International Reading Association

The International Reading Association is the world’s foremost expert on literacy. A nonprofit network with more than 65,000 members worldwide, the Association is dedicated to advancing the quality of literacy instruction in the U.S. and across the globe through research, policy advocacy and professional development. The organization is dedicated to conducting and publishing the latest literacy research and working to help bring it into practice in K-12 classrooms.

Identifying itself as “the biggest organization that nobody’s ever heard of,” the International Reading Association turned to RF|Binder to expand awareness of the Association and ultimately advance its mission of improving literacy instruction. To accomplish these goals, RF|Binder developed a comprehensive communications program that blends media relations, thought leadership and event promotion to position IRA as the leading authority on literacy in America.

Media relations. After activating the Association’s news bureau and a developing a set of organizational and issues-oriented messages, RF|Binder set about promoting the Association’s events, initiatives and thought leadership through aggressive media relations efforts. Through this work, RF|Binder has built relationships with and driven coverage in the national and trade outlets of greatest interest to the Association and its members, including the Washington Post, USA Today and Education Week. RF|Binder also recognized local media as an important way of reaching IRA’s current and potential membership and has driven coverage in markets across the country.

Thought leadership. RF|Binder leveraged the Association’s immense intellectual capital to build a thought leadership program that established organization spokespeople as experts on literacy. In addition to drafting and placing op-eds and bylines in target publications, RF|Binder helped launch the Association’s Literacy Research Panel, which includes the foremost names in literacy and serves to respond to critical literacy issues, shape literacy policy and help improve reading instruction in classrooms across the country.

Event promotion. To raise awareness and drive participation in the Association’s annual convention – the largest gathering of literacy professionals in the country – RF|Binder supplemented its aggressive media relations work with a “spotlight initiative” to accelerate interest among national print and broadcast media.

RF|Binder’s efforts have more than just gained visibility for the International Reading Association. They have established the Association as the leading authority on literacy, furthering its ability to make meaningful improvements to literacy instruction across the globe.