A Brand New World for Nonprofits

Research Coordinator for Travel Alberta, the nonprofit tourism marketing agency of the province of Alberta, Canada. He holds an M.Sc. in international business. Sanjeev Swami is a doctoral candidate in marketing at the University of British Columbia. For more than twenty-five years, he has conducted research, taught about, written cases, and been involved in managing and advising nonprofit organisations. His research interests include marketing models, arts and entertainment, and marketing strategy. He is co-author of Public and Nonprofit Marketing. ABSTRACT Brands provide a number of benefits that can make them a powerful tool for the nonprofit sector. Among other things, they make it possible for organisations to convey a consistent overall positioning while tailoring offerings for multiple publics. They also facilitate the development of trust between the nonprofit and its constituencies, provide insulation from competitive pressures, and raise the organisation's profile. Brands are not appropriate for all nonprofit organisations, however, and the decision to adopt a branding strategy is one that requires careful consideration. This paper explores the pros and cons of nonprofit branding, and describes the balancing act that managers face when deciding whether and how to adopt a brand.