Leading Today,
Transforming Tomorrow
October 29, 2014
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander
www.nonprofitbrandidea.com
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
Agenda
 Background and research
 What is a brand?
 Role of brand in nonprofit
organizations
 Paradigm shift
 Brand IDEA framework
– Integrity
– Democracy
– Affinity
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
The journey behind the research…
 Researching and working with nonprofit brands for more than a
decade…
– Started with HBS professor John Quelch looking at why nonprofit
brands had the highest trust based on Edelman PR report
– Researched drivers of brand equity in int’l NGOs as my doctoral
thesis
– Joined Hauser Institute at Harvard to work on research project
funded by Rockefeller Foundation looking at role of brand in
nonprofit sector
– Co-authored SSIR article with Chris Stone.
– Currently teach Management, Leadership and Decision making at
HKS as well as Strategic Management of Nonprofit Organizations
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
Research Parameters
 Interviews with over 100 individuals in 70+ organizations
– Nonprofit executives, communication directors,
consultants, academics and donors
– Spectrum of organizations across sub-sectors, at different
points in their life-cycle and from different countries
 Deepened our understanding of the concepts outlined in the
2012 SSIR article on the Role of Brand in the Nonprofit Sector
– Changed how we explained the IDEA framework
– Clarified the relevance and applicability to all organizations
– Guidelines and roadmaps
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
What is a BRAND?
 “A name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that
identifies one (organization’s) goods or services as distinct from
others.”
(AMA)
 Intangible Asset
 A promise to deliver a specific set of features, benefits and
services
(Philip Kotler)
 A psychological construct held in the minds of brand audiences
(perceptions)
 Soul or Essence
 Answers the question: “Who, what and why?”
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
What is a BRAND?
 Brand identity = internal definition
– Aspirational
– Who we are, what we do and why it matters…
– Anchored in mission and values
 Brand image = external perception
– How do reputation and brand image relate?
– Positioning and differentiation
Everyone and everything has a brand !
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
What Role Does a Brand Play ?
For both for-profits and nonprofits
• Simplifies decision making (shortcut)
• Communicates and elicits responses / emotions
• Creates trust and loyalty
• Helps in the acquisition of resources
– Financial, human, partnerships
For nonprofits
• Embodiment and articulation of the mission
• Drives organizational cohesion
• Positions for clarity
and collaboration
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
The Role of Brand Cycle
MISSION AND VALUES
ORGANIZATIONAL STRATEGY
ROLE OF BRAND CYCLE
IDENTITY
CAPACITY
IMPACT
IMAGE
COHESION
TRUST
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
The Brand Paradigm Shift
OLD
Definition
A logo
Goal
Fundraising and PR
Positioning
Competitive advantage
Communications
One-way projection of a
specific image
Donors
Audiences
Organizational home
Requirements
Marketing and
communications
Money and expertise
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
NEW
Strategic Asset that embodies
the mission and values
Mission Impact
Clarity and effective
partnerships
Participative Engagement
Internal and external
stakeholders
Executive team / board and
all brand ambassadors
A brand management
mindset
Brand IDEA Framework
 Integrity
– Aligning brand with mission and values, and
aligning identity and image
 Democracy
– Engaging stakeholders in articulating and
communicating the brand; building brand
ambassadors
– Providing guidance rather than strict controls
 Affinity
– Using brand to attract and add value to
partnerships in service of shared goals
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
For-Profit versus Nonprofit Brands
For-Profit
Nonprofit
Role of brand
• Drive profitability by stimulating and
sustaining demand for a product or
service (often at a premium)
• Create preference and loyalty with
target customers
Role of brand
• Implement mission by acquiring and
deploying resources
Brand management
• Position for competitive advantage
• Create emotional connections with
customers
• Protect and control brand assets
Brand management
• Position for clarity and collaboration
• Create brand ambassadors through
participative engagement
• Provide guidelines and share brand
assets
•
Create trust and organizational
cohesion
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
Drivers of Brand IDEA
 Social media
– Dialogue and engagement
– “You would be crazy to try to control your brand”
 Partnerships
– Of all kinds are proliferating
– Growing realization that one cannot achieve social
goals alone...
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
Brand Integrity
 Know who you are, what you do, and why it
matters
– Also know who you are not
 Brand is aligned with mission, values and
strategy; internal identity and external image
are aligned
– Connected to strategic planning process
– Rebrand if confusion, or when perception and
organizational reality are misaligned
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
Brand Democracy
 Process of participative engagement
– Builds on internal branding
– Achieve brand Integrity through brand Democracy
 Empower brand ambassadors
– Encourage people to share their stories
– Provide templates and guidelines that can be used
and adapted
– Share brand assets; avoid policing the brand
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
Brand Affinity
 Identify and attract partners to work toward
shared goals
– Collective impact and capacity building
 Share assets freely
– Open-source platforms
 Share credit generously, promote partners’
brands
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
What is your experience in creating
brand Integrity?
IDENTITY
 How would YOU define your organization’s brand identity?
– Use the who, what, why to guide you
 How would other internal stakeholders define brand?
IMAGE
 Who are you major brand audiences? List them out.
 How would each of these groups define your organization’s
brand?
ANALYSIS
 What are the differences and similarities in your definitions?
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
What is your experience in creating
brand Democracy?
Review list of brand audiences:
 How have you engaged internal audiences?
 How have you engaged external audiences?
 How might you increase participation in
defining and communicating the brand from
these audiences?
 How might you share your brand assets more
broadly?
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
What Does it Mean to Implement
brand Affinity?
• What is your theory of change?
– Underlying values and assumptions
• What do you do well and where and for what do you need to
engage partners?
– Identify key partners
 How can you create a sense of shared purpose and common
mission?
 Exercise leadership!
 How can you use your brand and brand assets to draw and
support partners in achieving shared external goals and
increasing impact
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014
Implementing Brand IDEA Framework
1. Embrace the paradigm shift
2. Use research and reflection, participative
process
3. Recognize alignment is ongoing endeavor
4. Support brand ambassadors; share stories
5. Let go of control and share brand assets
6. Identify, attract and promote partners, working
toward shared goals
7. Make brand management part of everyone’s
job!
Nathalie Laidler-Kylander - 2014