The Law of the Harvest

I was at a foundation event a few weeks ago, meeting new people and was introduced to a young man who is early in his career, very talented, and obviously a doer. We chatted briefly about what he wanted to be doing and I said something to the effect of him taking the next few years to build up his experience and credibility. His reply caught me off guard.

"Hell to the no! I am not waiting that long. I am making it happen now."

I smiled a knowing smile. I know in my own life, there are far too many instances where I thought I could speed things up a bit, take a short cut, or even skip to the end and hope that the results would be just as good as if I had worked hard the entire time. And I know that each time I've ended up short of the goal.

There is a universal truth called the Law of the Harvest -- masterfully articulated by Stephen Covey, it says two key things: you reap what you sow, and it takes time to cultivate meaningful results. The easy example is the person who wants to lose weight and goes on a crash diet only to gain the weight again a few weeks later versus the person who commits themselves to a changed diet and lifestyle of exercise who earns their weight loss. Or the student who skips classes, crams the night before an exam, hoping to do well on the test versus the person who attends all the classes, regularly reviews their notes, and gets a good night's sleep the night before the test.

How many times have I said, "Hell to the no!" and decided to jump to the end result only to find my victory shallow and short lived...too many.

I think many of today's non profits and cause-related organizations are dealing with the Law of the Harvest in two ways. First, they are constantly battling the expectations of their communities to get to a solution and achieve results all the while knowing that the most effective and permanent solutions are ones that require the long view. Second, these same organizations often operate with a mindset that they can skip certain steps, cut corners, and achieve amazing results.

When it comes to marketing causes, all too often I see organizations skipping the essentials: Customer segmentation, brand positioning, core messaging, and strategy. Rather, these organizations toss out into the marketplace brochures, flyers, advertisements, and donor requests hoping to increase their ability to do more and get more. Most likely, they'll see an increase in need but not in resources.

If your cause is the field you're planting in, and the impact you want to see in the world are the seeds you sow, do you honestly believe that you can skip the growing season, skip the weeding, skip the watering, skip the fertilizing, skip the pest control -- and still reap amazing results? I didn't think so.

As you work in your business, I encourage you to take time to work ON your business. Build out those fundamentals and properly plant/prepare/and work the field of your cause. Pay attention to the Law of the Harvest ensuring that you'll reap what you've sown, and that your harvest is as full as possible.

- David Kinard, PCM

The Bees' Needs

My 13-year old daughter recently gave a speech at her Speech Club on the plight of bees in our world. Not only was I impressed by the quality of her speech (she "performed" it for me at home) but the weighty import of her content struck me. I thought I'd share it with you.

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Some of you may have heard that the honey bees have been disappearing. Maybe you’ve heard about it in detail or maybe just in passing. Well, no matter how you’ve heard about it, it’s true. The honey bees are disappearing, and at an alarming rate. And it’s not just in the US, it’s happening all over the world. Today, I will give you some history on the disappearance of the honeybees, explain a couple of the reasons for their disappearance, tell you why the honey bees’ disappearance is a problem, and what the future could possibly look like if the honey bees disappear for good.

From 1972 to 2006, there was a dramatic reduction in the number of feral honeybees in the U.S. They are now almost absent, and there is a significant, though gradual, decline in the number of colonies maintained by beekeepers. From 2006 to 2008, the number of colonies that were lost rose. In the winter of 2006 to 2007, beekeepers in the US lost approximately 32% percent of their honey bees. In the winter of 2007 to 2008, they lost approximately 36%. However, in 2008 to 2009, they only lost 29%. Now, this isn’t just happening in the United States, it’s around the globe. Beekeepers have seen similar disappearances in Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. It really is a problem everywhere.

Albert Einstein once said, “If the bee disappeared off the surface of the earth, then man would only have four years of life left. No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man.” While I’m not sure it would be quite that drastic, the absence of the bees would most definitely take its toll. About one third of the human diet comes from insect-pollinated plants, and honeybees are responsible for about 80 percent of that pollination, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. To give you an idea of what would happen if honeybees were to disappear, here’s a partial list of the foods they pollinate.

Almonds
Asparagus
Apples
Avocados
Broccoli
Blueberries
Cranberries
Cherries
Kiwi fruit
Carrots
Citrus- (oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruit, tangerines, etc.)
Peaches
Macadamia nuts
Pears
Nectarines
Plums
Grapes
Cauliflower
Celery
Cucumbers
Onions
Legume seeds-(beans, peas, lentils)
Pumpkins
Squash
Sunflowers
Apricots
Strawberries
Olives
Cantaloupe
Watermelon
Honeydew
Peanuts
Cotton
Soybeans
Sugar beets
Canola
Alfalfa

You might have noticed that list includes a lot of things we enjoy every day. And not just the things we enjoy, but that animals enjoy too. Like cows. They eat alfalfa, which is pollinated by honeybees. Ultimately, if the honeybees completely disappear, we could lose many sources of protein and fruits and vegetables, possibly ending up eating nothing but grains and water. Unless another pollinator, such as another insect, bird, or bat came along, we would have to manually pollinate a lot of the foods we eat. Manual pollination is a tedious and tiresome job, and nowhere near as efficient as pollination by honeybees.

Chinese pear farmer Cao Xing Yuan, who was interviewed for the US documentary “Silence of the Bees”, knows just how tough manual pollination is. Ever since the bees in his region were wiped out by pesticides 20 years ago, he and his neighbors have had to scrub pollen from the pear trees, dry it by hand, and then carefully dust it onto each pear blossom. It is a slow, laborious task, and much less efficient than employing honeybees, whose colonies visit up to 3 million blossoms per day. Life without bees is not a pleasant thought, but it is a plausible one. It would be better for everyone, bees included, if we could find ways to stop them from disappearing.

One of the bigger problems the honeybees are facing is starvation. The Apiary Inspectors of America did a survey of the losses of honeybee colonies in the United States and found that 32% percent of these losses were attributed to starvation. This could mean that the beekeepers didn’t leave enough resources for the bees over the winter, or the cold weather affected the bees, and they ate their food prematurely, not leaving enough to last them the winter. Beekeepers can purchase sugar syrups to supplement feedings, but a lot of the beekeepers didn’t have the money to do that. They crossed their fingers and some of them won, and some of them lost. Lost their bees, that is.

The other cause for starvation is contaminated pollen. Contaminated pollen stored in hives can end up causing bees to get sick and die. Honeybees collect pollen for vitamins, minerals, and protein. They don’t eat it right away, they add their own bacteria, fungi, and yeast to it, and leave it to ferment in hive cells until it makes “bee bread”. If honeybees collect pollen from a flower that was treated with pesticides and herbicides, it messes up the balance of the bacteria, fungi, and yeast. When the honeybees try to make ‘bee bread’ using contaminated pollen, the fermentation process doesn’t work, and it then interferes with the honeybees’ health by limiting their nutrition.

Another thing that could be hurting the honeybees is really, the bee industry. Honey isn’t a moneymaker anymore, because we import so much of our honey from third-world countries, so most of the money that beekeepers make is made from pollinating the almond crop in California. Bees are imported from the other states because California’s foothill, coastal, mountain, and desert areas can support only about a half million colonies on a year-round basis. Because of this, beginning in late January, beekeepers move in and place about 1 million honeybee colonies to pollinate California’s 500 acres of almonds. Bees are imported from all over the country, to pollinate one kind of flower. This isn’t good for the bees. Bees are meant to gather lots of different pollens from separate places. And they’re not used to being trucked across the country. If you add in the stresses of herbicides and pesticides and a lack of food, these bees are going to suffer!

If any of you are at all interested in this subject, I would very much encourage you to read about it. It’s really interesting, and there’s a lot that I wasn’t able to mention. If I were to share everything I wanted to do with this subject, this speech would be way too long for speech club. The honeybees’ disappearance is a fascinating and important part of our lives, and the more people who know about it, the more people who could maybe help to save them. Because if we want the honeybees to survive, we have to be aware of the problems they face, and try to take care of the bees’ needs.

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What struck me the most after I listened and then read her speech was the opportunity this kind of learning presents to your cause. If my teenager daughter can write this simple report, share it with friends about the importance of bees, what could an army of teenagers accomplish for your organization? In other words, if you want to get real grassroots involvement, attention, and discussion going -- get some kids to write about it.

-- David Kinard, PCM

22 Ideas to Help Grow and Retain Your Association’s Membership

I am a big believer in creating member communities around causes. There is so much evidence to suggest that creating a groundswell and affinity around an issue is likely the most powerful way to accomplish significant change. Many associations and member communities today, despite their origins, lack the vitality and activities to keep people interested and engaged in their causes. Here are 22 simple, low-tech, and powerful things you can do to grow and retain your community members.

Featured member profiles

Create a book profiling members and how the association has helped them. Treat this like a newspaper or magazine article. Use member photos, highlight their current employment situations, their accomplishments and credentials, and why they became members of the association. Make sure to focus on how they are better because of their membership. Include contact information for those people so that readers can reach them with questions.

Pre-program slideshows

Create a PowerPoint or other type of computerized slideshow that runs before each and every program you offer. This is a background item that people can watch or read at their leisure before a program or during a networking time. It also helps people see who is who if you have photos of members with their names (e.g., group shots, board members). Have some music playing in the background and put the show on repeat so that it runs by itself. Although the length of a show will vary, try to have enough slides so that the show only repeats twice. Make sure you have someone handy with a digital camera during each program taking pictures for the next slideshow.

Featured benefit: In each printed publication put a special box that regularly highlights a member benefit.

You likely send out many different types of communications to your membership and prospects each month. In all your communications, whether they be print, electronic or broadcast (voicemails, multimedia) make sure to highlight a specific benefit of membership. Make the benefit quantifiable in some way, perhaps through a statistic or a testimonial from a member. The greatest impact of this practice happens over time by limiting yourself to one benefit in each communication and frequently varying which benefit you highlight.

On various pages of your website, have spots that highlight specific member benefits. Rotate these frequently.

Just as you want to have specific membership benefits highlighted in your publications, so too should you have specific benefits highlighted throughout your website. Listing them in one place is a good idea. But it is also a good idea to weave them throughout your web pages. This helps to remind visitors to your site about key advantages they might have if there were members.

For each new membership application received on a specific program day, provide a free audio CD of the speaker/program. Or send out other special audio CDs to new members as a gift.

This is an inexpensive way of providing an incentive for taking immediate action. If a prospect is enjoying the day’s program, and you couple that experience with targeted reasons (benefits) to join, the free audio CD can provide an added reason to join. You can also provide a “free gift with membership” to new members by giving them an audio CD of a different program you’ve offered. No matter what program you provide them on CD, make sure it is something that has real and lasting value. You want to make this something that they’re going to want to listen to again and again, or perhaps share with a friend. Make sure to label the CD with your association’s name and contact information, and put a short commercial in the CD as well.

Send birthday cards to members.

One reason why people join associations is for the affinity benefit. People join communities because they feel good when they are recognized and remembered. Many member applications ask for birthdates (or at least they should – month and date only, no year). Capture this information and put it into your database. Then, on a regular basis, send members birthday cards with a handwritten note or signature. People will be amazed you remembered – especially when others did not!

Send anniversary cards to members on their renewal dates.

Each year members receive their renewal notices and a request for money from the association. Anniversary cards are a nice way of recognizing and honoring those members who have demonstrated loyalty to the association. Celebrate the first, third, fifth, seventh, tenth, fifteenth, and every fifth year after that. Honor these people by adding a ribbon to their nametags, sending cards, or putting their names in the newsletter. Basically, do anything that recognizes them and says “thank you.”

Staff a resource/information table.

Many associations have a display table at their programs. This table has information on it that people can go to and get if they want it. But many of these tables are stuck in the back corner with no one staffing them. Keeping the table is a good idea and making sure it is full of current and targeted information is imperative. Putting this table in the way of traffic is an even better idea, and having some of your most outgoing people staff this table creates a powerful tool for capturing new members and reinforcing the value proposition to existing members. Make sure the table staff do not get into social conversations. Their job is to provide information, make connections for people and help answer questions.

Have greeters/ambassadors at every meeting.

Many visitors to your association’s meetings may feel a sense of anxiety or discomfort if they don’t know anyone or are unsure as to how things work. They may not know where to sit or know anyone to talk to. Having a greeter at the door who shakes hands with everyone in a warm and friendly manner and notices visitors is a great way to help people feel welcome. When visitors do come through the line, they are immediately matched to an association ambassador (who is waiting nearby). This ambassador can walk them through the room, introduce them to people, and sit by them during the program. This ambassador is also prepared with a membership packet and is well versed on why membership is of value. Spending time with the visitor to answer questions and even guide them through completing the membership application can have a positive and immediate impact on membership growth.

Personal notes/cards

There are few things that help to make prospects and new members feel more welcome than a personal note or card from an association or chapter president. A handwritten card with a few welcoming words can go a long way toward helping to increase member engagement and loyalty. Sending cards on a monthly basis to new and renewing members is one way to help members feel that they’re important, they matter, and they’re more than just a number to the association.

Phone-a-thons

Yes, they’re popular again, and rightfully so. Calling people on the phone to let them know you’re thinking about them and their future is a very positive way of growing and keeping your membership. Phone-a-thons should be staffed by members who really understand the value of the association’s benefits and have a personal story they can tell about how the association has benefited them. This type of activity works well for recruiting members and getting members to renew. These don’t have to be big to make an impact, either. Having a group of ten volunteers make 10 calls month each means you’re hitting at least 100 people each month – 1200 people a year.

Advertise calendar in local papers.

Most local newspapers have some type of community calendar section. Your association’s meetings for the month/week should be sent to the calendar editor of the local print media approximately two weeks in advance of the meeting date or the publication date.

Send out press releases to companies.

Unless your program or association activities are really “news”-worthy, most local media are not going to pick up the story. But that doesn’t mean you can’t send out press releases. Just send them to local area businesses instead. You’ll want to have a list of actual prospect names to send information to, and you’ll want to write each press release to be enticing: o one is going to care that a new board was elected, but someone will care if that new board has a plan to help the person advance his or her career. Try to limit press releases to once a month or quarterly. If you send them out too frequently, they’ll lose their impact.

Give a commercial to new members and make them really big stars for a day.

At each meeting, celebrate new members by having them stand and be recognized. You can even offer them a self-promoting, 30-second commercial as they introduce themselves. This is a great way to help them engage with their new membership community and also network, promote their business, or look for an employment opportunity. You can also have them write two or three sentences about themselves and put this information on your website or newsletter. This is also a great way to “celebrate” anniversary members.

Hold prospective member orientations.

Many times a regular member meeting is not the best place to help prospects or visitors learn everything they need to know about your association. Holding a separate prospective member or new member orientation is a positive way to recruit and retain. You can have these orientations just prior to your regular meeting (not after – people want to go home or back to work), or on a separate day. Make sure to show the value of membership, identify all the different benefits and how to use them for maximum results, and make it fun by allowing people to network with one another and make new friends.

Create specific, national and local value.

Every association that has a national organization and local or regional groups has the challenge of integrating the value from each level and helping members engage with that value. The national organization has to think about the big picture credibility and brand recognition of the association – and it can often provide bigger value items that are difficult for the smaller, local groups to generate. At the same time, local groups must provide value specific to their areas. Neither can survive without the other, and neither can survive by relying on the other to create and deliver value to members. Both must participate. Both must offer a value proposition. Both must engage the members in an integrated manner.

“Every Member One Member” local level contest

This contest is known by many names, but its purpose is the same. Each member is charged with getting just one new member during a specific time period. Hold this contest two times each year for a 45-day period (have one contest period just before your national convention). Give prizes and recognition to those members who achieve the goal of bringing in one new member – and give over-the-top recognition to those members who bring in more than one new member. Prizes and awards are always a good idea, but be sure to recognize everyone. Even be sure to recognize the new members. One way is to have their nametag say “PERSON told me about ASSOCIATION NAME!”

Create special business cards with coupons for boards.

It isn’t expensive these days to have business cards created for board members, and the payoff can be significant. Not only does this get your association’s name even further into the marketplace, but it also helps prospects and new members connect names with the association. This is also a great networking tool for board members who are in the community. When the topic of the association comes up, they can use their association- business card to encourage follow-up.

Put ads in your own newsletter.

Most associations have some type of newsletter, whether it is electronic or print. However, many associations will write an article about their news items or events when an advertisement will do the job much better. Don’t limit advertising to your sponsors or vendors; use this space to create ads that promote your events, programs or benefits of membership.

Partner, and participate in all national/local activities.

There is no doubt that local associations rely on their national organizations to some degree for credibility, infrastructure and member benefits. In the same manner, the national organization relies on the local groups to convey information and provide local support for its efforts. Unfortunately, however, some organizations fail to communicate with one another and each is left not knowing what the other is doing. It is important not just to inform, but also to create partnerships between the national and local bodies. This provides prospective and current members, the media and the community a unified voice for the association’s vision. And it engages the best each group offers for dynamic and powerful efforts.

Link sponsorships to membership.

Many associations promote the importance of members buying from and working with other members. This is a good message to send to sponsors and vendors as well. Where it is appropriate, tie in memberships to sponsorship agreements. This has a two-fold benefit. First, it can increase the value of your sponsorship benefits package (thus increasing your request value). Second, it grows your membership.

Single-shot volunteerism opportunities.

Volunteerism in associations is likely the most important factor when it comes to member retention and satisfaction levels. Associations are unique in that members have to both pay and work for their membership value. Providing members with meaningful service opportunities is a great way for them to find deep value in their association. “Meaningful” is the key word, though. Don’t limit yourself to static committees and long-term positions. Create short, single-shot service opportunities. Someone to pick up a speaker from the airport, and someone to drive him back. Someone to stuff envelopes next Tuesday. Someone to staff the registration desk this month. Someone to work on a task force or lead a focus group. There are often people in an association who are willing to help out but never get asked, or never see the right fit for them. So when you run out of ideas, ask your members what they’d be willing to do and let them at it.

-- David Kinard, PCM

[photo credit: DPM2/Flickr]

Play the iPhone Music and Market Your Cause

This is what I love about the human ability -- or drive -- to take a product and transform it into something else. This video, which shows a new app for the iPhone, allows you to blow across the iPhone's speaker and a tone much like a flute emits from the speaker. With a few well-placed fingers, you've got yourself a musical instrument.

So, what does this have to do with your cause or nonprofit? Tons.

First, if you're a struggling music society or arts center, why not have a concert done wholly with technology, not traditional instruments. Not only is this idea fresh and unique, it's buzz worthy and therefore sponsor worthy. A communtiy fundraiser added to the concert and WHAMMO, you've got an instant evening of fun.

The point IS NOT that you need to use the iPhone in your next awareness or communications program. The point IS that you can begin to think about the unusual and find ways to incoporate that into what you do. The public has learned to treat your calls for help as ever present, and never urgent. Masses are looking for somethign to surprise them (not shock them) and give them a moment's respit from the frenzy of their world.

So, put this idea to action by scheduling a brainstorming meeting with your staff and invite a few people who have nothing to do with your organization. Get the sales manager from a local car dealership, get a mail carrier or the UPS delivery person, aks a chef from a nearby restaurant, and how about the kid that works behind the counter at Best Buy. Have them come for a session on how to think about what you do and how to communicate it in different ways. Harvest the low hanging fruit from the ideas and have fun.

-- David Kinard, PCM

From Junk Mail to Power Mail

Last week blogger Nancy Schwartz wrote about receiving a direct mail piece from one of her favorite nonprofits -- the adoption agency they used. But instead of receiveing a direct mail piece that engaged and nurtured the relationship between the agency and Nancy's family, the piece ended up having them question the strength of the operation. Her experience inspired me to write a bit about how to turn your Junk Mail into Power Mail.

How much mail do you get every day? For some, that daily ubiquitous pile of paper is almost a status symbol. For others, it is just one more hassle and headache in an already crowded day.

The issue of what is so commonly referred to as an overload of “junk mail” has gotten worse, or so a report released by the Consumer Federation of America says. The report, which surveyed more than 1000 people found that 78 percent of respondents believe the amount of unsolicited mail, or junk mail, they receive irritates them "a lot or a little."

Of the 78 percent who found it irritating, 48 percent said junk mail irritates them a lot. That's an increase of 2 percentage points over the prior year's survey.

Direct marketers say, however, that if direct mail is targeted, it is a very effective and welcome form of marketing communications. And the United States Post Office agrees. They rank direct mail third just behind TV and newspapers in marketing effectiveness. The critical ingredient in making direct mail work, however, is targeting.

Think about it, sometimes that “junk mail” catches your eye, and quietly, while no one is looking, you may even open it. Why? The reason is quite simple. The offer or packaging of the mail interested you enough to cause you to look further. Junk mail are only those pieces which promote a product or service you don’t want or need, or a cause which doesn’t resonate in your hearts.

The most savvy direct mail experts all agree that you should have the best offer and packaging in your direct mail piece. However, it is the list that you send it to which determines your success.

Next time you prepare to send out a letter, brochure, or other direct mail piece consider the following questions which will help increase the effectiveness of your list.

1. Is direct mail the best medium to carry this important message? If not, go back to the creative drawing board and identify the best way to get your voice heard.


2. Who is the specific target audience for this piece (men, fathers, women, mothers, purchasers of fitness equipment, general public, registered voters, etc.)?


3. What is the audience’s profile and characteristics (age, sex, lifestyle, work habits, relationship to your product/service/issue)?


4. What does the target audience do in terms of lifestyle (What do they read on a regular basis, where do they live, or where do they go for vacations, dinner or entertainment)?


5. When is the best time to reach them with your message (time of year, day, month, event considerations)?

By identifying these basic characteristics of your target audience, you can purchase lists that more accurately match your ideal prospect, thus increasing your direct mail piece’s effectiveness and staying away from “junk mail”.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Non Profit e-Marketing

In yesterday's radio program I had a great conversation with Allison Van Diest, a senior product marketing manager for Blackbaud (they’re a company that for the past 27 years has created software solutions to support the needs of schools, universities, healthcare, human services, cultural groups, and even faith-based communities). We talked about event registration, email strategies, Web site analytics, online communication strategies, and even fundraising -- and what non profits need to know.

Specifically, online donors are a key growth segment for nonprofit organizations. With the average online donor giving more initially and having a higher lifetime value than conventional donors, the importance of online giving as a revenue stream is growing. In fact, if I heard correctly, the average online donation is $60 for those sites with just a "Donate Here" button. But for those that integrate technology into their broader fundraing communications the average donation skyrockets to more than $120.

What strikes me in today's troubling economic times is that only 6% of non profits say that fundraising is their top driver, and only 36% expect to increase their efforts in this area. With an exptected $11 billion raised in 2008, up from $7 billion in 2007, and the proven micro-donation precedents set by last year's presidential campaigns, this should be a top priority across the board (pun intended).

You can listen to the interview with Allison here.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Flashmobs and Non Profits

How much fun is it to be a part of your cause or organization? This video is part of a public marketing effort by T-Mobile and from the faces in the crowd you can see they're having fun.

From what I can make out, there are plants in the crowd -- those who are part of the event, know the songs, know the choreography. But what is exciting to watch is how more and more people are added into the mix over time, and many who are not part of the marketing program.

This video reminds me of an old camp song that starts, "It only takes a spark to get a fire going." I wonder what could be done in today's cause-related organizations to add an element of fun, of excitement, of spontaneity that would engage all those around you. Here in Seattle, one of our famous companies Pike Place Fish knows how to do this as they are world-famous for their fish-throwing antics and customer engagement (yep, that's them in the FISH and FISH STICKS videos). Here are two for-profit examples of companies who learned to engage those around them. What are good non profit examples?

Whether you like T-Mobile or not, you can't deny the impact these flashmobs have had. Googling t mobile dancing video produces more than 22 million results. YouTube has more than 40 related videos on their site just from that same search and people are talking, buzzing, and sharing. Not to mention those who participated will share the story offline making individual and powerful connections.

Think past handing out fliers in the park. How can you add delight and amazement to your marketing and positively (leave behind the offensive sandwich boards and negative messaging) engage the public in your cause. Think of the smiles and joy you see in the faces of the people in this video -- how can you add that same quality to your own community engagement?

-- David Kinard, PCM

Does Your BHAG Measure Up to King's and Obama's?

Today -- Inauguration Day 2009 -- Whew!

Okay, so let's put politics aside for a moment and focus on the critical element of what has made Obama the "man" transform into Obama the "movement". It was a Big, Hairy, Audacious Goal. Or more like a whole set of them.

Obama's approach is something that has been talked about by business gurus around the globe for years -- if you want to inspire, engage, and activate a community around your cause, give them something big to believe in. And Obama did just that. With approval ratings at or above 75% he has inspired not just tens of millions of Americans, but the world. Yet Obama gave us not just anything to believe in -- he could have said he wanted to build a giant ladder to the moon and we would have discredited both the man and the goal. So, what made his goals so believable? I'd like to suggest the following:

1. Big Hairy Audacious Goals require time -- They likely will take 10 to 30 years to complete, but they have a specific end date.


2. Big Hairy Audacious Goals require more than what we have to offer right now. We must grow, change, and evolve into something better in order to achieve them. We must transform ourselves during the journey.


3. Big Hairy Audacious Goals are measurable and achieveable. You should be able to envision and describe what success looks like with extreme clarity, with definition, and with a clear sense of what it will take to arrive at that point.


4. Big Hairy Audacious Goals inspire, focus, and align. They give us something big to strive for, focus our attention on what's most important, and align our resources to achieving that end state.

As you think through your organization's vision and goals -- how well do they match up to these four critical ingredients?

What are your thoughts? Do you think these four are enough?

-- David Kinard, PCM

Brands Using Twitter

Former radio show guest Paul Dunay has compiled a list of various corporate brands that are using twitter to stay in touch with their communities. I especially like this this for two reasons:

1. Many corporate marketers today are decrying the inability of businesses to use and engage with social media tools like twitter to connect and nurture communities of followers. Well, this list puts that to rest. Big and small, they're on here and likely many more exist that just didn't make Paul's list (see the comments for proof).

2. This list makes it clear that non profits must use tools like twitter to tap into the communities that already exist around their cause. No excuses. If you're a member of the American Marketing Association, sign in to your Marketingpower.com account and listen to the member-only Webinar that I hosted back in December. We had three amazing marketers on the program (Toby Bloomberg, Julie Fleischer, and Greg Verdino) give very specific advice and perspective on social media and how it can be used in your own marketing. (And as a side note, all three of these people will be at Mplanet later this month.)

And for those who think that that using twitter may be a silver bullet, let me dissuade you from going down that path. Like any other social media tool, twitter is a mechanism that equips you to dialogue and communicate only. It won't create relevancy, it is a poor substitute for integrated communication plans, and it will never overcome an inauthentic voice.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Ford an Example for Non Profits

John Gerzema, author of The Brand Bubble, recently wrote in his blog about Ford working with an open platform and CEO Alan Mulally's focus on partnership and connectivity. While I won't try to make the leap between Detroit and non profits (even if there is an inherent pun in saying that) I do like the idea of Ford attempting to climb its way out of economic duldrums through this type of transparency and innovation.

It seems all to common for non profits and cause related organizations to try and go it alone; or at least I think that is a widely held perception. Little islands out there floating in a sea of need. Sure there is partnership, but that's usually in the form of accepting donated services or products to support the mission. But what if that same non profit began to create an open platform where infrastructures were shared between other groups?

When thinking through your partnership possibilities, consider first the recipient of your work. If the homeless are your beneficiaries, then think through what other organizations (for and non profit alike) benefit from solving the homelessness challenge. If you're an alternative school, think through who else benefits from having kids educated and how could others participate and make that education even better.

This kind of open platform -- where there are no secrets, no hidden agendas, and shared ownership -- is where collaboration thrives. It's the truest example of synergy in action where one and one equal three or more.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Rate Your Favorite Non Profit

I stumbled upon this site today and was really impressed with the idea behind it. GreatNonProfits.org is a site that mashes up a Zagat-style rating with user reviews of non profit organizations across the country. From churches to shelters to 4H clubs, I found dozens and dozens of entries just for my local area.

Says site founder and CEO Perla Ni,

"It struck me that there needed to be an online Zagat, if you will, for non profits that would collect stories and reviews of people -- people like me, the victims of Katrina, and hundreds of thousands of others -- who have seen the impact of nonprofits up close, and can speak personally and firsthand about it."

I think this is a brilliant site and has the potential to provide transparency and street credibility for today's overwhelming number of non profits and cause-related organizations. From a donor's point of view, perhaps this might be a culling feature to identify how to distribute funds. From a recipient's perspective, maybe this could become a new type of yellow pages for referral agencies who are looking for extended services for their own populations. The possibilities are endless.

I did a quick search for my city and found that not every organization was listed so it's probably a good idea to ensure yours is accounted for, and then have a few of your champions (board members, staffers, recipients) write a comment or two. While you're at it, be sure to write a note to Perla letting her know that this is a great tool.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Join the Conversation at Katya's

There's a great conversation going on right now at Katya's Non-Profit Marketing Blog on who non profits and cause related organizations should target. It all started with a post on Preaching to the Choir.

Join in....

-- David Kinard, PCM

Move Over 4 P's -- Time for the 4 R's

Last night I was teaching MBA students at Seattle University the foundations of marketing. In review, we hit upon the legendary and foundational Four P's of Marketing. Originally coined by Harvard professor E. Jerome McCarthy in the early 1960s, this simple model has dominated much of the way marketing has operated ever since.

There have been many modifications to the original 4, some have made them into five suggesting People be included, and even Seth Godin suggested a new one -- Purple cow.

But the best addition to the 4 P's I've ever seen is the four R's. RELATIONSHIPS, RETURNS, RELEVANCE, and RESPONSIVENESS.

Cause-related organizations shoudl consider regularly assessing their mission and value proposition to the external marketplace against the four R's. In doing so, I think some will find ways to update and improve their services, engagement, and excitement factor. Following is a quick definition of each element of the four R's.

RELATIONSHIPS -- this has to do with your organization's ability to create alliances and partnerships that improve your ability to fulfill your mission. This isn't just about getting donors to provide free stuff, but rather finding ways to attach your cause into the missions of these organizations so that it becomes their cause too. How expansive are your relationships and alliances into the for profit world? How deep are your connections to decision makers? How wide is your reach because of these relationships?

RETURNS -- this is a big one that many cause-related organizations fail to understand, but is so easy to accomplish. Donors and supporters do not only want to know what you did with the resources you've been given, they desperately want to know the permanent difference you're making in the world. Go beyond identifying how many meals you served, beds provided, acres of forest saved, and wells dug. Tell the world about what happened as a result of those things. Tell us what happened 3, 5, and 10 years later. What permanent mark did you leave on the world? What is your legacy of good?

RELEVANCE -- for anyone who doesn't get this concept, I have a bunch of 8-track tapes I want to sell you. Music hasn't changed much over the past 25 years, but the way we consume it has. People continue to shop and share product reviews with their friends just like they did in the 1980's. The way they do it has changed dramatically. Your cause may be just as relevant today as it was 40 years ago, but is your organization? Have you kept up with the times? Are you a dinosaur in a world of robots? Don't be fooled into thinking that technology is the driver here. It's not; people are. You need to ensure your cause-related organization is relevant in their eyes, meeting today's needs, not yesterdays.

RESPONSIVENESS -- I can get same-day shipping from Amazon. Text messages are instant. Netflix knew that receiving videos by mail was soon to be too slow so they created instant view from their site as well as on-demand viewing through providers like TiVo, Xbox, and others. Keep in mind that the world operates in Web time. Things can be and are instant. This isn't something to be afraid of or to work against. On the contrary, it is an opportunity. Web sites can be updated daily, tweets can go out to communities instantly creating buzz and action, and needs can be met in real time, not on 30-day mailing cycles.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Priorities May Need Adjusting

The American Marketing Association and Lipman Hearne joined forces to produce a report on The State of Nonprofit Marketing. The report, released in July 2008 identified top priorities, strategies that are working, marketing metrics, and a look ahead at the challenges nonprofits face. More than one thousand nonprofit marketers participated in the survey, with a wide representation of various types of nonprofit organizations. The respondents were fairly senior in their roles within the organization.

What strikes me with perennial disappointment is that these marketers self-reported their most effective strategies for achieving their top priorities, but…

“the highest rated metric – event attendance and revenue – scored only average as indicators of success. While considered a top strategy, public relations efforts were not being effectively measured. Print and interactive advertising, often considered essential in brand building, were also among the lowest in being examined for identifiable, measurable results. In many cases, nonprofits were not measuring results at all. More than a quarter of survey participants were not monitoring web activity or public relations responses.”

In fact, when asked to rate their effectiveness in measuring various tactics, only two items earned a score of 3 (with 1 being poor and 4 being very effective). The remaining list of 19 items had scores ranging from 2.8 to 2.1. What seems unconscionable is that these same organizations year-after-year spend scarce resources on the same tactics without any relevant data to suggest if those tactics even work. Then they write their donation letters asking for more money.

Recently on a LinkedIn discussion forum, I defended non profits as being staffed by well-educated leaders who possess a skill-set that easily compares to their for-profit counterparts. And indeed, their sense of accountability is profoundly felt though some may decry poor results. The amazing things these leaders are able to accomplish with limited resources makes them far better managers than many of their budget-rich corporate peers.

But now I wonder if I was right to make such a claim.

Tracking event registrations, overall revenue, and member recruitment are excellent metrics when trying to assess the organization at macro levels, but non profits and cause-related organizations must do a better job of getting into the details such as tracking the effectiveness and impact of their advertising and direct mail. And these organizations must fully embrace digital tools and track and measure their search engine optimization, earned media, Web traffic, and blogs and tweets.

Maybe for 2009, the first priority should be to ensure all marketing is accurately and usefully measured.

-- David Kinard, PCM

10 New Year Resolutions for Non Profits and Cause-Related Organizations

This time of year it is not uncommon to write down resolutions for the next year – things that we might do better, do differently, or just plain do. As you consider your organization, whether it be a non-profit, cause-related community, or a for-profit company with a socially responsible initiative, here are 10 resolutions to consider making as you head into 2009. They’re in no particular order, number ten isn’t the least and one isn’t the most important. But all will add to your ability to make a significant difference in the important work you do.

[NOTE: If your organization excels at any one of these let me know. I'd be happy to highlight your work in an upcoming blog.]

1. Competitively define your mission.
   Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead said it best, “You don’t want to be considered the best at what you do. You want to be the only ones doing what you’re doing.” How is what you do unique, special, and essential. If there are too many providers of the same thing, people will see most of them as unnecessary. What is it that only your organization does? What will the one big thing that your organization will do in 2009 that sets you apart as different from all the other causes?
   
   
2. Showcase your success stories, not just your needs.
   Consumers expect that non profits have needs and that cause-related organizations are usually scarce on resources. It’s okay to ask for things, but make sure that you also showcase your successes. What is the outcome of the work you do? What is the outcome of that? Sure you may serve meals to homeless, provide medication to the poor, or even find childcare for single parents who need to work. But what happened because you did all those things? Showcase the outcome of your work – what happened because you did all those things you do – and give consumers a bigger picture of your organization’s performance.


3. Create single-shot service opportunities.
   According to ASAE, Americans devote more than 173 million volunteer hours each year - time valued at more than $2 billion - to charitable and community service projects. But for as much as that amounts to, there are untapped millions of hours still available. Create opportunities for service that don’t require more than an hour, or a particular task. Let people dip their toe in the water before you ask them to dive in to the deep end.


4. Create ways for your entire community to engage in conversation.
   Technology has changed the way we interact with one another. Twitter grows by an estimated 3-5 thousand new users each day, there are an estimated 70 million blogs, and 8 billion text messages are sent every day. Not participating in this online conversation leaves your organization out in the cold. It’s not so much that you get reporters talking about your organization, you need to get every day people talking about you. Your organization needs to find ways to connect the various constituents with each other – beneficiaries to donors, board to public, staff to public, public to donors, etc. Create ways for conversations to happen and let them happen. No control, no micro managing. Just get people talking and then listen.


5. Investigate relevancy.
   So much is lost and wasted by well meaning non profits because the person writing the gift request letter didn’t make it relevant to the recipient, or the Web site home page is targeted to the wrong demographic. Make 2009 the year of getting to know your community members inside and out. Research your audiences and write profiles for each group, what makes them tick, what they like, don’t like, what they respond to and why. Find out what’s important to them and validate it. Relevancy drives meaning in communications and credibility in relationships. It also drives response rates to your messages.


6. Glocalize.
   Boundaries have little meaning anymore. Technology enables connectivity between once-kept-apart groups. Thus, your cause related organization can now operate with a global mindset, tapping into peoples and organizations around the world. But in doing so, as you take your message beyond your borders – whether they be community, city, state or even country -- But in doing so, find ways to translate your messages and outcomes into relevancy. Make your cause real to those new groups by linking it to their world, their community, and their issues.


7. Fight mediocrity.
   In non-profits it’s easy to get into the mindset that doing well is good enough. That the long hours, the people served, and the low pay should free you from responsibility of any sort of mistakes or poor performance. Jim Collins’ wrote, “Good is the enemy of great.” Make sure in 2009 to raise the standard and strive for being great.


8. Deepen relationships.
   I wrote in a blog entry earlier this month about the need for non profits to build relationships with people prior to asking for a donation, and this notion ties in to the resolutions for relevance and engaging in conversations. Deepening the relationships with all your constituents is the cornerstone element for increasing your capacity to do the good you do. Your for-profit counterparts collectively spend several billions of dollars each year trying to establish the level of emotional intimacy that your organization could very easily tap in to. This should be such an important part of your efforts, you might even consider adding it to your strategic plan and creating metrics around this initiative.


9. Build out your infrastructure.
   Lately I’ve come across a few online conversations where contributors have decried the failure of non profits to appropriately build out their technology and operational infrastructures. I strongly believe that given the sparse resources in most organizations available dollars should go to people and not process improvement. But I also believe that with efficiency comes effectiveness. Taking time to build out your infrastructure can pay huge dividends down the road due to decreases in wasted time, increased effectiveness and clarity, and more powerful tools applied to your cause.


10. Train the next generation.
    Rarely do I find an organization that is working not only to reach current donors and volunteers, but the next one as well. What could happen to stem the desperate needs of the world if important messages and service opportunities were generated and sent down the pipeline to youth and young children? How much more could your organization accomplish in ten, twenty, or thirty years if you worked today to train a new generation of savvy and capable contributors to you cause?

-- David Kinard, PCM

A Tradition of Giving

A close friend recently noted that my family has a lot of traditions. I didn’t think we did, but I guess my wife and I have always tried to build some sense of recurrence and significance to our family activities. For instance, whenever we travel across the state to visit Grammy, we always stop at a little Mexican restaurant about half way through the trip for dinner. Not only does it help to break up the nearly six hour drive, the tradition of making this stop helps to mark milestones in our memories of various trips.

Another tradition we have is during December – we have an advent calendar where each day we have an activity that sets the tone for the season as well as provide opportunities for loads of family memories. Some are from my wife and my own childhood – watching Charlie Brown’s Christmas cartoon, or Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer. They were aired on TV when I was a kid; we now watch them on DVD. But either way they are markers of our time together.

This past weekend, we celebrated one of our other holiday traditions. Throughout the year we save all of our spare change and put it in a jar, and the kids save up part of their weekly allowance for “sharing”. Then, on a Saturday morning in December we head out to the grocery store and shop for the local food bank. We team up – my son and I, and my daughter with my wife – and set off on our search to buy enough groceries for a full day’s worth of meals for a family of four. We typically cheat and add in a few extra boxes of this and packages of that along the way, then the kids pick out one ‘treat’ to top it all off. After cashing in our coins and paying for our purchases, we load up the car, travel to the food bank, and drop off all the food. It’s the culmination of a year’s worth of saving and intentional giving. Each time we drop our change in the jar throughout the year, it’s a little reminder of the food we’re going to put on someone’s table.

Of course this is the time of year when need can be most keenly felt – by those who have need, and those whose heart’s may be touched to provide. And it is often more easy to give during this season to the bell ringer on the corner, or to the toy and food drive at your local fire station. But I hope that your giving is not limited to the cold dark days of December, but that you can find a way to make giving a tradition for your own family. How can you build recurrence and significance into your life and create a tradition of giving?

-- David Kinard, PCM

But What If We Were Feeding Starving Children?

As a marketer, there have been plenty of stressful times in my career when my team is trying to get that brochure out, a Web site up, or launching a new national campaign. There have been times when the trivial became monumental and a quick perspective check was needed. In those moments, I usually pulled my team together here and asked a simple question – “Hey, is what we are doing as important as feeding starving children?” The answer has always been ‘no’. Those moments of clarity usually helped the team realize there are far more important things in life happening than a brochure, and ad, or an email campaign.

But what if what I was doing was indeed feeding starving children?

In early November I was laid off from my job. I’ve had the chance to look into a lot of jobs at some amazing companies, with amazing products, and equally amazing people. But one thing that has resurfaced for me is my passion for making a real and fundamental difference in the lives of people. I spent seven years as a consultant with non profits, and I continue to be drawn back to the desire to do work that has meaning.

What if I could do something that fed starving children?

I am blessed. I have never gone to bed hungry from a lack of food in the house. Nor have I ever slept outside because I had no home. And even in the hardest of times, my family has always had good health and a wonderful group of friends and family that have been there to see us through to the other side. Each night my wife and kids and I sit at the dinner table and share a meal. Some evenings we play games; everything from Apples to Apples to Zooreka. Sometimes we pop some corn and watch home movies, or just hang out and do our own thing while music plays in the background. We don’t have a lot, but we have more than most. And likely the most valuable thing we have are options. Many in this world do not.

Yesterday I excitedly applied for a job with Unitus. They’re a microfinancing nonprofit based in Seattle with a goal of reaching 15 million families by 2010. They need a communications director – a job that seems to be ideally suited for my every capability. I read through the description with a growing sense of anticipation as I could capably meet each of the requirements. But what struck me more than anything else was the answer to the question I’d asked a thousand times in my career – is what I am doing as important as feeding starving children?

I think I’ve found a place where I can finally say yes.

-- David Kinard, PCM

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You can learn more about Unitus, microfinancing, and ways you too can help make a fundamental difference in the lives of others by visiting:

**Unitus Headquarters: http://www.unitus.com/

**Wikipedia entry about microfinancing

**BBC Interview with Nobel Peace Prize winner to Bangladeshi economist Professor Muhammad Yunus on Microfinancing

**Micro Financing to Reduce Poverty