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The following are only a few ideas to start your creative juices
flowing. When you come up with your own great idea, please share it
here so others can consider it, too!
All of the following ideas can be used by individual organizations
and also by collaborative "Looks Back." Just change the
scale of the production.
- Produce a printed history. Depending on the length of
the story, your budget, ability to get services like printing donated,
and other factors such as the number you think you can distribute
(or sell), you have lots of options:
- real, honest-to-goodness book
- any type of monograph, pamphlet, etc. (with today's high quality
copiers, it's possible even to reproduce photographs inexpensively)
- a series of posters for bulletin boards, window displays,
hallways
- devote your organization's annual report for 2001 to this
research
Publicity Ideas: Liberally distribute review copies
to the media, with a press release; get bookstores to feature the
book as a "local publication" (even the large chain bookstores
will do this); get local celebrities to write introductory comments
or give endorsements for the back cover.
- Create an exhibit for the lobby of your building. For
a community-wide history, how about an exhibit for the library or
even for City Hall?
Publicity Ideas: Throw a party to officially open
the exhibit. Invite the mayor or other celebrities/performers to "cut
the ribbon" or entertain--then send out press releases and follow
up.
- Scan the photos and documents and place them on your agency's
Web site along with text summarizing what you found. (Make sure
this is linked to "How You Can Volunteer Today" since
some cyber visitors may be attracted to apply.) Community-wide,
recruit an organization to "host" the cyber history and
have all participating agencies link to it in the same way (design
an icon or button). Maybe the Volunteer Center's Web site would
be a logical home for the material.
Publicity Ideas: Announce the official posting
with print and electronic press releases.
- Convert paper photos and documents into slides or a videotape.
Add modern shots. Photograph places like the tombstones of
early founders, locations of previous office space, etc. Once you
have the material in audio-visual format, consider making long and
short versions. Then "book" the show everywhere you can:
- public access cable television
- community center
- the library
- senior centers
- faith communities
- classrooms
- adult education programs
Publicity Ideas:
- If you can recruit a media personality to narrate your video
or tape, you have a good chance that his or her station will be
interested in publicizing it!
- See if you can excerpt 30 seconds or 1 minute and ask one of
your local television stations to see if they'll run it as a public
service.
- Make a list of all the talk shows originating at local television,
cable, and radio stations. Approach one at a time (start with
the most popular) and see if they'll give you a whole half-hour
to interview you and show longer excerpts. [Note: Do not approach
all media stations at once. They tend to like exclusive stories
and will not be happy if more than one station airs the same material.
Press releases can go out to everyone, but individual requests
for air time need to be treated uniquely.]
- Transform the material dramatically and make a play out of it.
This might be a skit or a full production. Audition volunteers and
employees to play the parts and schedule performances as above.
[Yes--you can use humor and still make your point!]
Publicity Ideas: First present the play in-house
and judge audience reaction! If it is well-received, invite local
movers and shakes and the press to later productions.
- Create a curriculum for various grades, stressing the contributions
volunteers have made to the community in the past and still do in
the present.
Publicity Ideas: Send a letter explaining the curriculum
to all principals and teachers of social studies, community service,
citizenship, and other appropriate subjects. Also send a letter
to the PTAs, Sunday School administrators, and others with a n interest
in youth education.
Tips for Starting a Project |
What Others Have Done | What Is Look Back to Look Ahead?
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