How can nonprofit brands focus on real value?
Not-for-profit organizations often do not think of themselves as brands. They think in terms of their mission: providing needed services, helping the poor, championing a better world. However, they are brands that deliver real value and have a public image and loyal followings. Organizations such as Amnesty International, Doctors without Borders and United Way are reshaping themselves and now have the challenge of proving their value.
The organization Charity Navigator, founded in 2001, developed a rating system for nonprofits which evaluates charities on what they consider good financial health, basically metrics on how much of their donations are getting to those who need them vs. operating costs. Now they’re expanding their rating system to include a more three-dimensional view of a nonprofit’s activities and operations for the social investor by considering three key rating areas to define “good value”:
- Financial Health
- Accountability & Transparency
- Results Reporting
Ultimately, Charity Navigator is looking at what a nonprofit is really producing as results vis a vis their stated goals. This has become a whole new world for nonprofits and is triggering reassessments of value delivered. What can they really claim? Is simply showing up enough, or do they have to say how many kids they saved or trees they’ve kept from being clear cut?
Simply keeping your head down and doing good is not enough. Building clarity into communications of value and commitment is critical in this new climate of increased expectations of real results. Everyone wants to know how to make a difference. How can your brand help? What’s the value you really bring to the table?
I don’t think every nonprofit has to claim it’s changing the world. But they do need to compare their brand promise to what they actually deliver, and what is perceived as significant by the general public. In the case of Doctors Without Borders, just showing up at every conflict, even if it’s one medical tent in a refuge camp of 50,000, may be significantly better than no help at all.
What claims are made and what’s delivered is all in the context of the non-profit brand promise and what others are delivering in the same area. In this sense nonprofits are competing for support and recognition. And like for-profit brands, their shareholders—social investors if you will—want their organizations to deliver value. It’s critical in these times of accountability and effectiveness to communicate who is really fulfilling on their goals and value.