Lessons to Learn from the For-Profit World

Despite the fact that portions of the for-profit sector have created our current economic debacle, there is a lot that non-profits can learn from the for-profit world, particularly to help them out right now.

For example, strong fundraising is more important right now than ever. In order to help with the effectiveness of our fundraising efforts, we might want to learn from Microsoft's great video on the Advertiser vs. the Consumer. Network for Good has made it even easier for non-profits, remaking that classic video for the non-profit world.

Tony Hsieh took a small start-up, Zappos.com, and built it into a $1 billion business. In a recent talk he gave, he credits his accomplishment on creating an organizational culture that "encourages transparency, happiness, and passion for customer service."

-- "Zappos is committed to WOWing every customer."
-- Word of mouth helps to build repeat customers.
-- "Twitter helps build company culture."
-- "People may not remember exactly what you did or what you said, but they will always remember how you made them feel."
-- Commit to transparency (Twitter is a part of this, as is Zappos Insights where they share information on how they run the company)
-- "Hire slowly, fire quickly. Invest in training and developing your employees."
-- Think long term (sustainability)

Transparency to a Fault can be a Good Thing

I personally can't handle shopping at Trader Joe's, precisely for one of the complaints mentioned in this catchy little ditty: the parking situation is always abominable.



But as Jeff at Donor Power Blog points out, complaints such as parking coupled with the homemade quality of this cellphone video is exactly what is so great about this unauthorized ad: "It's not marketing," he says, "It's relationship."

Relationships are multi-dimensional. They include positives and negatives. In a good relationship, the positives outweigh the negatives.

The only places where no negatives exist are the fake worlds of advertising, marketing, and branding.

And nobody believes them any more.

Does this make those who are afraid of giving too much power and control of our messages to others through social media feel less frightened?

How Informercials Can Help Us All

Whether you hate them or watch them obsessively in the wee hours of the night, infomercials are pretty recognizable in terms of their formulaic presentation, and this guy argues that their formula is one that can bring success to any organization! Watch the video and see what you think.

According to Rohit Bhargava, the key components to an informercial are:

1. Have a backstory.
2. Show the product in action.
3. Use real testimonials.
4. Make a specific offer.
5. Give a reason to act NOW.

Frankly, this formula does look pretty much spot-on to me in terms of building a case for a fundraising campaign. Thoughts?

Hat tip to Donor Power Blog for this one.