Had lunch with a new small business client this week, and it sparked a great conversation regarding how small businesses can and should be using nonprofit events as marketing opportunities.  During my career in nonprofit, I’ve seen some businesses make outstanding connections through this type of marketing, but I’ve also seen many small business who have missed golden opportunities of this untapped resource.  Before I dive in, allow me to debunk a couple of myths for those small business folks out there:

• Sponsorships & corporate partnerships are not for just large corporations.  Almost all nonprofits (or at least the smart ones) offer partnership packages at all levels of involvement.  You don’t have to be able to cough up several thousand dollars to be involved.
• Partnerships are not only cash in nature.  Some of the best sponsorships are ones in which a business provides a product or service that the organization would otherwise have to pay for.

As a small business owner, we know your resources may be limited.  However, this doesn’t mean involvement isn’t possible.  Like for-profit events, nonprofit events can provide all of the marketing opportunities you should be looking for:

• An audience that fits the demographic of your clients
• Opportunities for product display/distribution
• Face-to-face networking
• Inclusion in promotional efforts

Unlike for-profit events, those organized by a nonprofit additionally allow for your business to be connected with a very loyal, hyper-local, community base who value entities that support the same values they support.  (Most times for much less of a cost too.)

Here are just a few of examples of partnerships for small businesses:

• Outdoor Charity events (walks, bike rides, runs) – Consider investing in a booth at their event, perhaps it’s a walk and you can host a rest stop and hand out samples of your product or specials for your services. This may require some sort of monetary investment, but many times, a partnership can be crafted out of donated products/services & monetary donation. (EX: A local carpet cleaning company may want to host a rest stop along the route & hand out sample bottles of carpet cleaning solution to walkers. Not only do they get their info & product in the hands of potential clients, but they have the opportunity to talk to them about why their process is better than their competitors.)
• Formal/Corporate Events (galas, balls, golf tournament) – While on-site attendance may be more difficult, it’s not out of the question.  But what might be more feasible is an auction package donation for a product or service your business provides. (EX:  A new floral design firm may want to offer a design package for a personal or corporate event as an auction package. Not only might it get them connected with a potential client, it also helps them build their portfolio of work to show future clients.)
• Educational Programs (workshops, seminars) – Like outdoor events, many nonprofits offer exhibit opportunities at their in-person educational programs. (EX: A business that installs awnings on homes might get clients from exhibiting at an educational program for individuals who have sensitivity to sun.)

Partnership Tips for Small Businesses:

• Know what your target demographic(s) is/are.  (You can’t align yourself with an event that fits unless you know this yourself.  Who are your clients and/or who do you want your clients to be?)
• Do your homework, don’t just say yes to every charity that calls you, but chose the ones that give you the best bang for your buck.  Make sure to ask the right questions:
  • What’s the demographic makeup of their event? (Are the attendees primarily families?  Men? Income bracket?)
  • How many people are expected? (Make sure there will be enough people in attendance to make it worth your time, energy & resources.)
  • Where are their attendees coming from? (Ask if they can give you a zip code analysis of attendees.)
  • What partnership levels and entitlements  do they offer? (Look for opportunities that offer more than slapping your logo on the back of their event t-shirt. Think about it, how many times has some contacted you and said, I saw your tiny logo on the back of a Diabetes Run T-shirt and thought you might be able to help me.)
  • Ask them about in-kind sponsorships.  (Can you offer a product or service as part or all of your sponsorship donation?  Remember it has to be something the really need though.  While it might be beneficial to you, offering them coupons to put in their goody bags doesn’t really help them at all.)
    
• Be on the lookout for events to partner with. (Pick up brochures & flyers on events as you are around town.  Jot down the info of PSAs you hear about in the media. Contact them to prospect & find out more about their events.  Make sure to ask the questions above.)
• Be creative with your partnerships. If the nonprofit is forward thinking, they will be willing to think outside the box about a partnership, beyond what they have printed on their sponsorship levels. (Maybe you are a new children’s boutique in town and you can be in charge of staffing & providing supplies for the “ABC Boutique Kids Zone.”)
• Be there in person if at all possible. ( While nonprofits are happy to have quality in-kind/cash donations, no one can tell your business’ story like you.  If you simply make a donation, and don’t attend, you are leaving prime opportunity on the table.  In addition to your donation, have all your staff & staff’s family volunteer at the event.  Brand them from head to toe in your company as ambassadors.  And make sure they know how to engage folks in conversation about your business.)

Partnership Tips for Nonprofits:

• Stop asking for things & expecting not to have to give something in return. ( Look at your events as viable marketing opportunities for businesses, and offer enticing entitlements for their involvement.)
• Reach out to small businesses whose clientele fits your event’s demographic. (And tell them that when you approach them.  EX: A local law firm that specializes in construction law should would be very interested to know that your golf tournament is organized by the heavy hitters of the local construction industry.)
• Know your stats. (How many people to expect? What’s the zip code analysis of last year’s participants?)
• Be flexible. Don’t just hold out for cash-only sponsors. (An in-kind sponsor should be given the same level of importance as a cash sponsor at the same value level.  EX:  A catering company who provides your event with all the food valued at $2,500 is an equal sponsor level to the cash sponsor who wrote you a $2,500 check.)
• Don’t say yes to every business that wants to get involved. (If a small business wants to donate something that won’t provide a real value to your efforts, it is okay to say no.  Don’t waste their time or yours.)

In today’s market everyone is looking for that elusive diamond in the rough when it comes to marketing opportunities for their business.  Truth is, it doesn’t exist…at least not on it’s own.  We have to be savvy creators of our own opportunities in order to find the experiences that give us the leverage we desire.  And remember, charities are no longer just valid for handouts. So start connecting now.  Who knows, you might actually find yourself a changed person as a result.

Christine John-Fuller is a Non-Profit Consultant for Phoenixfire Solutions, as well as President & CEO for The Lupus Foundation of America, Piedmont Chapter.  A non-profit executive with nearly a decade in the industry, Christine has blended her experience in special events, fundraising and media relations to help lead several national organizations on a local and state level. In these roles, Christine has developed a keen sense of the ever present needs of non-profits and small businesses which includes a balance of administration, marketing, programming and raising of funds.  As a consultant for Phoenixfire Solutions, Christine offers thorough investigation of an organization’s current makeup, insightful analysis of areas of need, and implementable action steps for moving forward.  Connect with Christine on Twitter: @christinemjohn and LinkedIn.

A colleague sent me an article today that I wanted to expand on a bit and share with you.  The post was for the “Diary of a Social Venture Start-up” over at Good.is. The point of the article is pretty straight forward and something I’m sure  most of us would agree with perception is important, and what you need to do to change the perception of  your organization.

Your Packaging Needs to Pop.

Hire a professional designer or web designer to build a brand that is representative of your mission. It should be consistent across all channels and help be part of why the donor picks you off the shelf.

The way it looks matters more than you think. How much does it matter? 60 to 65 percent of the population are visual thinkers, meaning they prefer images to words. Your mission critical messages have zero impact if you can’t get people to stop and see them. If your development teams are spending their time developing materials, then who is building and maintaining the relationships your going to need going forward.

In-store Display

Listening and interacting with your donors and constituents is essential. Its not enough anymore to put an ad in a magazine or newspaper (if you can still find one in business to put an ad in ). You must be engaged in social networks.  I mean on there really listening, talking to the people who can help your cause, and adding value to their efforts as well.

In 2009 Americans have almost tripled the amount of time they spend on social networks like Facebook and Twitter. In August of this year 17%  of all time spent on the internet was on social media sites, up from 6% in August of 2008. (via Nielson Co.)

So what do these numbers mean to you. They mean your donor base is there, interacting with their friends, posting pictures of events they were recently at, and talking about your organization. They are talking about how they wish they could contact you there because they have questions. They are talking about how you screwed up their donation, and how they will just give to a different organization next time. The point is that they are there, and they are talking, and the best part is that they would love for you to be part of that conversation.  Social Media has unlocked something extraordinary for non-profits, an opportunity to talk one on one with donors, participants, constituents, and sponsors. The kind of access your development staff has dreamed about since the day they first stepped through your door.

As much as we all wish the mission was enough, its not. You are competing for a withering attention span, against nearly 1,010,400 other charitable organizations in the US alone. Does your product have what it takes to catch the consumers eye?

John Fuller is the President of Phoenixfire Solutions and a professional with more than ten years experience in IT, seven years in non-profit, and four years in design.  Taking his love for all things technological and all things artistic,Phoenixfire Solutions came into being.  John’s expertise offers a unique perspective from someone who has been both the client and the vendor.  After experiencing years both the good and bad of outsourcing solutions, John has made it his mission to bridge that gap for companies and non-profits that have fallen prey too many times. Connect with John on Twitter: @phoenixfire8383 & LinkedIn.

During the month of August we will offer a free logo to one of the follwoing non-profit organizations, and you’re going to help us decide. Read a bit about the non-profit organizations below, and vote for your favorite. The organization with the most votes by August 31st at 11:59pm EST will win. Additional information about the logo for good program can be found at an earlier post.

Additional information about the non-profits is avaliable below. Thanks For Voting. Non-profits are listed n the order they submitted.

Theatre Charlotte (link)

Theatre Charlotte is a volunteer-based community theatre dedicated to creating outstanding theatre opportunities relevant to the people of the Charlotte region.  As the oldest arts organization in Charlotte and the oldest continuously producing community theatre in North Carolina, Theatre Charlotte is committed to making theatre relevant in the lives of more people by demonstrating that theatre engages, inspires and unites communities. Now in our 82nd season, Theatre Charlotte produces a 5-production Main Stage series and a holiday production annually. Theatre Charlotte holds open auditions for volunteer actors and crew for all of our Main Stage performances and enlists the assistance of more than 500 volunteers annually

Triple J Great Dane Rescue (link)

Triple J Great Dane Rescue is organized as a non-profit organization for the prevention of cruelty to animals. We strive to promote animal welfare, decrease the number of homeless Great Danes, and prevent cruelty to animals. Triple J Great Dane Rescue provides foster care including food, lodging, and socialization to Great Danes. We make sure that all dogs at Triple J get proper veterinary care including vaccinations and spaying/neutering.

Habitat for Humanity Charlotte (link)

Habitat for Humanity of Charlotte has been serving families in need since 1983, partnering with them to create hope for their future through homeownership opportunities. We have served over 900 families utilizing our traditional model of new home construction as well as making critical repairs to existing homes. Also, we have recently begun to purchase vacant, foreclosed homes in an effort to serve even more families as well as preserve and stabilize existing neighborhoods.

We are so thankful for the loyal volunteers and donors who have helped make our mission possible over the past 25 years. We have become increasingly aware of the importance of engaging this and younger generations in our mission to eliminate poverty housing. It is their determination, their focus, their volunteer hours, their gifts – that will sustain our organization in the years to come. Our main effort to engage this demographic is through our group the Habitat Young Professionals of Charlotte (HYPC). Currently the HYPC is over 500 members strong and is growing all the time. Habitat Charlotte sees the huge value and unprecedented potential they hold and we want to take the HYPC to the next level. Our goal is to have a movement of young people supporting our mission with their voice, their time and their gifts. We want to offer our members as many opportunities to help the eliminate poverty housing in the Charlotte community as we can and allow them to set an example of service for those in their sphere of influence.

The Parish School (link)

The Parish School is the only school in Houston, public or private, which offers a multi-age, language-based, developmental curriculum for children 18 months through fifth grade. Children served have communication and learning differences, but average to above average learning potential. These differences may include problems with speech/language, learning to read, focusing attention, visual motor areas, social skills, and auditory processing.

The Parish School utilizes a classroom based therapy program implemented by certified teachers and speech/language pathologists. Classroom ratios are low and treatment/education plans are individualized to maximize the success of each child. The state-of-the-art facilities include parent/therapist viewing areas, built in assisted listening devices, play and picnic areas, gardens and large, bright classrooms. The creative and visual arts play a large role in the academic program and incorporate the focus on expressive, receptive and pragmatic language skills while giving children a creative outlet in which to express themselves.

Urban Harvest (link)

Urban Harvest is a non-profit organization dedicated to educating the community about local food. In a commercial world, driven by the latest consumer buying trends, we are educating a community to sustain itself on the basic necessity of life. By teaching the entire community how to grow and prepare food, we aim to show all walks of life that local, organic food is the key to a healthy community.

Working with local volunteers, we build both residential and community gardens in various locations around Greensboro, NC. We use these residential and community gardens as a platform to teach the community how to landscape using edible plants. We believe that the future of our food is in the hands of the local farmers- and we want to educate everyone to be a local farmer

Updated – Vote Now

Here at Phoenixfire Solutions, we believe that good design shouldn’t be relegated to for-profit companies only.  Some times all a non-profit needs is a little help for their idea to come to life.  With this notion in mind, we’ve created our Logo4Good program. During the month of August we will offer a free logo to one non-profit organization, either for the organization itself or one of their events.

Beginning July 31st and ending August 15th we will be accepting stories from charities.  To submit your charity for consideration, complete our Contact Us Form and be sure to include your story, charity name and URL.) We will gather up all submitted stories, post them on our blog and open online voting beginning August 18th.  People will then be given the opportunity to vote for the story of their favorite organization or event thought August 31st. The organization with most votes will receive a free logo design (see design details). So tweet it, post it on your facebook, sky write it if you have access to a plane, and send it to your mailing lists because winner takes all.

Accepting story submissions:  July 31 – August 15th
Online Voting:  August 18th-31st
Voting will end on August 31st at 11:59pm EST.

Design Details – We will meet with the winning organization to discuss the organization/event during the discovery phase to see what they are looking for. We will then provide the organization with 3 preliminary designs. The organization will provide feedback on a design for us to work with further. The final product will be provided to the organization in multiple formats for easy use.

We asked a few friends (49) what social media information they wanted to know more about. While some of the answers are not surprising at all, especially given our subset of polled. (Social Media Concepts, Online Marketing , and Community Engagement rounding out the top 3). I was a bit shocked that listening fell so low. Listening is at the core of so many of the other concepts, and is arguably one of the most important.

If companies listened to their customers/clients more we would have missed some of the biggest SM mistakes of the year (so far). If Domino’s was listening online they would have know the net was aflutter after a video of their employees making tainted food (more info) and while damage had been done, they could have help stop some of the bleeding. Then there is United Airlines, if they had listened to Dave Carroll when they broke his guitar they probably wouldn’t have ended up with with this catchy video about how bad they suck (video) (more info).  The other answers are important, don’t get me wrong. Companies need to engage online communities, and market the newest, greatest product ever developed, but if you are not listening, you’re not responding. If your not responding who is?

Check out the results below, and let us know your take on it.

John Fuller is the President of Phoenixfire Solutions and a professional with more than ten years experience in IT, seven years in non-profit, and four years in design.  Taking his love for all things technological and all things artistic,Phoenixfire Solutions came into being.  John’s expertise offers a unique perspective from someone who has been both the client and the vendor.  After experiencing years both the good and bad of outsourcing solutions, John has made it his mission to bridge that gap for companies and non-profits that have fallen prey too many times. Connect with John on Twitter: @phoenixfire8383 & LinkedIn.

I just wanted to take a quick moment and say thanks for dropping by. On our blog you can expect to see posts about design and marketing trends, case studies on the clients we are working with, non-profit resources, and the newest technologies.