Part of what differentiates Nonprofit organizations from for-profit entities is often their ability to market themselves and remain competitive. My first lesson in Resource Development will be how to operate a market driven organization.
In order to have a market driven perspective there are 6 characteristics that an organization should have.
1. Understand the market they are in. An NPO should understand that a market extends beyond the people they serve. It includes the competition (services of like kind), its donors, and it's staff.
2. Treat everyone like a customer. Within the for-profit sector it is well known that the customer is always right! The same should apply to NPOs. Funders, board members, staff, and recipients of services should all be treated like customers. The focus should be on customer satisfaction, problem solving, and compassionate urgency. Major funding sources are paying you to provide a service, in return they should be treated like a customer. Think of everyone inside the organization as well as outside the organization as customers- everyone will perform to the best of their abilities if they feel appreciated.
3. Have everyone on the marketing team. Everyone involved in the organization is crucial to the success of the marketing efforts and establishing a competitive edge. If one person in the organization sends out a negative message, it reflects poorly on the whole organization.
4. Ask, Ask, Ask, and then Listen. The only way to satisfy customer wants is to ask and ask frequently. Once you ask, you have to actually listen and heed to the response. Ask, observe, read and watch the competition, but never assume you know what the customer wants. The job of a mission based marketer is to make the customer want what they need. Urging the customer to feel that they want something that they in fact need is called sales. In this situation both the professional responsibility of the organization and the wants of the customer are both being satisfied.
5. Innovate constantly. Organizations should be extremely flexible with all participants (funders, board, staff, and recipients). Be able to adapt to market changes and customer wants. You can be better than your competition by being innovative, paying attention to the competition and being flexible when the market changes. You not only need to be better than the competition in your eyes, but in the eyes of your competition.
6. Embrace Competition. Focus more on serving your customer wants rather than dwelling on the competition. Competition generally makes your services better and more market focused.
Sources: Misson Based Marketing 2nd Ed. by: Peter Brinckerhoff
In order to have a market driven perspective there are 6 characteristics that an organization should have.
1. Understand the market they are in. An NPO should understand that a market extends beyond the people they serve. It includes the competition (services of like kind), its donors, and it's staff.
2. Treat everyone like a customer. Within the for-profit sector it is well known that the customer is always right! The same should apply to NPOs. Funders, board members, staff, and recipients of services should all be treated like customers. The focus should be on customer satisfaction, problem solving, and compassionate urgency. Major funding sources are paying you to provide a service, in return they should be treated like a customer. Think of everyone inside the organization as well as outside the organization as customers- everyone will perform to the best of their abilities if they feel appreciated.
3. Have everyone on the marketing team. Everyone involved in the organization is crucial to the success of the marketing efforts and establishing a competitive edge. If one person in the organization sends out a negative message, it reflects poorly on the whole organization.
4. Ask, Ask, Ask, and then Listen. The only way to satisfy customer wants is to ask and ask frequently. Once you ask, you have to actually listen and heed to the response. Ask, observe, read and watch the competition, but never assume you know what the customer wants. The job of a mission based marketer is to make the customer want what they need. Urging the customer to feel that they want something that they in fact need is called sales. In this situation both the professional responsibility of the organization and the wants of the customer are both being satisfied.
5. Innovate constantly. Organizations should be extremely flexible with all participants (funders, board, staff, and recipients). Be able to adapt to market changes and customer wants. You can be better than your competition by being innovative, paying attention to the competition and being flexible when the market changes. You not only need to be better than the competition in your eyes, but in the eyes of your competition.
6. Embrace Competition. Focus more on serving your customer wants rather than dwelling on the competition. Competition generally makes your services better and more market focused.
Sources: Misson Based Marketing 2nd Ed. by: Peter Brinckerhoff
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