Branding isn't what you say you are; it’s who you are

Many years ago, alas, I started working places where I needed to wear a good shirt five days a week or more. (Sometimes pants, too!) Washing wasn’t the problem; it was the ironing.

I had never taken my clothes to a dry cleaner before, so I was a bit nervous when I first stepped into the nondescript little shop across from the bank and next to the deli.

The middle-aged woman behind the counter greeted me with a gigantic smile and in a heavy accent I later learned was Korean. I had brought three shirts with me as a trial run, which she quickly stuffed into a canvas bag.

“What’s your phone number?” she asked. It turned out the shop sorts clothes by phone numbers.

“How do you want them?” she asked, still smiling.

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Starch, no starch, folded or hangers.”

Hmm, I thought. Maybe if the shirt has starch, it will stay wrinkle-free two or three days. But could I get just a little?

“Sure. Thursday okay?”

How could I say no? It was already Tuesday.

Then I asked her what I was most afraid of: how much would it cost?

“Three dollars.”

“For each shirt?”

“No, a dollar each.”

I was in love: a shirt washed, starched, ironed, and put on a hanger in 36 hours for a dollar. All with a smile.

And when I returned, the very nice lady remembered me and my shirts, even without my phone number. She remembered my first name the next time. And, by the way, she’s not the owner.

Many years later, shirts are up to $1.50 but every face is a friendly one. The laundry has never lost or damaged my clothes. They’ve replaced the occasional zipper and hemmed new suits when I can afford them.

I don’t know what the shop’s name is. I think it says “Cleaners” above the awning, but I’m not sure. I doubt it has a tagline or motto. Nor have I ever read its mission statement.

But it definitely has a great “brand”.

Who are you, really?

I usually get calls about “branding” from the head of communications. I begin my part of the conversation with some variation of the question, “Do all the board and staff agree about your nonprofit’s mission?”

Sometimes she audibly groans. Then there’s a moment of silence. And then she says, “That’s the problem.”

Yup, it usually is, and the communications person is often the scapegoat. Senior staff and board members have never-ending discussions about “who we are”, “our mission”, “our brand”, and “how we want people to see us”. Then they tell the communications staff to translate all the conclusions they didn’t reach into a dynamic logo, a tagline, this year’s annual report, the website, whatever.

I repeat: I’ve rarely met a nonprofit where board and staff reached a clear, strong conclusion from which a communications person could fashion an equally clear, bold image.

Besides, all that stuff – your logo, annual report, and tagline – doesn’t mean a thing for smaller nonprofits unless they define how your clients and donors actually experience you. As branding expert Larry Checco says in Branding for Success:

“A brand is not a cosmetic you apply to make your organization look pretty; rather it’s your DNA, meaning it’s a true reflection of who you are and what you do… A recent Hyundai automobile ad, I believe, says it best: ‘Truth is, logos don’t really do much of anything...They don’t make you cooler. They don’t make the product better. In fact, a logo means nothing. Unless, of course, the company behind it means something.’"

When a smile is more successful for branding than $50 million

Blogger Steve Cebalt says, “…how your organization actually treats people is the real essence of nonprofit branding.”

For a few years, I taught communication skills to childcare agencies as part of a political advocacy course. I’d ask them how they oriented new parents. Their usual messages, delivered in handbooks or handouts or speeches, were, “We’ll take good care of your child. He or she will be safe here. Parents and teachers are partners in your child’s well-being.”

When I asked how they proved those promises, they would look at me quizzically. So I told them about the childcare center my daughter had attended. A very simple agency, it did three amazing things:

Staff used part of their break to write what the children did that day on a blackboard in the waiting room. Ask the normal child what she did and she’ll answer, “Nothing.” Staff made sure the parents had useful information. Partners indeed.
During the children’s naptime, teachers would jot something about each child in an individual notebook for parents to read. (Important information for toilet training especially!)
Most important, an adult was always at the door to greet each child with a big smile and an ‘hello’. Instead of the child just running into the maelstrom, I knew she counted (and was counted).

Like the dry cleaner, I recommend the center to lots of people. Its brand is golden.

On the other hand, I read in an advertising magazine that Microsoft spent $50 million just to come up with the name ‘Bing’ for its search engine. How’s that working out for you, Bill?

Like it or not, your nonprofit already has a brand.
Find out what it is.

Remember the last time you took public transportation, maybe this morning. Was the bus on time? Was it clean? Was the driver friendly? Did you get a seat? Was the fare reasonable? If you live in almost any northeastern American city, I’m going to guess ‘no’ for every answer. (And they wonder why we drive whenever we can.) That’s the brand public transportation has ‘earned’.

Your organization has a brand, too, with your clients, customers, patients, visitors, patrons, donors, etc. Before you consider expanding your brand awareness to people who don't know you yet (see And then there's marketing below), find your existing brand among people who already know you.

Ask them! Actually, you can't because they probably won't feel comfortable telling you the truth. An independent third party should interview -- in person, If possible, for the richest answers -- each of the following:

Clients, customers, or patrons (the more, the merrier)
Donors at various levels of giving
Volunteers
Board members (trust me, you will be surprised by their answers)
Colleagues at different organizations.

And if you find your brand is vastly different – and less attractive – than the one you would wish for your nonprofit, read on.

Living an honorable life is the next step to branding,
or an Ode to Tiger Woods

A nonprofit brand is “the set of ideas, images, feelings, beliefs, and values that are carried around in a person’s head," says Ken Burnett, author of The Zen of Fundraising: 89 Timeless Ideas to Strengthen and Develop Your Donor Relationships.

You can take action to ensure that your nonprofit instills the brand you want in the hearts and minds of people you care about.

Creationincommon.com conducted a study of nonprofits and found four characteristics determined the strength of each's brand:

Consistent delivery on promises
Living by its values
Consistent effort to be people-focused
Constant attention to evaluation and improvement.

(I don't know anything about Creationincommon.com, but it has lots of free, fascinating papers on its website.)

And then there's marketing

Many nonprofits use the term “branding” when they simply mean “marketing”, i.e. selling a “product” or “service”. I generally consider fundraising as a form of marketing.

Marketing can be confused with “brands”. People believed that Volvos were the safest cars on the road (we used to think Toyotas were, too). Ronald Reagan marketed the USSR as the “evil empire”. Former presidential candidate John Edwards marketed himself as a decent human being. But then, I meant to talk about honest marketing.

For the vast majority of nonprofits with modest budgets and serving particular geographies, you have a big advantage: you can be real, instead of iconic.

Some of that “marketing” is very simple:

Are your receptionist and/or phone message truly welcoming?
Do you write personal letters to donors even when you’re not asking for money?
Do you belong (and show up) to the local Chamber of Commerce?
Do your printed materials reflect the passion of your mission?
Are you speaking regularly in public?

And then, absolutely, spend good money on advertising, direct mail, social media, billboards, galas, and more. But use your money to enhance and spread your brand, not to invent one.

And remember what Nancy Schwartz says (sadly, she’s no relation): “Branding is never finished. It's a process of continual evolution.”