Can nonprofits lead change in the digital age?
By Henk Campher, VP of Brand and Communications and David Slater, VP of Product Marketing Nonprofit at Salesforce.org
Thanks to the power of the Internet, more people are connected to the world of ideas and to each other. Many of those people are putting social causes at their center and are finding new ways to act in support of them. We can create a better world faster than ever because it is so much easier to connect our passions to actions.
These should be exciting times for those who have been at the forefront of this movement toward a better world: nonprofits and NGOs. Not only is there a rise in people wanting to act on their purpose, but over the past year 77% of nonprofits have seen an increased demand for their programs and services. However, meeting the swell in demand has left many nonprofits battling for resources and struggling to connect with people and their purpose.
In order to survive, nonprofits must accept that they are no longer the gatekeepers for social change—they are open platforms to connect those who care with those in need. To do this, they must embrace new tools to become the social change platform their constituents are demanding.
The changing nonprofit
Photo courtesy of Wolverine Human Services
At the heart of this struggle is the changing role of nonprofits. Nonprofits, just like traditional media and commerce, were once the gatekeepers of information, funding and activism. Years ago, if you wanted to buy a product, you had to go to a brick-and-mortar store. And if you wanted to “buy” into a social issue, you had to go to a nonprofit “store.”
The world is a very different place today, though. Individuals now have greater:
-Access to information
-Ability to independently drive social change at enormous scale
-Ability to direct funding globally with pinpoint accuracy
-Ability to convene and communicate with like-minded collaborators, without a nonprofit as a broker
The roles have changed from one in which individuals needed nonprofits to connect to social causes, to nonprofits needing to connect with individuals who can help them deliver on their mission. There are many options available to individuals who want to change the world. That’s why nonprofits must treat their audience not simply as a transaction to achieve their own social mission—but as a long-term relationship in a connected effort to achieve their joint social mission.
This is especially true in a much more globally connected world. The donors and activists who want to make change often live in the places where those issues are most relevant. Today, the nonprofits that thrive connect with their constituents no matter where they all live.
Some nonprofit campaigns have excelled in this modern world: Movember, the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, the WaterAid #GiveaShit campaign, to name a few. But many have struggled to adapt to the constant and rapid change driven by the rise of the Internet and the subsequent rise of social media.
The changing mindset
The opportunity to be that platform for social change is here. Not only are the ways people are connecting to social change altering, but we are also seeing a generational shift in mindset. Millennials and Gen Z want to be part of a community that changes the world and part of the experience itself—not just as a transaction. Constituents come for the cause, but they stay for the experience. The cost of switching support from one nonprofit to another has been dramatically reduced, so constituents are more willing to change if they aren’t treated as they expect to be.
This might sound scary for nonprofit leaders, but it is actually an incredibly exciting time. For those doing it right—making their constituents part of the experience and bring them closer to the impact—the buy-in is deeper. Nonprofits are now building journeys and relationships for social change and are not out on their own anymore.
A vision for the social sector
Photo courtesy of buildOn
Nonprofits need to adopt the approach of brands that have succeeded in connecting with their audiences. They must invest in technology and leverage their data to stay relevant, because they are susceptible to disruption from other nonprofits that modernize. The consequences of nonprofit erosion are even worse, because nothing replaces their impact on society. This leaves a rip in our social fabric.
Not only are nonprofits competing for these resources with each other, but also with for-profit businesses. Modern brands are more socially-minded and highly reliant on causes to maintain relevancy with their customers. This creates a unique opportunity for nonprofits to connect an even wider audience to their causes. This is especially true for nonprofits in federated models – when your national or regional chapters are operating in silos and saying different messages to different donors, your nonprofit brand as a whole begins to lose cohesion and consistency. This is particularly true among global donors who are location-agnostic.
At this intersection of people, business and nonprofits lies the future of change. Nonprofits can and should be the catalyst for this, because they are the experts on driving impact across the ecosystem. This is the vision for the social sector: nonprofits at the center of leading social change.
The Salesforce.org Commitment
Our commitment to nonprofits is to create the unique set of solutions that helps them connect with their constituents and achieve their common social mission. We are guided by our principles of empowering nonprofits to become the open platform that connects people to social change. That means making technology more affordable, breaking down silos, scaling by operating as a global team, providing flexibility in building custom solutions, and making it possible for organizations to share, transfer, write and access data when needed.
This approach will ensure we leverage technology to drive impact and change over the next decade. The next decade where nonprofits become the open platform that connects people to social change and empowers their frontline staff with relevant data. Where nonprofits diversify their models to be less reliant on the whims of donors and more in tune with the needs of their constituents. Where nonprofits gain massive efficiencies to scale across communities, regions, states and countries. Let’s make the next decade the decade of measured, scaled, connected, and ultimately, sustainable impact.
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