Sep 21, 2026
Building Grantee Communications Capacity That Sticks: What We’ve Learned
This blog is connected to a poster session that we presented at the annual Communications Network conference this fall in San Diego. Check out the poster here – designed by High Mountain Creative.
The Problem
We know that our nonprofit partners have important stories to tell, valuable expertise to share, and impactful work to highlight, but we heard that many lack the time, tools, training, relationships, and communications support needed to reach broader audiences. So we started experimenting with solutions.
What We Tried
Example
Worked with A New Angle, a podcast on Montana Public Radio, to launch The Ripple Effect, a quarterly segment highlighting nonprofit leaders and local solutions.
Example
Co-produced a film series with Stories for Action and Montana Partnership to End Childhood Hunger highlighting food security efforts in six rural Montana towns.
Example
Hosted an Action Lab with narrative strategist Jonathan Lipman focused on narrative change and messaging for impact, followed by funding and coaching to put ideas into practice.
Example
As Montana debated the future of Medicaid expansion, we commissioned a report showing the importance of public assistance, with a one-pager and social media toolkit
Example
Invited three nonprofit leaders to join us at a Philanthropy Northwest conference, where they offered advice to funders on supporting rural nonprofits.
Three Lessons We Learned
1. Ask before you offer.
We quickly learned that communications capacity looks different for every organization. Some partners need a videographer. Others need strategy support, training, or data tools. We pay attention to what grantees need through surveys, check-ins, and reporting conversations, build support around those needs, and keep asking questions.
2. Support matters as much as the tool.
We learned not to provide a workshop, video, or report and then walk away. Follow-up support helps people put ideas into practice. That’s why we’ve paired trainings with grant funding, repurposed documentaries into social media content, and turned research into one-pagers and toolkits. We want to make it easy for busy organizations to use, adapt, and share our communications resources.
3. Relationships create opportunities.
We saw that sometimes the biggest barrier is not having a seat at the table. As a foundation, we can use our relationships with strategists, journalists, storytellers, funders, and other partners to elevate grantees, expand their reach, and create opportunities that might not otherwise exist.
Are you a peer funder experimenting with similar approaches? We’d love to compare notes! Are you a grantee in need of communications support? We’re all ears! Reach out to our Senior Communications Manager, Robyn Windham at [email protected].