Should nonprofits jump on the "brandwagon"?

Yes. Absolutely, yes.

This may be the point where you start to panic. For those of us in the nonprofit field, the word “brand” can conjure some severe anxiety. Logos, snappy taglines, packaging, color palettes, and – most terrifying of all – dollar signs.

There are, understandably, many people skeptical of branding. Some see branding as too commercial; a waste of time and resources. We live in a world where transparency and visibility are becoming more important to emerging donors – is spending time and money on something like a brand a worthy use of donations?

But, guess what? Nonprofits are already brilliant brand managers. We just call our brand something different: a mission statement. 

Your brand is how you live your mission externally. If your mission is to save the rainforest, how are you living that mission? How does that impact what you say on social media, how your staff work with people in the community, how you communicate your key messages, how you run your offices?

Nonprofits had a head start. Years of brand evolution have brought the rest of the marketing world to a place we've already found.

In the days of the Wild West, a brand was a way to show ownership of goods – usually livestock. That idea translated into sales and marketing. Marketers needed a way to differentiate their product from similar products on store shelves.

Today, your brand is more than just the tangibles of logo and company colors. It’s the public’s perception of who you are and what you stand for – factual or otherwise. Your brand is now a social construct. Your brand shapes a person’s thoughts, feelings, and actions when they think about engaging with your organization.

And what nonprofits excel at is finding, and connecting with, individuals that share the same values, feelings, or interests as they do, and giving people an outlet to engage.

Today, brands are about trust and reliability. People want to feel good about the brands they choose. They want to feel like they belong to a community. But what was revolutionary in the Mad Men era has been common practice for nonprofits. And this is exactly why nonprofits should care so much about it.

Thinking about your brand is more important than ever, with information and social engagement at our fingertips. It’s the age of the informed consumer – if someone has a negative experience with your organization like not being acknowledged for a donation or encountering a rude staff person while volunteering – they have endless platforms to share that grievance and the perception of who you are, your brand and your mission, can suffer.

Every channel where you interact with another human being can build, or chip away at, someone’s perception of how you live your mission and, therefore, your brand. A person’s interactions with employees will affect your brand. The interactions your clients and constituents have when receiving your services will affect your brand. The look and feel of your website and social channels will affect your brand. Transparency and clarity of communication will affect your brand.

There is no escaping a brand. Your nonprofit already has one. Your choice is whether you’re part of shaping that brand or not.

What do you think about how branding fits with nonprofits? Have you seen successes or failures? Should we leave this for only for the marketers, or is there a role we all play?