4 Tips for Building a Magnetic Nonprofit Brand

Once reserved only for the largest commercial companies, today, branding is crucial for any organization. And nonprofits will ignore it at their peril. For nonprofits to flourish, it is critical to establish a thoughtfully planned and documented brand identity that effectively communicates your mission and values to potential supporters. 

What Exactly Is a Brand?

People often think a brand is just a logo, but it's much more. Your brand encompasses every way your audience encounters your organization — from their experience donating on your website to the way a volunteer answers the phone or the words you choose to craft an email – and of course, it is also the way your marketing materials look – including your logo, colors, fonts and photography.

Do You Have an ‘Accidental Brand’?

Your organization has a brand presence even if you never intentionally created one. This is because your brand is not your logo; it encompasses people's every perception of your organization, wherever and however they experience it. 

Some signs that you might have an accidental brand are:

• You've never defined your audiences on paper. 
• You've never written your key messaging all in one place.
• You've never described in writing the voice or tone of your brand.
• You have a logo but not a brand or style guide.

With an accidental brand, you may confuse the public perception of your mission. The unfortunate side effects of an accidental brand can be stagnant growth, uncaptured revenue, lack of trust and diminished impact. These adverse outcomes are why nonprofits must develop a planned brand.

Benefits of a Planned Nonprofit Brand

Donors who understand and connect with your organization's mission and values will likely continue supporting your cause over time. A well-planned, consistent and cohesive brand is key to sustaining support. A cohesive brand presence, both written and visual, can attract new supporters and raise awareness about the issues you are working to address. 

4 Baby Steps to Building a Better Brand

Here are four easy ways to improve your brand now.

1. Create Audience Personas 

You probably have multiple audiences, but if you have never defined them, take a baby step and create a persona for your primary audience that summarizes who they are and what they care about. Use this persona to inform your decisions about your branding and messaging. 

2. Brainstorm Keywords

To help clarify your brand, brainstorm a list of 20 keywords that describe how you want your audience to perceive your organization. Print out the list and refer to it as you work on brand communications. You can use these words directly in your messaging or refer to them to maintain a consistent tone. 

3. Pick a Color and Font — and Stick to Them

If you struggle to keep your brand visuals consistent, pick one color and one font from your existing marketing materials and use them everywhere — no matter what. Keep it simple and relentlessly consistent. The idea here is to take what you already have and make it better. 

If your chosen brand color, for example, is "green," be specific about that green. As we know from the paint aisle at home improvement stores, there are hundreds of greens. So, use an online color tool to get a numeric value for your color and share it with your team. 

4. Show, Don't Tell

The old cliche is true: A picture is worth a thousand words. Hiring a professional photographer is one of the most valuable things a nonprofit can do to improve its branding. Demonstrate need and share your mission by showing the work you do, the people who do it, and, most importantly, the impact of your effort. Plan for a photo shoot next year by getting cost estimates for professional photography now. It will provide hundreds of visual assets for all of your communications and pay for itself many times over in donations and support.

Branding is a critical component of any nonprofit organization's growth strategy. Establishing a distinctive brand identity will build credibility, amplify awareness and inspire ongoing support.

The preceding blog was provided by an individual unaffiliated with NonProfit PRO. The views expressed within do not directly reflect the thoughts or opinions of NonProfit PRO.