Joseph Jaffe and Seth Godin have a great conversation on this weeks episode of Across the Sound.
Seth Godin has been constant in saying that everyone wants to be remarkable and make changes but we get caught with the impulse of getting in trouble that stops us in our tracks. We have a culture of being safe, conservative. Trying not to get in trouble is what we do and was the safe move. Now, If we keep our heads down and follow along conservatively, we risk extinction.
The non-profit sector has the opportunity to be cutting edge and aggressive in their marketing. Social media, Web 2.0, these tools are made for non-profits. Most non-profits are small and have the potential to be big. We should, as marketers, be adventurous. We need to involve our donors, volunteers and friends in the conversation, get them to participate versus funding from a distance. The constant dialog is possible. We provide an opportunity to tell a story about changing lives, and how, through their support, they are changing lives. Non-profits need to do is tell the story using these new communication tools.
Instead of utilizing these tools, many non-profits are content to implement marketing ideas from the corporate world that are five or ten years old; the safe move. Instead of telling a story, we throw out numbers and percent of donation to service.
As a non-profit marketer, we need to tell our story. Exactly as Godin says it, "tell the right story, to the right people." The numbers will back us up. Let’s change the conservative model. Let’s be risky. Let’s be small and fast.
