Just like for-profit brands, your non-profit needs to have a strong brand identity. While it may not be the first thing that comes to mind, it’s just as important as your non-profit’s mission statement of improving and saving lives. A strong brand identity can help instill trust and create visibility about your cause. And with trust and visibility comes new donors, increased profits, and the ability to spread your non-profit’s generosity across the community.
As a non-profit business owner, you spend most of your time helping your community thrive. From engaging current donors and trying to attract new ones to managing volunteers and organizing fundraising events, we understand you might not have time to develop a successful branding toolkit. And that’s okay because The Hive can help! With our non-profit branding strategies, we’ll be sure your organization will be the go-to in your community. If you’re ready to make an impact and become more memorable, we’re sharing everything you need to know for building strong branding for your non-profit organization.
Know Your Brand Characteristics
Your branding toolkit should keep who you are as an organization at its core. This is your time to describe who you are, what you stand for, and your goals, mission, and values. You can also include your brand personality, tone, grammar, and style to help turn new leads into your newest supporters.
Design a Compelling Non-Profit Logo
Your non-profit’s logo is like your brand’s first impression—it’s probably the first thing potential donors will see and it’s what current volunteers recognize you by, so it’s important to make it memorable. A great logo should be clean and simple, but also compelling, moving, and relatable. Consider your non-profit’s mission, values, and goals and jot down colors, symbols, or words that come to mind. This will help you brainstorm a logo design that will add visual representation to your brand while remaining consistent with your non-profit.
Build a Brand Identity
When it comes to creating your branding guidelines, consistency is key. Your website, logo, social media channels, infographics, mailers, ads, emails, and more should all be consistent. This is especially important if you’re running an awareness campaign or fundraising. To help keep everything and everyone consistent and to really get your message across, it’s a smart idea to create a non-profit branding guideline. This can include design elements, colors, typography, and your logo. You should also consider including rules for how to use these elements on and offline.
Use Storytelling to Market Yourself
Everyone enjoys a great story. Storytelling is one of the most powerful ways to build your brand. This is your chance to explain to people what your non-profit is known for. You’ll want to be clear and transparent to market yourself to potential supporters and donors. Answer frequently asked questions, explain where the money is spent, and be sure to include the impact of your non-profit. You’ll also want to touch the hearts of your supporters. Being relatable and passionate will show your audience why they should get involved with your non-profit and not another. Sharing case studies and success stories will also be a huge motivating factor in potential supporters engaging with your non-profit.
Personalize and Be Innovative
Personalizing and humanizing your organization makes your non-profit more relatable. Instead of contributing to a general fund, try sponsoring an individual or donating to a specific cause that needs aid. For example, Child Fund International lets you sponsor a specific child by including a photo and unique details about who you are advocating for. Remember to always be innovative and forward-thinking. This can help more people recognize your brand. Never be afraid to try something new and be that “different” voice in the non-profit community.
At beMarketing, we understand your main goal with your non-profit organization is to effect positive change. When you partner with the busy bees of The Hive, we work hard to understand your voice, mission, and goals so your non-profit’s branding will inspire and compel new supporters to get involved with your cause. If you’re ready to build a strong branding toolkit that will launch your organization to the top, connect with us today.
