ABSTRACT
This chapter is about effectively communicating with your stakeholders. Business plans and pitches are essential communication tools, but they’re not the only ones. A communications plan specifies what to convey to whom and why, when, and how. Social entrepreneurs are often intimidated by this aspect of their work. Listening can be one of the most important parts of communicating. Brainstorming with your team and developing your first prototypes also involved communication, to exchange and catalyze ideas. Start by describing the challenge you’re facing, any key statistics that can help capture the challenge’s breadth and depth, and some personal stories that capture the urgency and importance of tackling this challenge. At conferences, speakers are usually given this same amount of time, with additional time afterward for questions and answers. The elevator pitch does not involve a slide deck.
