The Corporate Storyteller

Today's Fast Company blog comments on John Mackey's Wall Street Journal opinion piece that we reported on yesterday. Entitled, "Innovating Toward Health Care Reform, the Whole Foods Way," writer Clay Dillow remarks that the idea of asking people what they want--instead of telling them what they'll get--is truly innovative! Read his post at http://tinyurl.com/l36uan

No matter where you stand in the vigorous debate on healthcare reform that's currently a main feature of the news, today's Wall Street Journal contains a cogent example of storytelling on a complex issue. The opinion piece by John Mackey, founder and CEO of Whole Foods Market, Inc., could serve as a template for organizing thoughts and presenting a persuasive point of view. It's effective because of the clear explanation and the fact that it's based on a successful entrepreneuer's experience of what works, compared to what doesn't.

I'd love to hear what you think of the way his position is presented. Send me your thoughts after you read the article and, if you choose, the hundreds of comments that WSJ readers have posted. The opinion piece is available at http://tinyurl.com/oofmpf

The world of virtual activities--corporate learning and conferences, shopping, and gatherings with friends--continues to expand, and now even charitable giving has gone mobile. "Giving should be easy, it should be fun and it should be rewarding," says Jim Manis, the founder and CEO of the Mobile Giving Foundation, Bellevue, WA, in a recent Seattle Times article.

A nonprofit that provides the technology for NGOs to conduct fundraising campaigns, Mobile Giving is an idea that's well timed. The number of nonprofits continues to grow, making fundraising continually more challenging. The situation is exacerbated by the slow economy and the rise in unemployment.

Mobile Giving provides organizations a channel for reaching younger donors to whom text messaging comes naturally. Manis says almost 70 percent of people between the ages of 18 and 24 use texting, and they're an important group for charities to reach. They want to help improve the world and they generally do not have the means (yet) for large gifts, but small gifts from large numbers are crucial. It's important for NGOs to develop relationships with younger adults, who take a different approach to getting involved from previous generations.

For the entire article, go to http://tinyurl.com/msqexb