Persona #1 – Sarah is a 42 year-old work from home mom. She is middle class, working for a local marketing firm. She volunteers for several non-profit organizations. She has two kids and a dog. She values education, her community and the arts. She likes to stay informed but absolutely loves music and the local arts scene. She really appreciates the on-the-hour news reports that air on our all-music station, so that she stays keyed in but can still fill her day with locally-curated music rather than all talk.
Persona #2 – Bill is a 68 year old retired lawyer. He is upper middle class, and spends his days golfing, playing with grand-children and fixing his car. He values his family, the truth and civic engagement. He’s been a public media fan for as long as he can remember. He listens to VPM News daily…particularly Morning Edition, watched PBS Kids with his children (and now grand-children) and never misses WWDTM on the weekends. He really appreciates VPM’s renewed focus on local news.
For Sarah, I think her giving will be more impulsive. With her busy lifestyle, she’ll respond to an email ask or ad she sees on Instagram. For Bill, I think he understands the value of the programming. He’s been a steady donor for years. He is ready to build a more meaningful relationship with the organization and should be cultivated as a Major Donor prospect.
For both, I want to make sure our pledge messaging focus on what VPM brings to the community beyond national programming from NPR, including local news reporting as we have the largest news team in Central Virginia and locally-curated music that highlights local artists and community performances.