Counselor Magazine August 2012 : Page 64Case Studies / Marketing Case Study Building A Relationship, One Ribbon At A Time A successful relationship with a nonprofit often starts with a sim-ple business transaction and then grows much deeper. In the case of Vicki Mann, president of Innovative Promotions and Events Inc. ( asi/231563 ), that something simple was a teal ribbon, which the Sandy Rollman Ovarian Cancer Foundation asked her to source for its run/walk fundraiser three years ago. Founded by the sister and nurse of the organization’s namesake, who died of ovarian cancer in 2000, the Sandy Rollman Foundation is based in the same city – Havertown, PA – as Mann. Tapping her friends and family to help tie each of the thousands of teal (the offi-cial color of ovarian cancer awareness) ribbons that were ordered, Mann turned the order around fast, and the leaders of the nonprofit were thrilled with the products. Unlike many other chari-ties that were cutting back on investing in their mar-keting efforts, the Rollman Foundation was looking to expand and began reach-ing out to Mann more fre-quently. Innovative Promo-Vicki Mann tions created awareness bracelets, sunglasses and table covers for Rollman events, cork-board coasters for a campaign the charity conducted in the bars of Philly’s Manayunk neighborhood, and teal shoelaces for the group’s school events. “This year they added dogs to the annual run/walk, so I made them dog doodoo bags and branded pet triangles, or bandanas,” says Mann. In addition to supplying items for the organization’s numerous events, last year Mann helped launch the Sandy’s Teal Store on the group’s website, sandyovarian.org . Branded T-shirts, yoga mats and imprinted teal jewelry are now all available for purchase, with proceeds going directly to the Rollman Foundation. The group has sought out additional ways to generate funds from high-profile events, such as a recent fundraiser sponsored by J. Crew, and a text-to-donate campaign that brought in thousands of dollars in $10 gifts. As she has deepened her business relationship with the Roll-man Foundation, Mann has become more personally invested in its work. “Ovarian cancer is a very silent disease, so people are often unaware they have it until it’s too late,” says Mann. “I feel I am giv-ing back, and to be around the survivors and know what they’ve gone through is just really – I don’t know how to describe it – it makes you feel very appreciative of your life.” “Ovarian cancer is a very silent disease, so people are often unaware they have it until it’s too late.” impact – and where distribu-tors can find their opening to create relationships with non-profits. “Promotional products have always been such an integral part in the broader spectrum of marketing and branding for major companies, and it’s no different in the nonprofit space if they choose to take advantage of it,” Brodwin says. Brodwin points to organiza-tions like the Special Olympics as a model brand, which main-tains a consistent image across 70 countries. On a smaller scale, he says, is the action sports organization Stoked Mentoring, which developed a memorable logo that it uses on every one of its marketing materials. In addition to Sportsand SocialChange.org, nonprofit networking sites like iWanna Help.net and Young Nonprofit Professionals Network offer rich opportunities for sales leads. Websites like Guidestar.org, which allows visitors to view the tax forms of nonprofits, can help for more selective prospecting. X High-Tech Opportunity Nonprofits are increasingly try-ing to attract visitors to their websites, which presents an interesting sales and marketing opportunity to ad specialty dis-tributors. According to the Con-vio Online Marketing Nonprofit Benchmark Index Study, online fundraising grew 15.8% in 2011, after rising 20% the year before. Ideally, distributors should be helping nonprofit clients create campaigns that drive consumers to their websites – offline marketing (including promotional items) that drives online traffic. In addition to online efforts, mobile technology has grown increasingly important to non-profits’ fundraising efforts. Text-to-donate technology and apps like the new GiveMobiley or Giv-abit have made giving to nonprof-its simpler and more immediate. This has been seen most dramati-cally during times of disaster, like when the American Red Cross (ARC) raised $10 million in the four days after last year’s Tohoku earthquake in Japan. Allowing micro-donations through mobile phones presents rich opportunities for promo-tional products. The phrase “Text 90999 to Donate $10” for the ARC, or something similar for another charity, could be imprinted on a huge range of products, involving fewer steps and likely more of a return than a URL or phone number. Proforma MaKay Printing and Promotions (asi/300179) ser-vices a number of nonprofits and has found that they are trying to get more creative with their use of technology and seeking pro-motional products that can help them do that. “I sit on the board for a local juvenile diabetes chapter and one of the things that came up was to have a live message board at our annual gala allowing peo-ple to live tweet to get the word out,” says Victor Mogell, owner of Proforma MaKay. “Whether it’s a promotional product or a direct mail piece or a QR code, they’re looking to do more aggressive marketing.” AUGUST 2012 | COUNSELOR 64 Publication List Using a screen reader? Click Here |
