Branding- Communicating Character and Authenticity in a Digital World

Whether it be for donations or students, most nonprofits and educational institutions face significant competition. The competition can take many forms, including- a nonprofit with a similar mission of service, other educational institutions offering the same programs, and even for profit companies seeking to provide services or education.

Given the ever increasing competition and the realities of our digital world, to achieve the greatest success nonprofits and educational institutions must communicate their brand effectively using a variety of channels. To get a perspective on how to do so, focusing on digital media in particular, we can look outside of the nonprofit world for guidance.

Poul Mikkelsen is a partner with DDB Denmark. DDB is one of world’s largest advertising and marketing networks. Mr. Mikkelsen has written an article entitled, “Brand Personality- Communicating Character and Authenticity in a Digital World.” Reading his article from the viewpoint of how his ideas and suggestions might be used in your organization may provide some interesting insights and help it acheive even greater success.

Mr. Mikkelsen writes in part:

“Communication channels to the consumers are extremely complex today because digital technology has fragmented the media picture. This necessitates thinking about marketing and media planning in new terms. In terms of a brand, the message must be sufficiently unique and effective to function on a number of media platforms, both old and new. In terms of consumers, we must now capture their attention through new, often nontraditional, channels, many of which are more relevant to the brand story than traditional media or their online platforms.

…

This new world will permit companies to reach a global audience predisposed to their market by producing and publishing their own content on the Internet. In combination with other marketing activities, this creates a program where the communication ‘cascades,’ extending the reach of all media. It requires starting with something that is worth talking about, and which has attitude and authenticity sufficient to come through the dialogue unscathed but
surely tested.

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‘Word of mouth is the best medium of all,’ one of the founders of DDB, Bill Bernbach, said. This applies even more today, because consumers are forming social relationships as never before. The Facebook and MySpace community sites have created contact between millions of people and are now two of the most visited network sites on the Internet.

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Consumers have a greater influence on branding and commercial success than ever before. New digital technology and social networks enable consumers all over the world to endlessly exchange information, advice, comments and criticism of your brand and company. Consumers now define the brand and have increasing control. You have no choice but to adjust to the new rules of the digital marketplace and the ever growing sophistication and engagement of your customers.”

To read the entire article, just click on the title to this post.

Resource- Media Plan and News Release Guide

According to its mission statement,

“the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation promotes excellence in journalism worldwide and invests in the vitality of the U.S. communities where the Knight brothers owned newspapers.”

The Foundation has launched a website “with a step-by-step guide to creating a media plan and writing a news release.” Here are just some of their tips for creating an effective news release for a nonprofit which has received a foundation grant:

• “A strong, brief headline.
• A compelling opening sentence (a “lead”) telling the news in a nutshell (the who and the what).
• A second paragraph explaining the grant’s context — major results expected,the big problem it’s trying solve.
• A strong quote from a key player saying why this matters to average people sometimes called “the so-what.”)
• Additional details of grant activities and expected results.
• Brief background on your organization, the funder, as well as other groups involved.
• Key names, numbers or websites leading to further information.”

The guide is an excellent resource. To access, just click on the title to this post.

Media & Public Relations- Helpful Hint #1- Media Toolkit

The National Education Association (NEA) focuses on advancing public education at all levels of the educational system. The organization maintains a website rich with helpful resources. Although geared towards education, many of the resources are very useful to organizations with missions other than education.

In particular, the NEA has an online media tips toolkit that is a great place to start if you are looking to begin or enhance your media/public relations program. For example, their site contains guidelines on working with the media, outreach ideas (with sample documents you can tailor to your situation), writing a press release (with examples), tips for distributing your press release and advice on developing a press kit.

If you would like to view the toolkit, just click on the title to this post.