There’s an old saying in marketing that the frame is just as important as the picture. It’s this that sits at the heart of brand communication in the third sector.

Branding a charity is really no different to branding a packet of cereal or a bank. Your marketing objectives are framed through a brand personality and experience that clearly communicates who and what you are, including the values and principles that underpin them.

All brand communications are expressed through your visual identity (image) and verbal identity (voice). These in turn are based on:

Brand values

Brand values could be described as your organisational DNA. What words and phrases sum you up? It’s a challenge in the third sector because – let’s face it – many of your competitors (whether frontline or support organisations) will hold the same values.

It’s important to be creative…but not too creative. Don’t build a brand on values you merely aspire to; because when people experience the reality they’ll be disappointed.

A good example of how to do it well is the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA). The charity’s purpose is 'to prevent cruelty to animals' but its values are 'caring', 'responsible', 'authoritative' and 'effective'. These underpin all the work it does, especially communications with its customers.

Brand benefits

The art of turning features into benefits, and then giving those benefits real resonance and meaning was originally the domain of the salesman, then the ad man. These days, it is embedded into most business communication. But for the third sector it remains an area ripe for opportunity.

Take a support organisation, for example. The benefits you provide may be to help frontline charities improve their marketing, find funding and get access to policy-makers. However, are these the real benefits? Better marketing, for example, is not a benefit in itself.

The true benefits are what it enables; more donors, more volunteers, more resources - which means providing better help for more people who desperately need it.
 

Do it yourself?

For an example of how branding and communication can literally transform a business, look no further than Macmillan…

The challenge

Macmillan Cancer Support was best known for its Macmillan nurses, who provided a fantastic service to people with cancer but they were mainly recognised as carers for the terminaly ill. To make matters worse, only 3% of the public recognised its logo.

The solution

Macmillan therefore decided to use its brand to define a much broader role beyond literally caring for the sick, to provide support for anyone affected by cancer, as well being a more vocal force for progress in cancer care. The logo and brand name changed subtely from 'Cancer Relief' to 'Cancer Support' and this was supported by brand communications including a website on for cancer carers to swap experiences and an online ‘shop’ for Macmillan volunteers to download materials for events.

The result

As a result of expanding the influence of its brand, Macmillan has attracted 27 per cent more supporters.