We often hear from nonprofit/not-for-profit organizations that marketing their brand is not an investment they are comfortable making. To do so seems self-centered or self-congratulatory and therefore a frivolous use of precious funds. After all, aren’t nonprofit/not-for-profit organizations supposed to focus on the beneficiaries of their services?

Our 29 years of experience has taught us that this is a misguided notion. In fact, in cases where our Clients have invested in their brand, the payback to their philanthropic efforts has been quite evident. A strong brand benefits fundraising by:

• Making your brand recognizable and distinguishable from competitors
• Making your mission relevant to donors
• Helping your organization make an emotional connection with both current and prospective donors

Investing in your brand is more crucial than ever because of the increased competition chasing after a smaller pool of philanthropic dollars. If people don’t know who you are and what your organization stands for, how can you expect your development team to be operating at peak performance?

The stronger the brand, the more known it becomes and the more donors become willing to invest and stay loyal to the organization.