First Nations Communications Toolkit [Tulo Centre of Indigenous Economics]

The First Nations Communications Toolkit is a unique resource jointly developed by Aboriginal
Affairs and Northern Development Canada, BC Region, and Tewanee Consulting Group. The toolkit was
originally developed in 2007 and continues to provide a good basic overview of communications planning,
activities and tools. While the fundamentals of communication such as engaging your audience and
developing clear messages have not changed, some aspects continue to evolve. As a result, this edition of the toolkit has been updated to reflect changes in communications practices, particularly the use of social media tools.

This toolkit was designed explicitly for First Nations communicators and is based on input from First
Nations communicators and administrators working for First Nations organizations. It offers information
on many topics, including communications planning, publications, events and media relations, from a
First Nations’ perspective. The best practices and practical lessons learned that have been included in the toolkit are drawn from Tewanee Joseph’s experience
working on communications projects with over 30 First Nation communities.

1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
2 Branding. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
3 Communications Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
4 Media Relations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
5 Event Planning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
6 Community Engagement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
7 Web Communications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
8 Social Media. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
9 Resources. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73