A Nonprofit Sector-Wide Conference Can Bring Needed Clout

Dan Pallotta calls for TED-like, sector-wide conference for the nonprofit and philanthropic worlds asserting that it will be a perfect vehicle for massive change. I couldn’t agree more. And understanding the reticence of nonprofits to see themselves as a sector, I want to add that another benefit of bringing together the various appendages of the philanthropic world is to generate much needed clout for the nonprofit sector in gaining the goodwill of Congress and the various oversight agencies.Continue reading

10 Ways of Expressing Your Nonprofit Brand

Here are 10 ways that you can use to express your brand. These concepts are taken from a seminar I conducted on business and nonprofit branding at the Brooklyn Creative League.

1.  Through a celebrity, personality or spokesperson that embodies your vision. Jimmy Carter has been bringing credence and visibility to Habitat for Humanity since 1984.

2.  Through a tagline that inspires people to action. United Negro College Fund’s slogan was created in 1972 and has since become of the most famous taglines of all brands in the business and nonprofit sectors.

3. Through a consistent drumbeat of advertising that conveys your message in a memorable way. The Energizer Bunny has been racking up sales since 1989 through print and broadcast ads that have become iconic.

4. Through dramatic images that evoke human emotion. Save the Children, Feed the Children and other relief organizations have used images of starving children to stir the heart and appeal to human conscience, compassion and guilt to such an extent that these images have lost some of their effect.

5. Through a consistent use of color and symbol that becomes linked to your cause. Susan G. Komen for the Cure put breast cancer research on the map through their walks involving thousands, and have co-opted the color pink and the pink ribbon to symbolize breast cancer.

6. Through innovation that drives demand for your products or services. Apple consistently sets new standards with breakthroughs in the personal computers, portable music, and phones, as well as new methods that buck the industry, such as charging for individual song downloads.

7. Through a new business model that focuses on customer needs. The Doe Fund took homeless people off the street, trained them for a job and created an enterprise that generates revenue – solving social problems with a profit.

8. By being first with an idea to become a leader in your sector. Toyota launched the Prius in 1997, making it the first mass-produced hybrid vehicle and became a leader in both sales and caché.

9. Through a character that makes a serious message palatable. Smokey Bear’s message, “Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires,” was created in 1944 and has become engrained in our national conscience.

10. Through dramatic action that captures the attention of the media. Greenpeace’s precision focus on a key message delivered dramatically (not always legally) at the right time and place has been a winning formula for keeping the pressure on decision-makers.

WAKE UP CALL: How many of these techniques are  you using to convey your nonprofit brand?

Attributes of a Successful Nonprofit

Financial information does relate in any way to an organization’s effectiveness. This type of guide based solely on financials is a disservice to donors as well as to the entire nonprofit sector by perpetuating the notion that nonprofits are better if they spend less on overhead.
Financials have no relation whatsoever on the type of problem the organization is attempting to solve and their effectiveness in doing so. Many organizations spend little on fundraising (they rely on diminishing government grants – not a great strategy) and have no clue how to eliminate the cause of the social problem that they are addressing, and indeed will never actually do so. They have simply institutionalized a method of serving a specific population.
Furthermore, studies have shown that with no standard method for reporting various administrative and fundraising expenses, nonprofits consistently mis-report them. In fact, guides like this actively encourage under-reporting of expenses so that nonprofits look good comparatively to other groups. This vicious cycle must end.
In a time when we need more transparency and education about what it actually costs to operate a nonprofit to successfully address social problems, and at a time when nonprofits face more competition and threats to their funding than ever, we need to support novel ideas for addressing the root cause of problems.
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If you want to create a guide that actually helps donors to find organizations that are effective, consider measuring the following:
IMPACT: Is the organization just applying band-aids to a situation or is it actually addressing the root cause of the problem? Is it affecting the attitudes and behaviors of its constituents in the communities it is addressing to positively affect change?
RELEVANCE: Is the organization stuck in yesterday’s mode addressing past issues that are no loner needed (like refugee settlement for specific populations) or is it addressing the needs of people today? Is the organization culturally-competent and using relevant tools and technology to address current challenges?
INNOVATION: Are new ideas and risk-taking discouraged or does the organization have the capacity to be creative, inventive and pioneering in responding to the changing needs of our society and the world around it?
LEVERGAGE: Is the organization merely helping one person at a time or does it have a model that allows it to leverage funds or resources to help exponential people with the same money?
REPLICATION: Is the organization just serving a single population or can the organization’s model be replicated by others to eliminate similar problems in other communities?
ORGANIZATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS: Is the organization just getting by or does it have sound policies and practices in place? Is it investing in marketing and infrastructure that will allow it to grow?
LIFECYCLE ADAPATION: Is the organization addressing its life cycle stage effectively? For example, are early stage organizations building their boards and donors base? Do mature organizations have infrastructure, leadership training and succession planning in place?
COLLABORATION: Does the organization try to protect its turf and “go it alone” or does it work with other organizations to solve problems and serve their populations?
ADVOCACY: Does the organization shy away from trying to change policies that affect their populations or does it combine advocacy with direct service, as studies have shown is the most successful way to create change.
STRONG LEADERSHIP: Has the same person been applying an outdated philosophy for the past decade or is there someone at the helm who brings character, vision and guidance?
ORGANIZATIONAL AUTHORITY: Does it just get by on a formula for providing nondescript services or has it pioneered breakthroughs that are adopted by other organizations? Has the organization established a reputation for being a leader in it field?
It would be wonderful to have a guide that recognizes the nonprofits that are creating real change based on these factors. Our society looks to nonprofits for leadership in addressing our pressing issues. Set the bar and expect great results – our society depends upon it.

In this post, I pick up from How Much is This Dollar Worth which argues that low spending on overhead is not the way to measure the worthiness of a nonprofit. Instead, I suggest the following criteria for donors to use in evaluating a nonprofit organization.Continue reading

Rethink Your Volunteer Strategy

Are you using your volunteers in the most effective way?

The nature of volunteering has changed. Younger people are looking to get something out of their volunteering experience – they are asking “what’s in it for me?” rather than “how can I serve?”  Instead of shying away from this reality, nonprofits would be wise to re-imagine their volunteer programs as braintrusts, rather than “more hands on deck.”

Volunteers can provide access to free knowledge and resources to help your nonprofit become more effective in what your are doing. For example, instead of calling on volunteers to help put address labels on your newsletter, you can get someone to help you create an online newsletter system that will have more value for your organization over the long-term.

NONPROFIT WAKE UP CALL: How can you re-invent your organization’s use of volunteers to help you maximize your organizational effectiveness?

Effective Low-Cost Marketing Tactic

In Madison Square Park today, people were handing out postcards with a pack of gum taped on. Free gum was an enticing offer and got me to take the postcard. The card itself had a compelling headline that invites you to find out more. Turns out, this is a promotion for a church. It’s not the first time that innovative marketing has helped promote religion – it seems to be part of a larger trend of reaching people “where they are” rather than where the church is. It makes use of low-cost marketing tactics that you can apply to your campaign. Here’s why I think this piece is effective:

  1. It provides something of value to get your attention (the free pack of gum is nice and costs them little).
  2. It focuses on the customer’s needs rather than the church’s (the compelling headline is very different for a church).
  3. It respects the reader’s intelligence (it doesn’t patronize, insult or use fear or insecurity as a motivating factor).
  4. It provides clues as to what to expect (the photos show a diversity of young smiling people in the church).
  5. It provide specific instructions as to what to do (lists services to attend, how to enter and gives other benefits, such as “Childcare available.”
  6. It provide a link to the website for more information.
  7. It was inexpensive to produce (the gum was taped on with a loop of masking tape).
  8. It was distributed to people in their demographic (by someone who could answer questions and be an advocate for the church).

Empowerment Zones Channel Funds to Those in Need

Giving zones among suggestions in Community Foundation Network’s manifesto
Major donors should pay less tax if they make donations to charities based in disadvantaged regions, according to the Community Foundation Network.

The network represents charities that support local communities. The recommendation is one of 29 made in its Manifesto for Community Philanthropists, published this week. 

The manifesto proposes the creation of ‘special giving zones’, modelled on social exclusion zones, that would encourage investment in services to disadvantaged communities. Any individual or company giving to charities that work in these zones would get favourable tax treatment.

Other recommendations include the creation of bank-gifting accounts to simplify giving and a £30m philanthropy infrastructure investment fund to help smaller charities set up online donation systems.

Stephen Hammersley, chief executive of the network, said the manifesto was drawn up to promote grassroots giving. “Community charities need to receive independent and sustained funding,” he said. “The manifesto is an exploration of possible ways they can achieve that.”
Matthew Bowcock, chair of the network, said: “I strongly urge all political parties to take a long, hard look at our recommendations

This article from ThirdSector discusses a new concept in Britain to help channel more money to those that need it. This solution addresses a growing concern in the United States as well that lower-income populations are not being served well by nonprofits.

Call to give philanthropists tax breaks when they donate to poor areas

Major donors should pay less tax if they make donations to charities based in disadvantaged regions, according to the Community Foundation Network.
The network represents charities that support local communities. The recommendation is one of 29 made in its Manifesto for Community Philanthropists, published this week.Continue reading

Reactionary or Pro-active?

Crain’s New York Business reports that New York nonprofits are reporting drops in income ranging from 10% to an astonishing 70%.

WAKE UP CALL: Cutting costs is a reactionary response that will not help nonprofits set themselves up for success. Now is the time to re-assess your mission, strategy, services and business model, identify organizational competitive advantages, seek opportunities for collaboration and ways of creating more impact so that your organization is more, rather than less, valuable to donors and the people it serves.


Branding and Religion Butt Heads

Design and Religion Butt Heads
Where does the sanctity of religion leave off and branding begin? That’s the question that Sikh transit workers are addressing in their protest against the MTA requirement that they wear the agency’s logo on their turbans.
The issue underscores the importance of design in today’s society and the extent to which we identify and legitimize people’s role through their uniforms. At what point does the perception and authority of the MTA as an agency, or the individual employees become undermined by not wearing part of a uniform? Another MTA concern would be where to draw the line on people claiming an exception to the rule .
While a proponent of the benefits that design can confer, I think it abhorrent that the MTA would seek to desecrate a religious item with an organizational logo. Apparently, I am not alone, as 27 City Council members signed on to a letter of support, urging Transit President Howard Roberts to drop the logo rule adopted after 9/11, when four Muslim women were barred from driving buses while wearing head scarves.
Nonetheless, as religious expressions expands and the hand of branding reaches into ever-increasing areas of our life, from our food, to our clothing, shelter, transportation and entertainment, there will no doubt be more conflicts in retaining “authentic,” unbranded versions of these things. I think the larger lesson is that while we can all appreciate the positive attributes branding brings, we must also be sensitive to its limitations.

Where does the sanctity of religion leave off and branding begin? That’s the question that Sikh transit workers are addressing in their protest against the MTA requirement that they wear the agency’s logo on their turbans.

Continue reading

Working Together for a Vital City for All

As a cyclist who has been enjoying the recent additions of bike lanes in New York City, an article on the cover recent article in Chelsea Now, a neighborhood newspaper, caught my attention. It reported on local businesses who claimed to be losing sales due to a bike lane being installed on Eighth Avenue supplanting parking spaces. The argument seemed to parallel the same one that came bars and restaurants claiming that the smoking ban would harm their business, when in fact, the opposite has happened.

While the article was decidedly one-sided (no cyclists, pedestrians or shoppers were interviewed), it does raise the issue of the balance between businesses and overall city life. In the past year or so, the Bloomberg administration has made quality of life a priority, with the renovation of parks, installation of 300 miles of bike paths, and plan to plant 1 million trees. Not withstanding the few parking spaces lost, ultimately, this will get more people out and about on the streets, and that will be good for business.

WAKE UP CALL: We are all part of one city. Businesses, the government and nonprofits need to work together in the best interests of everyone. Renewing the quality of life for all, will ultimately create a vital city that will bring in tax revenue, keep businesses afloat and provide funding for nonprofits.

IDEAS: Reaching Beyond Your Base

This reader comment on a New York Times article about electric cars caught my attention:

“Just get NASCAR to change its rules to only allow electric powered cars to race and see how quickly the technology becomes not only affordable, but mainstream as well…”

WAKE-UP CALL: The thought highlights the need for nonprofits to think beyond their traditional base, and to forge partnerships with groups that are on the opposite side of the spectrum in order to create large-scale change.

SOURCE: Electric-Car Battery Makers Seek Federal Funds