Malugani Communications

6/27/25

If you’re ever stuck in an awkward, unproductive conversation, try this simple communications hack to turn it around: Swap your close-ended questions for open-ended ones.

Open-ended questions invite extended responses with real insights – not just yes/no or one-word answers. Try it:

Conversations with employees/colleagues

❌ Did you complete the report?

✅ How did the report go?

❌ Do you want to advance in your career?

✅ What’s your ideal career path?

Conversations with clients/customers

❌ Do you want to retire at 65?

✅ What does an ideal retirement look like to you?

❌ Does this product meet your needs?

✅ How does this product align with what you’re looking for?

💡 Bonus tip: Add “and why?” to transform almost any question into an open-ended one.

❌ What kind of software do you need?

✅ What kind of software do you need -- and why?

Getting good at asking open-ended questions is probably the best and most transferable skill I learned in journalism school. Better conversations start with better questions. ❓

5/14/25

When a crisis that jeopardizes the reputation of your small or mid-sized business hits, will you sink or swim? How you communicate will make the difference.

I have some experience in crisis communications thanks to my position leading comms at a mid-sized bank, where we developed just-in-case crisis plans for cyberattacks, bank robberies and more. However, my expertise expanded recently when three tried-and-true crisis experts shared valuable tips with International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) Minnesota members. Crisis communications specialists Paul Omodt, Stacy L. Bettison, Esq. and Jon Austin shared several impactful and sound-byte worthy takeaways during their webinar:

✔ Avoid downplaying or denying a situation. It never works.

✔ Don’t ever string together the two words ‘No comment.’ It is immediately translated as ‘I’m guilty.’

✔ Respect the ‘golden hour’ principle. If you don’t respond to media requests within an hour, someone else will create the narrative. Just say something to move forward, even if it’s minimal and you need to fill in details later.

✔ Establish a single, unified message and voice. All communications should be consistent, coordinated and come from designated spokespeople to avoid confusion and maintain credibility. Avoid giving one message to employees and another to the media.

✔ Media training can help leaders understand how to communicate effectively during a crisis. Good leaders are used to storytelling, but storytelling for the media differs significantly because it will be edited.

✔ The average lifespan of a social media crisis is 48 to 72 hours. Don’t panic -- the public’s attention decreases quickly and the lasting impact will probably be limited.

These lessons can be valuable to any small or mid-sized business -- file them away just in case you ever need them. Or better yet, hire an expert to help. It would be worth the investment!

4/21/25

An ideal time to boost brand awareness for your small company is May 4 – 10, 2025 during National #SmallBusinessWeek. Make a plan now to help you gain attention during this under-celebrated (in my opinion 😉) event.

1. Make the rounds – with gifts

Visit other small businesses with free samples of your product and a branded note thanking them for the role THEY play in your community.
If you don’t produce a hands-on product, buy your gifts from another local small business. In this scenario, you are spreading the small business love in all kinds of ways. (In the #rochestermn area, local companies produce popcorn, salad dressing, honey, hand lotion - and much more - that make amazing gifts.)
Post a photo of your gift and what you’re doing on your social channels. Better yet, share the spotlight by posing with the gift recipients. An ideal social caption would focus on celebrating and thanking other businesses or encouraging your audience to not just support small businesses this week, but all year long.

2. Get personal

Share your small business journey on your website and link to it from social media posts. Reflect on why you started your business, the best part of working for a small business or how your business has evolved. (You probably have a better idea relevant to your specific story.)
On social media, use the hashtag #smallbusinessweek for maximum visibility. Include a few other hashtags like #supportsmallbusiness and #buylocal.

3. Include your employees

Thank and celebrate with your team members as well, in whatever form that resonates.
Include your team in your business development activities. Assign them gift deliveries or ask them to pose for photos for your social channels.

4. Be proud of your impact

According to the Small Business Administration:

There are over 33.2 million small businesses in the U.S., representing 99.9% of all businesses.
Small businesses employ 45.9% of the American workforce (around 61.6 million people).
Small businesses contribute approximately 43.5% of the U.S. GDP.

According to a report from the National Federation of Independent Business covering stats from 2023:

Approximately 76% of small business owners volunteered their time for civic groups, charities, youth sports, schools, religious organizations, or similar activities.
Around 90% of small business owners donated money to local groups, charities, youth sports, schools, or religious organizations.
Around 63% of small business owners made in-kind contributions, such as donating meeting spaces, excess inventory, or auction items to help raise money for various causes.

📢📢 Small businesses are the lifeblood of our communities. They not only provide livelihoods for their employees, but make their communities great places to live and work. National Small Business Week is the perfect time to shout it from the rooftops! 📢📢

3/17/25

Get your small business or nonprofit organization in the news.

The most common question I get from my Rochester, MN clients is how to write and distribute a press release.

As a former journalist, this is satisfying because it means our city's businesses and nonprofits find value in getting featured in our local newspaper and broadcast media. The boost in visibility they'll get thanks to news coverage is a testament to how much impact the "traditional" media still have in our community of 122,000 people.

Here are a few caveats I always provide to local businesses:

Your press release is not guaranteed to get published/broadcast at all
If it does get published/broadcast, it has a high probability of being shortened or altered

If a business or nonprofit decides to proceed, here are some key steps:

1. Make sure it's newsworthy. In Rochester, just a few examples of newsworthy content include:

- Opening a new business or an additional location of your existing business
- Hiring a new CEO or Executive Director
- Rapidly expanding or changing the direction of your business
- Your business's sponsorship of a large charity event
- Your nonprofit's announcing a new initiative that addresses community needs
- Your nonprofit winning an award
- Your nonprofit hosting an event with compelling speakers or activities that would generate impactful sound/video bytes

2. Write a clear, concise press release.

- Include the 5 Ws necessary to tell your story: who, what, where, when and why
- Include your contact info on the press release
- Try to keep your press release to one page (and never more than two)
- Attach high-quality, clearly-labeled photos, whether it's a head shot of a new CEO or a few fun photos from last-year's charity event that you're trying to promote for this year
- Check out how to craft a compelling press release here (or better yet, connect with me to write it for you!)
- View a formatted press release at the bottom of this post

3. Give the proper heads-up internally.

Be sure that everyone in your organization and on your Board knows when and why you are distributing a press release

4. Create your distribution list. Do some online research to develop a recipient list that includes email addresses for:

Local media outlets (the construction is often just "news@postbulletin.com" or "news@kttc.com", etc.)
Regional and statewide publications/websites specific to your industry
Chambers of Commerce in all the cities you serve

Pro tip: If you know a reporter at a specific media outlet or think that your press release is a perfect fit for a certain reporter, it may be appropriate to contact them first to offer them "the scoop."

5. Load the press release onto your business's website and then email it to your entire distribution list.

If you email it to multiple places at once, use BCC so recipients don't see each others’ email addresses
Embed the text of the press release right into the email as well as linking to the press release on your website
Remember to attach your photos
Right after you email it to Chambers/media, forward it to all your employees and Board members so they know it went out

6. Respond quickly to calls from the media requesting more info or an interview.

Be conscious of reporters' tight deadlines; you'll lose valuable coverage if you take too long to respond
Make sure whoever is quoted in the press release is able to participate in quick turn-around interviews

7. Share your press release on your social media channels.

A few hours after your press release is distributed, create fun social media posts for all your business's social channels that link to the press release on your website
Even if the media don't pick up your press release, you'll still have excellent new content for your website and social channels
If the media do provide coverage, be sure to find it on the media outlets' social channels and re-post or share that on your own channels, too

8. Read the paper, watch the news and listen to the radio.

Monitor media coverage by setting up Google Alerts (or another similar free tool) for your business's or nonprofit's name and key staff
Save the articles and videos that your hard work triggered
Share and celebrate the coverage with your employees and Board members
Enjoy your moment in the spotlight!

News release - Jenny Hosfeld appointed President and CEO of Think Bank.pdf

2/20/25

A small business with big news to announce can deliver its message most effectively using a "communications cascade."

This approach, which is commonly used at bigger companies, means that you share your news sequentially to your different audiences rather than telling everybody all at once.

Let's say you've made the decision to move your small business across town. Here's how a simple communications cascade could look:

Tell your manager(s).

⬇️

Tell the rest of your employees.

⬇️

Tell your customers.

⬇️

Tell the rest of the community.

Communications cascades are common sense but often neglected, especially in unexpected, fast-moving circumstances that require quick reactions.

Depending on your situation, your comms cascade may move at your ideal pace or more swiftly than you'd like. Regardless, it's smart to be ready with your talking points, customer emails, social media posts and press releases before you get to the "tell all employees" phase.

The sequence in which you communicate can be just as important as what you say. When you have an announcement to make, a little thoughtfulness goes a long way in maintaining good will with your employees and boosting your brand.

1/8/25

KISS (“Keep It Simple, Stupid”) is wise communications advice packaged in a memorable way.

It resonates so much with my small business clients that I’ve created a few similar quick-hitters. This advice applies both when your company is sharing news and when you’re generally enhancing brand awareness.

✔ Keep It Pithy, People (KIPP) – Less is more. Write short sentences. When possible, rely more on strong visuals and less on words.

✔ Keep It Consistent, Clients (KICC) – Communicate the same core message to all of your audiences (employees, customers, the media, the public). Add or subtract details as necessary.

✔ Keep It Genuine, Gang (KIGG) – Your message will resonate more if you believe in what you’re saying.

✔ Keep It Flowing, Friends (KIFF) – The cliché that “perfect is the enemy of good” applies to communications coming from small businesses. It’s important to avoid typos and grammatical errors. Beyond that, not every one of your internal emails and social media captions needs to be Pulitzer-worthy.

I also developed a personal mantra, Keep It Moving, Megan (KIMM), for the new year. It's my reminder to evolve, grow and enjoy my solopreneurial journey!

11/14/24

Avoid 4 common communications mistakes made by small businesses. ☑

Mistake #1: Not telling your employees things first. Morale will plummet if employees are blindsided by learning company news from a friend, social media post or news article rather than from you.

How to avoid it: Share important company news, updates or changes with your employees before your customers and the general public.

Mistake #2: Inconsistent branding. You’ll confuse your current and prospective customers.

How to avoid it: Ensure your name, logo, colors and messaging are consistent across all platforms, from your website and social media to your marketing materials and customer interactions. Veering off in different directions may be tempting at times, but resist the urge!

Mistake #3: Overcomplicating your writing and design. Whether you are creating a social media post or crafting a customer letter, simple is almost always better.

How to avoid it: Keep most of your sentences between 15 and 20 words. Avoid industry jargon. If your design is DIY, understand your limitations. Go minimalist and stick to your brand guidelines.

Mistake #4: Neglecting social media. Love it or hate it, social media is one of the things people (including prospective customers and employees) check out when interested in your company. You’ve gotta be there!

How to avoid it: Choose two or three platforms that are the best fit for your company. Commit to posting on them. (If you struggle to think of subject matter, use an AI tool like Google Gemini to help generate ideas that are relevant to your industry and audiences.)

Avoid errors, maximize your impact. You've got this!

10/28/24

DIY communications tools can empower small businesses to make a 𝗯𝗶𝗴 impact. 💪

It may seem obvious to those of us immersed in comms full-time, but it’s a welcome surprise to my smallest business clients.

Here are some of the easy-to-use tools that I love to recommend because they help create more polished communications items (and boost a brand!) at little or no cost.

✔ 𝗖𝗮𝗻𝘃𝗮.𝗰𝗼𝗺 – Free online graphic design tool that can be used to create social media posts, presentations and more.

✔ 𝗪𝗮𝘃𝗲.𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗼 – Easy platform for making and editing videos, even if you have no previous experience.

✔ 𝗙𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗿.𝗰𝗼𝗺 – “Freelance talent at your fingertips.” Choose among thousands of freelancers at different rates to help produce a logo, blog post and more.

✔ 𝗦𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗶𝘁 (techsmith.com/snagit/) - Snipping tool that easily grabs screenshots and records your screen.

✔ 𝗚𝗼𝗼𝗴𝗹𝗲 𝗚𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗶 – AI has gained steam quickly, but many small businesses still haven’t experimented with it much. I recommend my clients start out using Gemini for simple things like:

• Summarizing meeting notes

• Generating social media post ideas & caption options

• Drafting marketing copy

I've found that when a small business client recognizes the value in DIY comms tools, one employee takes the initiative and puts in the time necessary to learn to use them well. Cheers and kudos to all the "do it yourselfers" out there!

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