I’m a Gemini, so for me, it’s all about balance:
Social media is undoubtedly a vital part of social advocacy work, and I don’t believe it is the end all be all of how we’re meant to connect and relate with one another in this life.
Better to Speak’s service offerings aim to provide you with more than one-off digital assets or aimless social media content.
We hope to empower our partners to…
Understand the value of effective communications in advocacy work and community-building
Develop and run an effective communications program that amplifies – rather than burdens – their on-the-ground efforts
Feel confident about their storytelling and content-creation skills
Keep scrolling to explore our offerings and learn about our past collaborations and the great work our past partners are doing!
OFFERINGS – AT A GLANCE
LOGISTICS + FAQS
OUR PROCESS • TIMELINES FOR BOOKING • WHO WE WORK WITH • OUR PRICING
What’s Your Story? Content Strategy
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What’s Your Story? Content Strategy •
DOES THIS SOUND LIKE YOU?
“I want to….find clarity on who I am and what I do, and gain confidence with how I share that online.”
If you’re like me when I first started Better to Speak, you move solely off the strength of an idea and a desire to serve your community. You don’t need much more than that to make a difference, but to do so long-term and at your full potential – you’ll need a plan.
Especially in a world that looks to branding and social media presence first, knowing exactly who you are and what you contribute through your work goes beyond social media posts and a website. Who are you? What is your vision? Do you have the resources and support to achieve that vision? Social media content can amplify your answers, but only if you’ve taken the time and space to actually ask yourself those questions.
The What’s Your Story? Content Strategy Program offers you the space to dig into those questions – to gain even more clarity on your unique story, talents, and strengths as it pertains to your role in community advocacy and Black liberation work, and learn how to apply them sustainably to impactful content marketing for social advocacy.
This course will give you the dedicated space and resources to outline key aspects of a content strategy. Including – your brand story, key audiences, core issues, messaging, and tools for content resourcing, planning, production, distribution, and measurement.
This is for you if…
You want to move forward with a strong foundation for digital content and have the time and space to build that foundation
You’ve been in the game for a lil minute and need to strengthen your content strategy to prepare to play the long game
You’re hitting the reset button on the path to your purpose and role in Black liberation work, and want an effective plan on how to pivot your online presence and content
You’re interested in collaborating with a group of peers journeying alongside you in this work
“Better to Speak has been crucial to 10For10’s development! Thank you Kési.”
Peter Lubembela, Founder and President of 10For10
CONTENT-FIRST WEBSITE DESIGN
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CONTENT-FIRST WEBSITE DESIGN •
DOES THIS SOUND LIKE YOU?
“I want to….establish an effective online presence to better connect with my community, including donors, volunteers, partners and supporters.”
After your social media pages (sometimes even before), your website is the main place your audience will go to learn the following key things about you/your organization (source + source):
Who are you? What is your vision for your community and/or the world?
What concrete actions do you take to work towards that vision?
How can I get involved (specifically by volunteering or donating)?
Does your website answer these questions clearly? Do you have a website at all? Does your website look and feel credible – meaning is it up-to-date, can people find the relevant information they might need?
Creating a website allows you to have an online representation of your work and impact and maintain a consistent touchpoint for your community to find and connect with you.
Better to Speak’s Content-First Website Design package is for individuals and organizations who are starting out – or who need a refresh – and need a simple, yet effective website that is created with their audience in mind.
Investment ➡️ from $975 – $1,500
Depending on how many pages you need, here’s how your website will be priced:
Multiple pages – $750 flat fee for workshop time + $75/page:
3 pages → $975 total
5 pages → $1,125 total
7 pages → $1,275 total
10 pages → $1,500 total
THE PROCESS
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In this first phase of the project, we’ll go over basic branding elements including colors, fonts and a logo – in addition to the overall look and feel you want your website to have.
We’ll also go over audience personas. as well as the journeys and end goals you want your users to be able to easily take when visiting your site.
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Here, we’ll dig in and organize all existing content you have and/or take some time to draft content before putting any copy into a website.
At the same time, we’ll decide on Squarespace templates to serve as a baseline for customization with your brand and content needs.
You’ll review and approve both parts separately – the copy and the website layout – before we put together the full website.
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Once we’ve gathered and approved all the needed items for your website, I’ll put my head down to build out your chosen template with the content and copy.
We’ll go through up to 2-3 rounds of review to ensure you’re happy with your website in its near-final form.
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In this final stage, we’ll take a fine-tooth (rattail) comb through your website to ensure the copy is tight, that any integrations work seamlessly and – most importantly – that your website and its content is accessible.
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Launch your website and establish your digital presence with confidence! I’ll help you feel ready to manage your new site with a live training and resources that you’ll have access to forever (you can also hire me for an hourly, month-to-month rate for website updates, too 😉 ).
Additionally, you’ll have me on standby for 30 days after your website launches to make any needed adjustments or for any questions.
“This was my first time developing a website to display my products from my research and freelance career and I am completely satisfied. Kési took time to explain the website development process, as well as options and recommendations for domains, site hosting, etc. She is very patient, responsive, and a great communicator about expectations. I am recommending to my colleagues for their websites.”
Akilah Wise, Ph.D., Public Health Researcher and Journalist
WORKSHOPS
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WORKSHOPS •
Our official community education offerings are coming soon, but in the meantime please reach out if you’re looking to hire a facilitator to lead a workshop on any of the following topics:
What's Your Story? A Narrative Power Workshop
Who this workshop is for: Individuals or organizations looking to ground their work in Better to Speak’s editorial POV of personal and collective narrative power-building, that centers Black youth and young adult voices and leadership.
Storytelling for Social Change Workshop
Storytellers: Multimedia journalism and content creation (editorial, podcasting, social media, etc.)
Who this workshop is for: Media-making organizations or organizations looking to incorporate editorial publishing into their programming
Changemakers: Digital organizing and grassroots storytelling (ie. story of me, us, now)
Who this workshop is for: Community organizations looking to leverage storytelling for their grassroots advocacy work
Finding Your Voice in the Movement Workshop
Who this workshop is for: Black youth and young adults (18-30) – specifically the organizations that they lead and the organizations that are accountable to them – who are looking to learn about finding your voice as a leader, cultivating belonging for yourself and others, and discovering your path to agency and ownership over your contributions to your community regardless of your industry or expectations of what it means to be engaged in community or politics.
A La Carte Offerings
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Consultations
Reach out to schedule a live, 45-minute conversation about anything regarding your work with content and social advocacy!
We can also do an asynchronous consultation via a recorded Loom video!
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Short-Term Strategy Sesh
In this hour-long session, we’ll work through a series of exercises and discussion prompts to create a short-term content strategy and plan with a focus on Brand Story & Messaging -or- Systems (People, Processes, Tech).
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Audit & Refresh
Get a report of recommendations on how to improve your online assets (website, social media pages, etc.) and content! In addition to a high-level report, we can make those adjustments for you.
LOGISTICS
OUR PROCESS
You submit an inquiry via Better to Speak’s website ✨ YOU’RE HERE (if you’re ready) ✨
If I think we’d be a good fit, I’ll approve the inquiry and email you to schedule a discovery call
We’ll hop on a 30-minute Intro + Discovery call via Zoom/Google Meet to go over your project needs and goals
I’ll send over a proposal for you to review and approve or make requests for updates
Once you approve the proposal, I’ll send over a contract and invoice for you to review, sign and make your down payment (30 percent down for projects, 50 percent down for a la carte services)
For a la carte services and workshops:
Consultations; Audit & Refresh: After the paperwork is taken care of – we’ll knock out the 45-minute consultation call! The call will be recorded, and any notes and deliverables will be shared with you for your reference.
Short-Term Strategy Sesh: In addition to a prep consultation, we’ll schedule 1-2 additional meetings so that I can talk through the strategy and so that you can provide any needed updates or edits.
Workshops: In addition to a prep consultation, we’ll complete the workshop! We’ll finish up by sending participants and the hiring organization/representative a feedback form on the process.
For long-term projects (ie. websites):
We’ll schedule and complete a Planning + Strategy session to go over the project timeline and logistics, and align on goals, expectations, and key dates! We may also do fun things like create a mood board, talk about your brand story and voice, and otherwise set the foundation for key aspects of your project!
And you’re off! Any following meetings will be specific to your project – to check in, continue with executing each phase of the project and achieve key milestones.
Our final meeting will be to transfer any files, wrap up loose ends, log out of any platforms, and ensure everyone has the proper access to everything they need.
Once the project is wrapped, you’ll receive a final email with a Project Recap Report along with any other deliverables specific to your project, as well as information about access to 30 days of ongoing support!
TIMELINES FOR BOOKING
All project packages operate quarterly (three months/10-12 weeks) and will be available for booking the last two weeks of the previous month/quarter. If you’re eyeing any of our packages, be sure to inquire before the following deadlines to get onboarding for the quarter:
Q1: Project bookings closed to allow us space for our annual programming launch
Q2: March 18 - 29, 2024
Q3: June 17 - 28, 2024
Q4: September 16 - 27, 2024
A la carte services (consultations, workshops, audits & refreshes) can be booked at any time.
WHO WE WORK WITH
We prioritize working with young Black community leaders (18-30) who are less than three years into their work. Our partners and their work usually fall under the following three categories:
Start from Scratch – New(er) brands/organizations (<1 year)
Refresh -OR- Restructure – Existing brands/organizations (<1-2 years)
Refine – Existing brands/organizations (2-3 years)
OUR PRICING: A Commitment to Anti-Capitalist Pricing and Business Practices
While Better to Speak Communications subsidizes our other programming, we aim to provide accessible pricing to be able to work with our core audience. Our fees are set at a baseline of $65/hour to ensure we can fund Better to Speak’s programs and maintain operations without having to rely on donations alone. Thank you for your partnership!
Tiered Pricing Options
$65/hour
$75/hour
$90/hour
Alternative Formats:
Payment Plans for packages and all other offerings
1:1 and Group Workshops to dig into content strategy, planning and creation in a shorter time frame
Consultations and Community Hours sessions to answer any questions you may have and offer support
Referrals to values-aligned young Black service providers if we are unable to support your project
Digital Resources for content planning and creation will be available in our community resource library soon!
Thank you to Bear Hebert, facilitator of FREELY: An Anti-Capitalist Guide To Pricing Your Work for informing this approach. Learn more about their work here.
***The prices reflected throughout this page do not reflect the final price including sales tax. Taxes for services offered are based on Georgia’s current sales tax of 6%.