East Bay Coalition for the Homeless - Roger Williams University

III. Potential EBCH Messaging
A. What message or story would best communicate about the EBCH, and attract donors
Listed below are four potential messages that the EBCH might use to tell its story in order to attract potential
donors. Rank the messages from 1 to 4, from the most effective message (1) to the least effective message (4).
A. Forty percent of the homeless are families. Help the East Bay Coalition for the Homeless provide affordable
and safe transitional housing while these families get back on their feet.
B. Homelessness does not discriminate. It doesn’t matter if you are well-educated, have a beautiful family, or
have fought for our country. The East Bay Coalition for the Homeless helps people thrive in society through
transitional housing, a work requirement, and skills training. Homelessness can happen to anyone, and the
EBCH has been able to make a difference in the lives of hundreds of Rhode Islanders. But we cannot do it
alone; we need your help to make this difference, too.
C. Homelessness can happen to anyone; homelessness does not discriminate. It can happen to families just
like yours: fathers and mothers, uncles and aunts, sons and daughters. The East Bay Coalition for the Homeless
reaches out to people in need and offers them a helping hand. The EBCH has made a difference in the
lives of hundreds of East Bay families, but we cannot do it alone. We need your help to continue making a
difference in our community.
D. It’s your neighbor whose husband has cancer. It’s your co-worker who lost her job in a bad economy. It’s the
soldier who lost his arm and can no longer work. Homelessness can happen to them, and it can happen to
you. The East Bay Coalition for the Homeless has a track record of keeping families off the streets and helping
them overcome life’s challenges.
EBCH Board Responses: Message B (homelessness does not discriminate + focus on independence) garnered more #1
rankings as the most effective message. Message D (identifying the homeless as people one might know + the independence
focus) would be the next potential effective message. Messages B and C (Homelessness can happen to anyone)
had equal numbers of #2 rankings. Message A (homelessness statistics) was ranked as the least effective.
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