This document summarizes the findings of a survey conducted by Red Pencil exploring strategic brand management among small charities. It shows that well-managed branding through repositioning, rebranding, and brand refreshes can help increase donations, corporate partnerships, and funds raised for charities. The survey identified common barriers small charities face in brand management, such as limited time and resources, unclear metrics, and lack of trustee support. It also provides guidance on overcoming these barriers, such as using pro bono support, developing brand ambassadors, and selecting appropriate monitoring tools.

1. The Small Charity
Brand Survey –
exploring strategic brand
management
Natasha Roe, Red Pencil

2. Charity brand media headlines
 Shelter’s re-positioning helped land
new corporate partnerships.
 Macmillan’s rebrand helped increase
donors by 27% and raised additional
£5m.
 Parkinson’s UK’s voluntary income up
15% worth extra £1m a year.
 Save the Children’s brand refresh
helped integrated fundraising appeals
raising over 50 % more than target of
£500,000.
Civic Society article October 2012

3. What we did
Reviewed existing branding research with large
charities, corporates and SMEs.
Defined areas to test – barriers and benefits.
Developed models.
Ran survey.
Ran Appreciative Inquiry workshop.
Analysis, evaluation and conclusions.

4. Brand management continuum

5. Brand management continuum
 Brand guidelines
 Style guidelines and planned communications
 Clear brand architecture
 Stakeholder consultation
 Refresh values
 Refresh colours
 Change strapline
 Change logo
 Change strap and logo
 Change name
 Change name and strapline
 Change name, strapline and logo
 Brand remain
 Brand evolve
 Brand renew
 Brand revolve

6. Small charities on the continuum
©Red Pencil 2013

7. Brand management activities
©Red Pencil 2013

8. vision values comms key msg lang guide brand visual guide brand M&E stakeholder refresh colours strapline logo strap & logo name name name, logo
& mission strategy + stories arch + templates ambassadors consulta on values & strap & strap
Brand remain Brand evolve Brand renew Brand revolve
©Red Pencil 2013 (adapted from Khan and Ede 2009 and Stuart and Muzellec 2004) and tested with small chari es
Brand management con nuum
Additions brand continuum

9. Brand management continuum
Vision and mission Brand remain
Values
Communications strategy
Key messages and stories
Language guidelines
Clear brand architecture
Visual ID guide and templates
Brand ambassadors
Monitoring and evaluation
Stakeholder consultation

10. The findings – brand barriers
©Red Pencil 2013
Time can be a
big issue for
small charities
Don’t know what to
monitor – large
charity metrics not
appropriate
Need to know who to
involve
Staff supportive of
branding but
trustees don’t
support it
Don’t know where to
go for cost-effective
sources of help

11. Brand management- barriers
©Red Pencil 2013

12. How have you overcome barriers to
brand management or development?

13. Priority Information, Advice and Guidance (IAG) for small charity managers
Brand barriers
G Using pro bono support.
G Bringing trustees on board with brand development and management.
G Developing a brand management strategy linked to organisational
strategy.
I Signposting to specific sources of support for small charities.
G Selecting and developing brand ambassadors.
G Using free tools for monitoring & evaluation and sample brand evaluation
framework.
©Red Pencil 2013
Small charity priorities

14. Staying in touch
 natasha@redpencil.co.uk
 @Redpencil_
 #SmallCharityBrandSurvey

15. Visit the CharityComms website to
view slides from past events, see what
events we have coming up and to
check out what else we do:
www.charitycomms.org.uk

16. Conference
2 July 2015
London
Brand development:
building a brand that
delivers
Sponsored by
WiFi: RRPN1
Password: kmrhja12
#charitybrand