Since our Changing the Conversation webinar, I’ve noticed a growing interest in non-digital forms of communication. Maybe I’m just more attuned to it now. Maybe it just makes sense. Once we understand why so many people feel like no-one tells them what’s going on, the limits of digital become obvious.
“But we sent you an email” is simply not good enough.
The opposite of digital isn’t just print. It’s phone calls. It’s trusted people sharing information in local networks. It’s being physically present when questions arise. It’s communication that feels human, not broadcast.
I was at a meeting with Bristol Charities a couple of weeks ago, where we talked about the value of old-school community newsletters. That’s something Quids in! magazine can get behind. If we’re all serious about re-engaging people who feel disaffected or disenfranchised, we have to think local and act local.
Yes, digital is cheap. On the face of it, free. But public and charitable funding is meant to deliver value, not just efficiency. And right now, with a sense of injustice running deep in many communities, if emails and institutional social media aren’t cutting through, what value are they really delivering?
We’re starting to see the social cost of not reaching people, and that should change how we measure success.
There will always need to be a mix. But a serious re-investment in local, relational, non-digital communication is urgently needed.
So how do we do that in a budget-limited world? How do we create the capacity to be present in every community that feels cut off?
The answer is hiding in plain sight. We don’t create it from scratch. It’s already there.
The resource we need exists within those communities. It’s people. People who are already connected, already talking, already trusted. The challenge is recognising that and working with it.
A founding principle of Clean Slate is that no-one can say what people in hardship need to hear like other people in hardship. I saw it at The Big Issue, where people with lived experience weren’t just beneficiaries, they were the business. And it holds true now.
With the right support, we can cascade information, and counter misinformation, through small numbers of people embedded in their communities. That’s another way of being ‘present’. Building from within and sharing resources, including information.
Lived experience runs through Clean Slate like the word ‘Blackpool’ in a stick of rock. (From Blackpool.) It doesn’t only dictate who joins our team, it’s also why we’re so passionate about getting this right. It’s why Quids in! magazine looks like Take-A-Break. Why our financial resilience assessment tool is presented like a coffee break personality test. And why we’re setting up information stands in community centres.
Digital communication needs a rethink too. People may be online. They may have data. They may be IT-literate. But that doesn’t mean they’re checking their inbox. Or that they’re excited to read what the council or job centre has sent them today.
If that same authority was chasing you for council tax or pushing you towards work was also emailing you about the support they can offer, would you open it? Let’s not confuse access with engagement.
Reaching people isn’t about sending more. It’s about connecting better. We cannot even start a conversation, let alone change it, without this.
Image: Oneinchpunch