The Best-Kept Secret?
This article is part of Finding the Words, a newsletter that delivers practical insights on the day’s issues.
Hi there. Before you read any further, don't worry. I'm not about to spill a secret in this post. However, I will reveal something even better: what to do when your organization believes it is the best-kept secret around.
Ah, the best-kept secret. It's a phrase I've repeatedly heard from nonprofit organizations, often as a point of pride and a call for marketing help. If ‘best-kept secret’ is a phrase you’ve used to describe your nonprofit, I’m going to suggest you retire it. Because the term may be limiting your organization's ability to become more well-known.
Here’s how I know: over my 20-plus years as a social impact communications consultant, this phrase has consistently remained the most commonly heard phrase in new business meetings, in which the conversation goes something like this:
“We know the work we’re doing is having an extraordinary impact. If only more people knew about our work. We are absolutely the best-kept secret in town!"
Organizations that lean on this phrase typically hold one of the following three limiting beliefs:
Investments in marketing take away from mission advancement.
Financial and human capacity is limited, so we focus on communicating only with those already in “the know.”
Our good work will speak for itself.
As much as I can understand and appreciate these points of view, I can assure you that breaking the “best-kept secret” label can be a breakthrough solution for building and growing your brand. Growth won’t happen, however, unless you take the actions to communicate your mission more broadly.
Is "best-kept secret" a badge you've been wearing with pride, too? If so, here are my go-to tips to help your organization move away from that phrase:
1. Focus Your Words. The words you use to define your organization's mission, vision, and values significantly impact others' ability to understand who you are and why your work matters. Spend less time talking around your impact and get to the heart of why your work matters, clearly and explicitly. If you're having trouble making the shift, ask yourselves: "What’s different about our work, and why should people care right now?"
Real, relatable, and repeatable messages are the ones people hold onto; they’re the kind of messages that tap into people’s heads and hearts simultaneously and reinforce that your work is worth watching and investing in.
Once you've gotten clear on your words, ask a handful of people one step removed from the organization (beyond staff, Board, and volunteers) what they believe is the most compelling distinction of your organization's approach. You’ll likely find those answers contain some of the most authentic elements of your value story: the words that have been right in front of you but may have gotten buried in complexity somewhere along the way.
2. Focus Your Connections. Pay attention to how you communicate and the vehicles you use to distribute your messages. Are you communicating with the same close-in group of people who already know about you, or are you taking steps to expand that network, bit by bit? Try connecting with three new people (potential donors, volunteers, or supporters) per week to expand your base over time, and ask your Board to do the same over a focused period. The simple action can result in a more extensive network by year's end. How to do it? Send follow-up emails each Friday to people you’ve met in the prior week. Reach out to an industry peer about exploring partnership opportunities. Re-connect with someone on LinkedIn. You can take these actions without spending a dollar on lead generation efforts. By intentionally building and growing your network, you'll also start to build stronger brand awareness.
3. And Focus Your Reach. Organizations rarely experience transformational growth by keeping their wins a secret. Ensure that your entire team understands and feels confident communicating your organization's vision and impact, and can help carry it forward with donors, community members, the media, and potential partners. With a clear, shared set of messages that the entire team can communicate and carry forward, your reach will widen, and your network will grow stronger.
Oh, and if you need a little help getting the team ready to deliver a compelling pitch about your organization before year's end, drop me a line to learn more about our Winning the First Minute message training for nonprofit teams.
Bottom line: Moving from a best-kept secret to a well-known nonprofit is possible. Start by retiring the words that are limiting your growth, and you'll find you have much more freedom to communicate your impact in ways that can move others to action, too.
This post is part of the Finding The Words column, a series published every Wednesday that delivers a dose of communication insights direct to your inbox. If you like what you read, we hope you’ll subscribe to ensure you receive this each week.
