What is your greatest need at your nonprofit?
Donor acquisition?
Unified message across all departments?
New name and brand for the organization?
Connecting with a younger generation through social media?
Trying to keep the lights on?
Saying no to so many things?
Focus.
We know the importance of focus in the workplace. When we eliminate distractions (the nagging pings of our inbox), our productivity increases. The needle is moved.
As marketers, we eliminate the unnecessary things to allow our audience to focus on the right message. Simplicity can be powerful.
A quote attributed to Albert Einstein could be applied here,
“Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.”
Even though there is debate of what Einstein actually said with this statement, we can all agree that simplicity produces clarity, and clarity is key in marketing. It comes from being focused.
But, what happens when there is an overall lack of focus in your nonprofit?
When the vision is not clear, overextension or stagnation can occur. Without focus, the temptation is to allow any opportunity that comes our way to take priority. We end up in a place where we no longer know where we should focus our resources (time, money, energy).
So how do we get back to focus? Do what our parents told us to do, “Listen before you speak.”
Before saying anything to your audience, have you listened to what they are saying to you?
Before speaking about your services, have you listened to what your stakeholders are saying in order to speak their language? This allows you to know what’s most important to them so you can speak their language.
Listening can produce the insight you may need to focus your efforts. And that focused effort may have a greater return on investment.
A greater outcome may be mere minutes away!
