What do you want your audience to know? Simply put, this is your message. It needs to be clear, concise, and emotionally engaging. Taking your complex research or project and distilling it down to a sentence or two can be a challenge. However, the tools and resources here will help.

Messages are useful and needed in a whole range of communications activities from posters to brochures to presentations.

Sometimes, you may need a set of related messages to talk about different aspects of your work. We call this a message framework. This creates the broad argument or rationale for a project, organization, or initiative and positions that group powerfully in conversations with key audiences or stakeholders.

This section provides messaging tools that can be adapted and used when talking to a variety of stakeholders, the media, and the public at large, and samples of Hartford Foundation programs’ message frameworks.

Find examples of Hartford Foundation programs with key messages and cohesive message frameworks.

Learn how to create a clear, strong message. Or go beyond basic messaging to develop a message framework to guide your broader communications efforts.

Share your message with us for review and feedback.