Good messages are the foundation of good communications. They clarify concepts and make abstract ideas concrete and meaningful. They help audiences of all kinds keep the big picture in mind while encouraging people to care about what you're doing. Good messages can also effectively address issues or potential areas of concern, using the principles and best practices of risk communication.           At Seed Stories, we help you create key messages that highlight the positive aspects of your work. We start by asking "What do people most want to know about this topic?" Then we draft simple statements, supported by credible statistics and stories to illustrate them.           Messages and 'message maps' with well-organized supporting information can be used as the basis for all of your communications strategies and materials including websites, media interviews, publications, and presentations.           An example of our work:     For one client, we took existing messages about agriculture technology and made them more specific to fit the realities of farming and food in Asia. General messages about safe farming practices were expanded with information about specific training programs in the region, and broad statements about food safety were supplemented with information about fresh (or ‘wet’) markets that are common across Asia.         Copyright © 2010 Seed Stories. All rights reserved.