Creating Communities With a Purpose
I find it fascinating that so many commercial organisations are focussed on creating movements and communities. It is a huge threat to our organisations, as the boundaries between for-profit and non-profit become increasingly blurred.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/61520635/Screen_Shot_2018_09_04_at_4.30.23_PM.0.png)
Think back to Nike’s advertisement with Colin Kaepernick last year. How many charities would’ve been brave enough to run such a campaign? ACLU and Greenpeace spring to mind, but not too many others.
The advert was deliberately polarising and asked you to choose sides. People quickly did and it was clear what Nike was standing for. Of course, it is purely “coincidental” that they happened to sell a boatload more of merchandise…
In the UK, Lush cosmetics were heavily criticised by parts of the press and politicians for their ‘spy-cops’ campaign . Yet, their customers loved them for it. It was a clear expression of their values and beliefs and guess what? Another “coincidence”: sales grew even further.
Community and movement building should be a given for many organisations. Yet too often we fail to tap into supporters’ core identities and beliefs and don’t make it clear what we stand for. We’re too engrossed with sharing our latest stats, talking about ourselves, or getting lost in our processes to bring our supporters along with us and get them genuinely excited about our work.
As Katy Perry famously sang:
I used to bite my tongue and hold my breath
Scared to rock the boat and make a mess
So I sat quietly, agreed politely
I guess that I forgot I had a choice
I let you push me past the breaking point
I stood for nothing, so I fell for everything
We need to help our supporters roar and be clear on what we stand for. If we want to change the world, we’re going to have to make a few enemies along the way.
We can extend this to the villain we have in common with our donors. As Roger has said “if an advocacy organization is unwilling to call out a villain then it should just stay home and not bother showing up for the fight.” This not only recognises our constituents’ identity; it builds upon it. Having a strong “they” makes for an even stronger “we.”
Craig
3 responses to “Creating Communities With a Purpose”
Behavioral Science Q & A
Integrating an individual giving appeal with other communications from a charity can have both positive and negative effects, and the outcome largely depends on how it’s executed. Advantages of Integration Brand Consistency: Maintaining a consistent appearance and messaging across all communications can reinforce the org’s brand identity and strengthen brand recognition and trust among your […]
Read Full Answer
I’m not aware of any in-market tests specifically comparing recurring vs. gift frequency language. I suspect the answer might not be the same with all gift frequencies, nor with all people. It sounds like a great opportunity for you to test and find out what works for your audience. Based on the literature, here’s a couple […]
Read Full Answer
Based on what we know from existing data, those renewal notices can actually be pretty effective in getting people to donate. They tap into our psychology – creating a sense of urgency, reminding us of past support, and using personalization to make the message hit home. They’re playing on our natural tendencies to feel obligated […]
Read Full Answer
Interesting question. I had a quick look at the testing done on this topic. On the positive side, in all cases, over half of donors decide to cover the fee. In some cases, it goes as high as 65%. Not a negligible percentage at all. Here’s another test from iRaiser showing consistent results (see point […]
Read Full Answer
There’s just one thing to consider when designing a supporter journey: the supporter. More specifically, you need to take into account: Who the supporter is i.e. their identity, which is the reason they support this cause, and their personality, which describes the way they “see” and process the world. These will determine the kind of […]
Read Full Answer
I’m not an expert in this but a quick search surfaced this article on the effect of tax reforms on 2019’s charitable giving. The researchers didn’t find a reduction. Actually, they observed an “increase in charitable contributions in 2019, even with the lower tax rates and the dramatically smaller number of taxpayers who itemize their […]
Read Full Answer
OMG I love this, Craig! If nonprofits could just be bolder, and try to build movements, their appeals would be so, so much stronger.
Today’s donors want to be part of something – it’s the social identity thing, that “people like us do things like this” to use Seth Godin’s words.
Thx for the important reminder- I’m forwarding this to lots of folks!
Gail
Organizations need to approach taking a stand with care if it’s new to their positioning within the community. You’ll remember a few years ago Susan G Komen took a stand on the life/choice debate by declaring they would stop funding breast cancer screenings given by Planned Parenthood clinics. And then backed off of this position within a few days.
Taking a stand on Planned Parenthood does not seem core to the breast cancer mission, yet backing off of this position might have contributed more to their undoing financially and reputationally. People on both sides of the issue are still agitated years later.
Hi Kathryn, I think you raise a really great point. The things you stand for need to be congruent to your mission. I’m not fully up to speed (being based in the UK) on Susan G Komen, but it appears they took a stand on something that was not related to their mission and then didn’t have the courage of their convictions to see it through – the worst of both worlds and it sounds like they ended up standing for nothing and annoyed people on both sides along the way. Enjoy the Easter weekend, Craig