DRIVE Communications Plan

Since the inception of Fresno DRIVE in 2019, we have been moving at an extremely rapid pace to build out the initiative’s foundation. Creating an Executive Committee, supporting our initiative leads, refining our investment plans, and implementing the overall work has kept us busy. One area that we are now turning our attention to is building out a solid communications plan. I’m proud to report that we have spent the last six months working to draft this guiding document.  

Why a plan now?  

I’m actually glad we didn’t create a plan back in 2019. The ongoing refinement of our amazing work the last few years has actually put us in a much better place to create a more functional plan for the next few years.  

Fresno DRIVE is at a pivotal moment. Strategic communication is necessary to align partners and create the conditions for systems change. Here’s why it’s so important right now: 

1. Engage and Invite Residents: Building a fair economy will take all Fresnans. Residents need to feel welcomed, informed, and inspired to take part in shaping the future. 

2. Align the Network: As DRIVE’s initiatives expand and evolve, shared language and consistent messaging are essential to keep everyone moving in the same direction and towards the same goals.  

3. Demonstrate Impact: Funders and partners want to see meaningful results and lessons learned. Clearly communicating progress helps build trust and sustain long-term support.  

How the plan came to be.  

Many voices went into the creation of this plan. We contracted with Open Media Communications and their CEO, Emily Breslin. However, she worked very closely with our DRIVE team, our DRIVE Executive & Race Equity Committee, and spent considerable time with a subcommittee of these three groups over the course of the last six month. 

In addition to that, Emily had several focus group conversations with youth leaders, residents from all areas of our community as well as with many of our non-English speaking community leaders. Emily took considerable time learning about our needs from the very voices that make up our community.  

All of these conversations helped with the creation of the plan. Ultimately, our DRIVE Executive Committee met on June 12 and formally approved the plan after several revisions were made.  

A little more about the plan.  

The plan includes tactics to engage various DRIVE audiences, invest deeply in community storytelling, communicate our ongoing progress, and create a platform to showcase calls to action throughout the year.  

As we’ve mentioned in past newsletters, DRIVE is focused on creating a new narrative for our community. The plan will help us lift up and implement our strategies to create this new narrative.  Though it will take a couple of years to fully implement all strategies, the plan provides a roadmap for success.