Non-profits that harness the power of public service announcements earn more donations and have more interaction with the local community than organizations that don’t use PSAs to their advantage. When you create a public service announcement, you create more exposure for your organization, but you also attempt to help the community in some way. For increased exposure and to convey the image that you truly care about the community you’re targeting, we recommend that you create a quarterly public service announcement. With the second quarter already underway, it might be time to start planning your organization’s next PSA.
Quarterly PSA – Earn More Attention From Your Target Community
When you set out to create a quarterly public service announcement, and you pledge to release one every quarter, you have a prime opportunity to make your organization one of the best known in your target community. Make sure that your organization’s name, logo and overall message are shown and conveyed in the quarterly PSA so that you get all the benefit from each one you publish.
The hardest part about attempting to create a public service announcement is actually coming up with the public service part. For this, you may use the four quarters of the year to get some ideas. For instance, the first quarter of the year ends the last day of March. When you create a quarterly public service announcement in March, you might want to mention things like spring cleaning, getting your car tuned up after it’s been in the winter cold all season long, or you may use your quarterly public service announcement as an opportunity to give all spring breakers in your area some travel and safety tips.
The PSA you choose doesn’t necessarily have to do with your organization (a church could release a quarterly PSA on choking prevention, for instance), but it should assist the community in some way.
Think safety, tips, tricks, secrets and other tidbits that the men and women in your target community may not have heard before. Tie it in with your overall message and you’ll have a quarterly public service announcement that gets you noticed and that helps your target audience in some way.
The following will help you plan your quarterly PSA so that you’re not scrambling each time a quarter ends.
How To Create A Quarterly Public Service Announcement
It’s recommended that you plan your upcoming PSA releases at least a quarter in advance. Since we are in the second quarter, you should be planning to create a quarterly PSA for release at the beginning of July, when the second quarter ends and the third begins.
The moment the third quarter PSA is released, that’s when you’ll want to plan your fourth quarterly PSA for release in October, and then you’ll want another one in January for the first quarter of 2014.
Create Your Script
Your PSA is going to use a script as a backbone. It’s recommended that you gather your organization’s key members together to discuss important points you’d like to discuss in the quarterly public service announcements. Have there been any recent tragedies in the area that could have been prevented with a good uplifting message? Or maybe you just want to send out positive affirmations because you’ve noticed that people are feeling a little down about the economy, unemployment, etc. Pick the best ones and start developing the advice, the message or the overall quarterly PSA into a full-length script.
Go for a thirty seconds or a minute if it’s a video or radio commercial or a single page if the quarterly PSA is going to be printed or viewed on-screen. Then, decide how you’re going to present the PSA to the community.
Always Go For Top-Quality
No matter if someone is going to speak the PSA aloud into a camera, it’s going to be acted like a sketch or it’s an animation type PSA, you must go for quality if want people to pay attention. You may find that your organization contains individuals with the skills necessary to put together a great public service announcement. If not, hire the job out so that your organization is always seen in the best light.
Then, just like clockwork, create a quarterly public service announcement at least a quarter in advance and then release a PSA at the beginning of each quarter. With great advice, positive messages and the occasional funny or thought-provoking message, you’ll position yourself right in front of your target community and you’ll get your message across consistently every time.
