Internal communicators have it tough. This is a massively underfunded function at most organizations, and some organizations don’t have corporate communicators on staff at all — HR and operations are often the ones executing the tactics.
I’ve been the “first in” at a number of organizations, charged with standing up a communications function without immediate access to support resources to get the job done. Over 20 years, I’ve learned to be pretty resourceful and figure out how to generate impactful communications without a lot of money, time, or tools. Like MacGyver, I’ve figured out how to piece comms together with duct tape and paper clips. Here are five hacks corporate communicators can employ to get ‘er done.
- Canva: Finding a solid freelance graphic designer is a great idea, that person can help you professionally plus up presentations and social graphics. If you don’t have time or budget and you aren’t some sort of photoshop savant yourself, invest in the pro version of Canva to make some passable graphics yourself quickly and easily. Bonus – it’s fairly simple to make a short text and graphics video too!
- TikTok: Need to make a short, simple explainer video for internal use but don’t have the time or budget (there are those to goblins again) to hire a video team? Get proficient at TikTok! This app is a great way to make a very simple video with pre-recorded film snippets, captions, and stickers, and it forces you to be brief. Save your videos privately and then send them to your audience separately.
- Grammarly: The free version of this online writing assistant is a lifesaver for simple grammar and spelling checks on websites like Gmail, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. It’s cheaper than a proofreader and faster than asking someone to check your work. The premium version of Grammarly is pretty great too.
- Stock Photo Sites: Stock photo sites like iStockphoto.com provide access to stunning professional photos and illustrations for internal use (at a cheaper rate than external). There are video clips too. Buying a package of credits is a great way to always have access to images to support your content. It doesn’t cost much to upgrade images for usage on owned channels like your website or social media. There are also plenty of free photo sites like unsplash.com and pexels.com.
- Google: If you don’t know how to do it, Google it and learn. It’s always struck me as funny that some folks want a set of instructions from a colleague to learn how to do something (how do I record my screen and send the recording to my team?) when it’s all a single search away. If there’s a will (to Google), there’s a way.
Communicators are a resourceful bunch. What’s your favorite hack or tool to get the job done on a budget? Let me know below!
Want my help hacking your communications? Contact me.