Public Relations & Social Marketing Insight

Veteran nonprofit writers know that charities win credibility with strong writing and lose credibility with poor writing.

“Great content builds authority,” writes Caryn Stein, Director of Content Strategy for the Network for Good. “Great content reinforces trust.”

And with credibility, authority, and trust come grants, donations, influence, visibility, members, and volunteers — all the makings of a successful nonprofit organization.For those who practice the art of writing for nonprofits, I offer up these six deadly writing sins, which I know about only because I have, on occasion, committed every last one of them....

UBC studies suggest all those ribbon campaigns might not be that effective in raising cash...

A study conducted by researchers at the University of British Columbia came to some sobering conclusions.In a series of experiments conducted in the field and the lab, researchers asked participants to show their support for various causes. In one study, one group was given a poppy to commemorate Remembrance Day and asked to put it on immediately. Another group was given a poppy in a sealed envelope to take away with them. A third group, given neither a poppy nor an envelope, acted as a control. Individuals in all three groups were then asked to make a donation to support Canada’s war veterans. (The money raised was, in fact, donated.)

Individuals who had accepted the poppy in a sealed envelope donated significantly more than those in the other two groups....

Products of caring companies are seen as superior

New research just released shows that corporate social goodwill can elevate a company’s profits by improving consumers’ perceptions of its products, but only when it’s seen as genuine.[Chernev, Alexander and Sean Blair (2015), “Doing Well by Doing Good: The Benevolent Halo of Social Goodwill” Journal of Consumer Research Summary]

New research shows that social goodwill increases the perceived quality of your products

Your products will only be perceived as better when your Social Responsibility Policies are motivated by an authentic values-led strategy, rather than thinly-veiled self-interest and hopeful publicity...