Having a brand is very important to nonprofits, as having a strong brand identity could either make or break your project in the nonprofit world. In the U.S. currently, over 150 nonprofits are created every day, all fighting for funding from corporations, institutional funders, and the general public.

I’ve noticed more and more in our age that the public is less concerned with how well a nonprofit does in its particular field, or how efficient that it runs, but how glamorous its work sounds and aesthetically pleasing it’s branding material is- with a grabby mission statement that can communicated in a 60-second Facebook video.

One of our recommended readings states some of the same nonprofits that come to my mind: Charity: Water, (RED), and Tom’s Shoes are all causes that indeed do incredible work, but are people really supporting these causes because they care, or because it’s cool?

The article goes on to mention how important it is for small nonprofits to have strong branding: one example that comes to mind is JustLeadershipUSA, a young nonprofit that started in 2014. Their mission is to empower formerly incarcerated individuals to becomes criminal justice advocates in their own communities. Their tagline is that “those closest to the problem are closest to the solution.”

Just by taking a look at their website, you can clearly see how strong their branding is: a thoughtful logo, color scheme, mission statement all beautifully crafted to tell a story. Their strong branding strategy has served them well – JLUSA has grown from a staff of 1 to 16 in a matter of two years, and they continue to grow rapidly. Additionally, The ALS Association was a nonprofit wasn’t very well known – but the ice bucket challenge transformed the organization and its cause practically overnight. I know that many of my friends who participated in the challenging just wanted to have fun on Facebook.

This goes to show that it’s often the branding and marketing, not the work, that can make all the difference.