve identified a few key areas to focus on when assessing your sustainability story. Here are several ways you can ensure you’re lining up your company’s ongoing actions with your company’s actions for the future
Your sustainability story, sans buzzwords
July 9, 2021
When done right, an effective sustainability story can strengthen your business by uniting employees, customers, and shareholders around a common goal. To craft a sustainability story that resonates with employees and consumers, it’s critical to translate your sustainability story into simpler language. Here’s how you can start.
Communicating your company’s pro- + lo-bono work
July 1, 2021
In 2020, Mark’s employees did over 10,000 hours of combined community service. In that same time, Timmy’s employees donated over $500,000 (US) to support local food banks. Who had a more positive impact on their community, Mark or Timmy?
The Power of “Communities”
June 22, 2021
Since the emergence of COVID-19, maslansky + partners has tracked corporate communications via social media, press releases, and emails to understand communication trends and what we can learn from them. One area of focus that has emerged is Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. With so much new language — one word in particular stood out to us: “community.” It is being used in many cases to replace American. For example, the Black community instead of Black Americans, or the Asian community instead of Asian Americans, or the Hispanic community instead of Hispanic Americans.
The Smartest, Stupidest, + Savviest Messages of 2021 (So Far)
June 1, 2021
Season One of HearSay ends with a bang: the smartest, savviest, + stupidest messages of 2021 so far. Michael and Lee are joined by HearSay veterans Keith and Katie to give their takes on the messages that have stood out: from Voltswagen, to Harry and Megan’s Oprah interview (and the royal response), to President Biden’s infrastructure plan and the true pronunciation of “cheugy.” They focus in not just in some of the biggest language moments of the year so far — but what we can all learn from them.
Tell A Different Story: Words To Use And Lose For Sustainability Comms
May 25, 2021
With everyone telling their sustainability story, are you cutting through the crowd? Have you found one bold idea to center your communications around? It used to be that sustainability experts evaluated how companies were performing in this area. But now, customers and employees alike are paying attention. The old language of sustainability doesn’t work now. This week on HearSay, Michael and Lee welcome back podcast alumni Will Howard and Sachi Pettit to talk about all things sustainability, including how to respond appropriately to your critics, examples of successful corporate sustainability communication frameworks (from programs/products like Starbucks’ Shared Planet, Unilever’s Sustainable Living Plan, and Adidas’ Ocean Shoe), and how to depoliticize your sustainability language.
The Language of a Leader in Employee Communications
May 18, 2021
Which audience is most important for your business? Many say it’s clients or customers. But often the most overlooked and valuable audience is your employees. Whether it’s communicating about the post-COVID return, your mission and values, or your new offerings, how you engage your employees is critical to your business success. This week on HearSay, Michael and Lee welcome Larry Moscow and Katie Cronen to talk about all of that and more, including why some words like “agile,” efficient,” “innovative” and “transformational” might not be effective and what language you should use instead.