Why Brands Matter for Nonprofits and What to Do About It. Building a strong brand to drive donations, volunteerism, and engagement. Presented at University of Chicago Social Enterprise Alliance Onboard Conference

1. WHY BRANDS MATTER FOR NONPROFITS
AND WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT
YOUR NON-PROFIT

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NANCY GOLDSTEIN
Chief Strategist,
Compass(x) Strategy
bcolling@see3.com
@bridgettcolling
nancy@compassxstrategy.com
@nancyagoldstein
BRIDGETT COLLING
Digital Marketing Project Manager
See3 Communications

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The digital agency for do-gooders.
We work with nonprofits and social
causes, activating people to change the
world. We develop videos, websites and
digital strategies to deliver on goals like
fundraising, advocacy, awareness,
recruitment and more.
Building brands, better.
We are a Chicago firm that tackles the
most complex issues to build brands
that achieve sustainable growth.
Brand Strategy | Strategic Growth
Planning | Mission Development |
Messaging

4. BRANDS MATTER
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7. WHAT IS A BRAND?
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LET’S DISCUSS

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“A brand is essentially a container for
a customer’s complete experience
with the product or company.”
- Sergio Zyman

10. YOUR BRAND STRATEGY
IS YOUR STRATEGY
Emails Collateral
Volunteers
Board
Development
EventsVideos
Your Awesome
Organization
Website
EVERYTHING communicates
what your brand stands for
Programs
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12. NIKE IS MORE THAN THE SHOES IT SELLS
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14. A STRONG BRAND WILL INFORM EVERYTHING THAT YOU DO
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GUIDE
ACTIONS
(WEBSITE,
CONTENT,
CAMPAIGNS)
SAY
SOMETHING
SPECIFIC
ABOUT YOU
TRANSLATE
YOUR BRAND
INTO
RELEVANT
CONNECTIO
NS BY
AUDIENCE
CHOOSE OWN MESSAGE
A clear brand
will help you:

15. EXERCISE: DO YOU KNOW?
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CHOOSE
Does your nonprofit know how to easily
make choices about social media,
website content, campaigns?
OWN
Does your nonprofit’s messaging say
something that specific about you relative
to others that offer similar services?
MESSAGE
Does your nonprofit know how to
communicate with all of your audiences
in a way that makes sense for them?
1 5
Uhhhhh….. Definitely
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16. HOW YOUR BRAND COMES TO LIFE
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NIKE MAKES THE
ATHLETE THE HERO
Like many nonprofits, they
don’t take the credit, but
own their role.

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EVEN WHEN
FEATURING THE
BEST ATHLETES
It’s about their effort,
not the gear they wear

25. WHO’S THE HERO
OF YOUR STORY?

26. PAIR UP!
For the next 10 minutes, discuss how your organization would
answer these questions:
1. Who are your organization’s key audiences? Who are your heroes?
2. What is your organization an expert in that could be useful to those
audiences? Where can you be the mentor?
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27. THAT’S NIKE. WE’RE A NON-PROFIT.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR US?

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29. TOO MANY BRANDS AND CAMPAIGNSMISSION DIDN’T FULLY REFLECT
THE SCOPE OF THEIR WORK
Mobilizing investor and business
leadership to build a thriving,
sustainable global economy
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30. COMPLEXITY DIDN’T YIELD BENEFITS
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31. CERES ELEVATED THEIR MISSION
Transforming the economy
to build a sustainable future
for people and the planet
Mobilizing investor and business
leadership to build a thriving,
sustainable global economy
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32. AND SIMPLIFIED THEIR BRANDING STRATEGY
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35. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR YOU?

36. MORE THAN A MISSION, WHAT IS YOUR BRAND?
How do you help? Why do your heroes choose to
engage with you?
How will you know you are successful?
!
!
Who do you help? Who are your heroes?!
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Observe behaviorCustomer interviews Find existing data on the interwebs
Social Listening Surveys
WHAT IF YOU DON’T KNOW??

38. How do we keep from going crazy,
especially when trying something new?
We: a) get (re)focused, b) get
organized, c) get buy-in, and d) get
help (human and technical).
Q:
A:
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39. ● Identify your audience/heroes -
who are you targeting and why?
● Set measurable goals - i.e.
increasing the number of referrals by
X% this year - and choose tactics to
match those goals
GET (RE) FOCUSED
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40. WHERE SHOULD WE FOCUS
OUR TIME?
Use the PICK Matrix to help
decide!
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41. ● Combine calendars - make sure they’re
“talking to each other”
● Coordinate across chapter to ritualize
content
● Delegate responsibly
● Use “down time” to create evergreen
content
GET ORGANIZED
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42. Loneliness is exhausting.
To get others on board,
don’t just share what you’re
doing, engage your team in
the “why” of it.
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43. Where are you feeling stuck in the
process?
● Sourcing stories?
● Creating content?
● Aligning channels?
Sometimes you just gotta ask.
GET HUMAN HELP
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44. Sometimes technology
really does make our lives
easier.
GET TECHNICAL HELP
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45. Tools We LoveTOOLS WE LOVE
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46. TOOLS WE LOVE
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47. TOOLS WE LOVE
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48. THINGS YOU CAN DO.
RIGHT NOW.

49. GATHER YOUR TEAM
Gain alignment on if your brand allows you to make choices, be ownable, and create
meaningful messages. Create a plan to fill in gaps.
CONDUCT A HERO AUDIT ON YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS
Who’s the hero of the story you’re telling, and how often? If it’s always your organization,
think about how to shift the narrative.
PUSH THE PAUSE BUTTON AND REFLECT
What do you or your organization need to improve your communications: focus,
organization, buy-in, or help (human or technical)? Choose one action step from one of
these categories that you can do in the next month.
!
!
!
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QUESTIONS?

51. THANK YOU!
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CONTACT US. WE’D LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU.
bcolling@see3.com
nancy@compassxstrategy.com