The Importance of Branding
Women In Development, an organization that I’m involved in, had an excellent lunch presentation for members today on the topic of “The Importance of Branding for Nonprofit Organizations.” The speaker was Liz Livingston Howard, Associate Director of the Center for Nonprofit Management at the Kellogg School of Northwestern University. Howard has many years of fundraising experience so she understands the challenges faced daily by those in the trenches. I thought I’d point out here a couple things she said that really resonated with me.
She talked about the importance of considering your website when you look at your brand. She said that websites are increasingly becoming “The Place” where people learn about nonprofit organizations. What does your website say about your brand? Ask your donors and potential donors to take a look at your site and say the words that come to mind first to describe the message your website conveys about your organization. What is the essence of your organization? Is that clear from your website?
Another thing she said that really struck me was that you need to really start to think about how you will reach the “nano-second generation” That’s what she called those people who cant walk 5 feet without checking for text messages on their cell phone or who need to pop into the Internet Cafe constantly even while on vacation. Can they relate to your brand?
She gave many examples of brand strategy from both the for profit and nonprofit world. One example is Disney. She mentioned that the word that used to pop into people’s minds about Disney was “Kids” and now it is “family.” They have expanded their brand out to connect more with grandparents and extended families and to show that Disney is fun for everyone.
What are you doing to look at your brand? You don’t have to hire a bunch of consultants and ad agencies. Just take a really close look at everything you do. What does it all say about you? Is your whole staff, your board, and your volunteers all on the same page about what your brand is? Can they all recite the same 30 sec elevator speech?
Anyway, I think branding is an important topic for nonprofits and I think it is great that more nonprofits are starting to implement traditional business strategies to build their organizations. Hope this gives you something to think about. Please share your comments.
