Who are you? Do you know the power of your brand?

As we enter 2007, an organization's brand is an absolute necessity for breaking through the clutter of messages from 1.9 million nonprofits that bombard the American marketplace along with commercial appeals.

Brands fight it out over the Internet, on billboards, through hundreds of cable TV and satellite radio channels, in thousands of magazines and hundreds of thousands of direct mail campaigns.

We see more advertising messages in a year than people of 50 years ago saw in a lifetime. And, on any given day in America, nonprofit organizations not only compete for the same pot of financial and human resources, but must also go head-to-head with public institutions and with more aggressive for-profit companies for the public's attention.

Even more importantly, in this increasingly brand-obsessed world, these 1.9 million nonprofits must also compete for the public's trust and devotion.

THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT CONCERN

Building trust is probably the single most important concern in fundraising today. As we enter the 21st century, it is trust that enables cooperation and commitment in the face of the rapid decline of trust in America.

And there is no better channel for building trust than an organization's brand.

Trust is essential for nonprofits because most nonprofit constituents are not the ones receiving or benefiting from the organization's services and programs. Since constituents cannot directly experience the quality of these services and programs, they must rely on an organization's brand and the belief they have that the organization is doing, and will continue to do, effective work.

Some nonprofits score better in consumer trust than major global corporations such as Microsoft and Coca-Cola. And, since brand value and trust are closely linked, nonprofit brands with high trust scores are therefore as valuable as some of the brands of major global corporations.

In the long run, an organization's success has less to do with a winning direct marketing strategy, its organizational leadership or even the dedication of its program staff, than with a trusted brand that truly matters to its constituents.

Study after study confirms the benefits of strong brands for nonprofit organizations: market leadership, higher revenues, and deeper and longer constituent loyalty.

MARKET LEADERSHIP

Market leadership is more than just market share. The "holy grail" in branding is to become a "brand of one," where your organization is the indisputable market leader and defines that brand category.

A good example of this concept is Habitat for Humanity. When Americans think about affordable housing for low-income families, Habitat for Humanity comes to mind more than any of the other organizations that provide decent, low-cost housing. A recent study found that Habitat has the same brand value as Starbucks coffee. That's the power of a brand to create "market leadership."

In a world that's increasingly awash in fundraising clutter, the brands of market leaders stand out from the crowd. And, if you are a category leader, it's what you stand for that attracts constituents to your brand. Strong nonprofit brands enhance the organization's relationships with its constituents. Organizations that have not harnessed the power of their brand have relatively shallow and non-engaging relationships with their constituents.

And, we all know that relationships pay off.

GREATER REVENUES

When a market becomes highly competitive, an organization is faced with two choices: strengthen its brand and become a dominant market leader, or compete on "pricing" and become a commodity.

It is well known that market leaders are able to command a premium price greater than the market average for an offering and maintain that price differential even as a market matures.

Consider Nike as an example of a market leader. Are dike shoes-shoes are a commodity product-actually better than those of competitors? Yet, there are a lot of people willing to pay much more for dike shoes because of its brand--a brand that promises performance.

In the same way that strong corporate brands translate to premium prices, strong nonprofit brands translate into better and more sustained giving. Additionally, in the same way that strong corporate brands translate to a shorter customer repurchase decision cycle, strong nonprofit brands mean a greater gift frequency as well as higher average gifts.

There is always a direct correlation between a strong brand and constituent involvement. Nonprofits with strong brands create relationships in which their constituents are able to identify completely with the goals of the organization and translate those goals into personal benefits. When this happens, constituents become more involved and that translates into better and more sustained giving. An organization's brand can be its most effective donor engagement and fundraising tool.

DEEPER CONSTITUENT LOYALTY

When constituents encounter distinctive brands that they like, they become brand loyalists and champions, recommending them to their friends and peers. Supporters of Habitat for Humanity will do Habitat's marketing for it, creating an awareness and brand interest before Habitat affiliates are formed in new areas--decreasing the time it takes for each new start-up to do effective fundraising and "friend"-raising.

It's effective because strong brands result in greater levels of customer loyalty. If long-term brand advantage is what you're after, you don't need a lot of complex measurements of customer satisfaction or retention. You simply need to know what your constituents tell their friends and peers about your organization.

This "word of mouth" factor, more than any other factor, is the best predictor of loyalty and brand strength. And, the more loyal your constituents, the more often they tell their friends and peers about your organization.

Loyal donors, influenced by a strong brand, can, in effect, become an auxiliary marketing department for your organization.

IS YOUR ORGANIZATION BRAND-DRIVEN?

If strong brands can do all this, why isn't every organization brand-driven? There are four reasons:

REASON ONE. Branding is not taught in nonprofit management courses as a basic business fundamental. Nonprofit management courses today typically focus on leadership development and not on critical content, like branding, that helps organizations maximize their relationships with constituents.

REASON TWO. Building a strong brand requires that the people leading the organization buy into and understand branding. Typically, in brand-driven nonprofit organizations, upper management has learned how to do it somewhere else, usually in a for-profit company.

REASON THREE. Many organizations practicing "branding" employ a communications-driven approach and limit its scope to marketing communications vehicles such as advertising, direct mail, public relations, and graphic identities. Effective brands that build lasting brand advantage for the organization are so much more.

REASON FOUR. Building a strong brand is hard and complex work. Because developing a brand is strikingly similar to product development, few nonprofits are prepared to take on a strategic challenge of this scope.

THE CHALLENGING QUESTIONS

In one form or another, effective branding practices have been around for decades. All 1.9 million nonprofit organizations face a similar set of questions as they consider the practice of branding in the 21st century.

* How can nonprofits more effectively create emotional connections with consumers whose attention is increasingly drawn toward more sophisticated brands that compete aggressively for the trust of consumers?

* In an increasingly brand-driven world, how can nonprofits maximize the potential of their existing brands with their constituents?

* How can nonprofit organizations reveal, build and protect their brands in ways that also help generate better, faster and more sustainable fundraising results?

* How can nonprofits create lasting brand advantage through their direct response marketing activities that are often the primary touch points with their constituents?

Columns two and three of this series will address these questions and will explore in-depth branding, your organization's most powerful tool to connect with and engage your constituents.

Chip Grizzard is the CEO of the Grizzard Communications Group and is based in the firm's headquarters in Atlanta. His email is [e-mail]