By Melissa Kovach of Anthem Branding (reproduced by permission)
From the mightiest of globe-spanning organizations to the teeny-tiniest of startups, great brand building never fails to make a positive and meaningful impact in business.
When it comes to nonprofits, however, there are a few highly distinctive differences from for-profit companies that are well-worth taking into account. Branding for a cause, particularly a sensitive and poignant one, often needs to be done with meticulous care and awareness.
Branding and marketing can play extremely important roles in the lifecycle of a nonprofit. From bolstering donations to securing partners and raising awareness for your cause, there are plenty of benefits on offer for those who manage to get it right.
Getting it right can be tricky, so don’t worry if you’re struggling with where to start off on your journey. Ultimately, the best branding tends to be unreservedly unique.
If you feel like you could be doing more to support your own nonprofit’s branding endeavors, or you simply wish to find out more about what exactly branding consists of and how it can be used to your advantage, then look no further. Here is the definitive guide to branding for nonprofits.
Marketing Vs. Branding
It is fairly easy to conflate the marketing and branding, but it’s worth noting the intrinsic differences between the pair and why they are so valuable as separate disciplines.
The two complement each other as they work to form a bond of trust between you and your customer, or as Thea Serrano eloquently puts it in an article for Thrive, “Marketing grabs your audience’s attention, and branding keeps it.”
It may be useful to think about marketing as your means of reaching audiences and branding as the face of the company that they’re introduced to.
Your brand is your story, and your marketing efforts represent that story and draw people’s attention to it, hopefully meeting customer expectations along the way.
A great brand tells a story, resonates with the audience, connects shared values, and perhaps most importantly, is immediately recognizable.
Branding can help you:
- Build Customer Loyalty – a loyal audience can be extremely valuable for a nonprofit whose only source of income is through a constant stream of donations. When their values connect with a brand, 89 percent of shoppers remain loyal, according to Smallbizgenius. Your cause may already be one that resonates with people; it’s all about finding those people (through market research) and helping them connect with your brand.
- Bolster Your Reputation – reputation is critically important in virtually all walks of business, especially in the world of nonprofits in which trustworthiness and integrity reign supreme. A well-built brand can easily emanate these kinds of traits, sometimes without even trying too hard at all. A bigger and better reputation means a wider reach, and a wider marketing reach means more donations! Hopefully. Plus, if you have a great reputation, you’ll probably have a much easier time attracting talent and investors.
- Differentiate Yourself – what exactly makes you different? Why should someone donate to your cause and not someone else’s? Maybe it is their cause, and they just don’t know it because you’re not making it clear enough! Branding can help you differentiate yourself, allowing you to flourish among the competition. Many people don’t ever think about nonprofits being competitive, but they are sorely mistaken (but you likely already know this). Even if your cause transcends the petty quarrels of business, it must be addressed if you mean to succeed on a larger scale.
How Nonprofit Branding Differs from Commercial Branding …
(NFP Resource has no connection with Anthem Branding and does not endorse any items or products mentioned in the article)