Nonprofits Feel the Squeeze

As budgets tighten and competition for philanthropic dollars increases, raising awareness and visibility efforts are more important, and more challenging, than ever. To meet these demands, branding has emerged as an essential tool for the nonprofit organization.

An equation of both the physical (name, tagline, logo, color) and the mental (attributes, personality), branding must extend across all customer/audience touch points. When the public hears about the organization in the news, sees an advertisement, goes to the foundation's web site or notes that it is a cosponsor of an event, it expects a consistent message with the overall brand.

When thinking about branding in the nonprofit world, it's the "visual," the "feeling" and the "remembrance" of an organization that are important. For nonprofits, these factors influence the look of the organization (What do people visualize when they think about breast cancer? The pink ribbon.); the appeal of the cause (What are the organization?s core messages? Who does it support?); and the reputation of the organization (Does it live the brand?).

A solid brand image and brand experience strengthens an organization both internally, from a volunteer and donor perspective, and externally. Good branding should translate into good design, because, often, it's the organization's logo, brochure or web site that are noticed and remembered.

The Impact of Good Design

In today's global marketplace, customers expect best-of-breed design and services. But as nonprofits everywhere feel the pain of declining donations from individuals and corporations, design for the sake of design can't be tolerated. Good design in branding can and should thrive, as long as it combines serious business practices with innovation and vision?and, most importantly, is continually seeking to meet the needs of the end user.

Savvy nonprofit organizations are combining innovation in design with seriousness about their mission. For the near term, nonprofits are hoping that the money and time put into branding and design will increase donations and attention, helping to move their particular cause forward. The fear is that if they do nothing, they're taking an even bigger risk of losing mindshare in a competitive marketplace.

Good design, whether it's manifest in an intuitive web site or an effective mailer, enhances the customer experience and serves as an extension of the nonprofit?s overall brand. Bad design, however unintentional, can seriously undermine a brand promise and in the worst case scenario result in lost donors.

Organizations both large and small have used design as an extension of good branding?to help increase awareness of their groups and their cause donations.

Visual Identity Vital for Nonprofits

Logos are often the most visual, most used and most recognized form of branding, followed by a company's tagline. Creating a design that encompasses the look, feel and reputation of an organization is hard to do, especially since the logo needs to transcend paper and have an Internet presence.

Because everyone everywhere has access to all types of charitable organizations, logo design is crucial when trying to break through the clutter of other nonprofits fighting for the same airtime and donations.

Habitat for Humanity International is a nonprofit, nondenominational Christian organization, building houses in more than 92 countries. Playing off the organization' s mission to invite people of all backgrounds, races and religions to build houses together in partnership with families in need, the organization?s logo depicts two people holding hands to form or create a house. This strong visual directly collates to Habitat for Humanity's mission and nonprofit goals. The logo depicts warmth, courage and togetherness-core values of the organization.

The city of Concord, Mass., USA, is rich in historical association, renowned as the site of the battle that began the American Revolution and the home of the most original thinkers and writers of the American literary renaissance. The Concord Museum serves as a gateway for all generations to explore the roots of American history. The most significant piece in the museum's collection is the lantern made famous by Paul Revere in his ride to warn colonists of the coming British invasion.

To draw visitors, the museum sought a logo design that would harness its rich American history. Using design to emphasize its brand, the museum decided to play off Paul Revere's lantern. All museum literature, its web site (www.concordmuseum.org) and stationery behold a visual play on Concord Museum's initials and an elegant, yet modern, rendering of the lantern. The logo, combined with a classical typeface, speaks to the museum's historical and contemporary works.

A cheerful sun logo against a bright blue sky greets visitors to the UK-based Help the Aged web site. The organization says it is committed to addressing the issues that matter to older people and posts four main priorities: combating poverty, reducing isolation, defeating ageism, challenging poor care standards and building understanding through research into aging. Help the Aged's sunny logo provides a sense of warmth and hospitality-essential values to its brand.

The Test of Time

Organizational branding requires tracking closely with changing times and trends. Here are just a few examples of organizations that have created brands and kept them "in tune" with their mission and overarching messages.

The Red Cross is a global organization that has leveraged the art of branding and design. Committed to saving lives and easing suffering, this diverse organization serves humanity by providing relief to victims of disaster, both locally and globally.

The international symbol of the red cross is recognized by millions of people worldwide. In addition to its traditional symbol, the Red Cross has created a secondary design logo for countries where the cross may not be appropriate. Although the red cross is not a religious symbol, some societies view it as such. The symbol of the red crescent is used instead of the red cross by societies in most Islamic countries, and the Magen David Adom, or Red Shield of David, is used in Israel.

Another symbol that quickly gained recognition around the world is the red ribbon of The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, UNAIDS. This group is the main advocate for global action on the epidemic, and it taken steps to establish a long-lasting brand.

Britain's Prince of Wales founded The Prince's Trust in 1976. After completing his duty in the Royal Navy, His Royal Highness became dedicated to improving the lives of disadvantaged young people in the UK, and founded The Trust to deliver on that commitment. Over time, The Trust has become the UK's leading youth charity, offering a range of opportunities including training, personal development, business start-up support, mentoring and advice. Playing off its founder's royalty, this organization embraced a crown symbol for its branding that is synonymous with quality and the highest ideals.

Full Strength on the Web

The Internet has allowed nonprofit organizations to have global reach. No longer are donors and volunteers limited to the four walls of their state or country. The Internet enables those interested in a cause to seek out those charitable businesses that are close to their heart. This "no-borders" environment is wonderful for increasing awareness and donors, but can be challenging when trying to maintain a brand.

An organization's online presence needs to map closely to its offline presence. Web site visitors should be able to relate to and feel the strength of the organization. They need to be able to sense the warmth, the community and the dedication to the cause. Aligning branding and design in this environment is crucial for long-term brand identity.

One organization that has leveraged the web to enhance its communication with donors, volunteers and the public is Oxfam America . The nonprofit is dedicated to finding long-term solutions to poverty, hunger and social injustice around the world.

Oxfam America uses good design to promote its brand on its web site to increase awareness of the group?s mission, assist with fundraising goals and build a platform to support the organization?s growing online community. A mix of professional photography with amateur photos taken at field sites is used to illustrate the power of Oxfam America's programs in action. The web site also leverages Oxfam America's traditional offline brand, including the organization's logo, color palette and typeface, providing visitors with the same continuity and brand recognition online as it sees in print.

Branding for Life

Whether regional or global in scope, a nonprofit organization's calling card depends on good branding. Successful branding marries the mission of an organization with strong design to ensure it's noticed and remembered -breaking through the clutter of a competitive marketplace. By reflecting the elements at the core of an organization, branding can help create a sense of community, urgency to gift and a lifeline for continuous giving.

For U.S.-based nonprofits, creative branding may be easier to achieve because most are independently managed. In other countries, where governments manage most nonprofits, branding can still play a critical role in their viability. The end game is always about bringing in more volunteers, donors and moneys, and thoughtful branding can help nonprofits succeed.

Branding For Nonprofits: The Five Ps

Nonprofit organizations require a much softer sales touch than their business world counterparts, and finding that right approach can make branding difficult. When pulling together any branding campaign, whether for profit or nonprofit purposes, there are five Ps to keep in mind: position, promise, permission, personality and permanence.

Resources for Nonprofit Branding

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