Branding and communications research

Non-profits face important challenges when evaluating and making changes to their branding and communications strategies. Not only do they have to compete for attention and recognition, but they have to reach out to both existing and potential supporters in ways that compel action and engagement while maintaining the essence of the organisation’s vision and values.

nfpSynergy has considerable experience in helping non-profits to evaluate and refine their branding and communications strategies. We can conduct research to test new propositions for appeals, provide demographic data, and evaluate the saturation and effectiveness of advertising and media messages. We can also partner with your organisation’s creative agency to develop the rationale for new media campaigns and organisational re-branding.

Case study: Save the Children – Legacy Proposition Testing

Save the Children wanted to develop a creative communications strategy to sit at the heart of their legacy marketing. They worked with a creative agency to come up with five concepts for testing among both supporters of Save the Children and non-supporters who were open to the idea of leaving a legacy. nfpSynergy was commissioned to conduct research into which concepts worked well and which fell flat and why, and to explore key aspects of comprehension, appeal, impact, relevance, motivation and differentiation.

We used focus groups as the most appropriate format to conduct this concept testing research. It also allowed us the opportunity to observe the social component of discussing legacy giving. However, in order to reflect the more sensitive nature of this topic, we also supplemented the focus groups with a small number of interviews. This helped participants to express more personal feelings about legacies and the Save the Children concepts, and gave space for thoughts that participants may not feel comfortable disclosing in a group environment.

The findings showed that several of the creative concepts were viewed positively by the target audience, and we were able to give clear guidance on which messages to use, what creative and tonal approaches were worth retaining, and why. We were also able to identify a set of fundamental principles on which future legacy communications should be based.