How to Project Manage Your Nonprofit Story
What emotions align with your nonprofit mission and brand identity?
I adore color. I’m definitely not someone who wears only black!
My personal ‘brand’ is multi-hued. You can see it at the top of my website. You can see it on my person.
What do the colors you ‘wear’ say about your brand?
I thought it would be interesting to think about how you use color in your donor communications, and happened on several great infographics, including The Psychology of Color in Design and Color Psychology and Marketing. They offer a terrific overview of the meaning of colors in the western hemisphere.
What you’ll learn is eye opening.
Color is a powerful form of nonverbal communication. There should be more to selecting color than just a whim.
Color influences behavior. Color evokes emotions. Have you ever seen a movie with and without the underlying musical score?
Like music, color can make a huge difference in how your message is perceived.
- Color can make folks feel relaxed, productive, peaceful, creative and even angry.
- Color can alert folks to an emergency situation or to a successful, growing organization.
- Color can make folks feel generous and open or stingy and closed.
What do you want folks to think/feel/do when they encounter your (1) website; (2) annual report; (3) appeal letter; (4) email; (5) event invitation and décor, and/or (5) blog?
It’s helpful to bear in mind what one fundraising guru has to say on the subject:
The experts who come up with brand color palettes often confuse communication with decoration. Their palettes are congruent, nice, and usually in step with the latest color fads from the fashion and design industries. Pleasing to look at.
But often bad for fundraising.
— Jeff Brooks, Future Fundraising Now
Let’s start with a few simple ideas about color.
Bluefor example says cool (if too dark, it says cold), calm and fresh. It’s associated with water, peace, loyalty and trust. Men prefer blue above all other colors, which may explain why it’s perceived as businesslike. When used in a dwelling it enables the greatest productivity. Redexcites us. It can mean stop, emergency or danger; it can also mean festivity (e.g. Christmas, Valentine’s Day). And, of course, we associate red with love and passion. Yellow makes us feel sunny, happy and energetic. It’s the color of optimism and can grab attention and inspire creativity. Yet it is straining on the eyes, and it makes babies cry. Orangeis also associated with energy, warmth, excitement and ambition. Yet it can also mean caution, slow down. It is not a calming color. Green evokes freshness, health, growth and nature. Light green traditionally was used in hospitals to evoke tranquility. It’s also the color of money. And, depending on context, it may be associated with envy and luck. Purplecan make us feel relaxed and creative. It’s also associated with royalty, wisdom and wealth. It adds a touch of mystery and exoticism, and is also the favored color of adolescent girls. Pink can evoke calmness, romance and femininity. It is the gentlest of all the colors. Brown signifies the earth, practicality and reliability. ‘Terra firma’ is stable. Yet it can also say boring. Grey is practical and solid. It’s a middle of the road hue. If you shoot some silver into it then it becomes of solid, “sterling” character. Blackis associated with death, mourning and evil. It’s also austere; the opposite of warm. At the same time, it’s authoritative and elegant. The absence of color – “white space” – is associated with purity, innocence, cleanliness and breath.
How you use colors together also has emotional impact.
Use of a single color in varying shades can be soothing. Using all the primary colors together feels childlike. Using all the secondary colors feels contemporary, modern and playful. Some colors used together make people feel patriotic. Others evoke holidays. And colors also come and go in trends. One thing to guard against with trends is ignoring underlying psychological triggers. Say orange is the hot new color for clothing and accessories? Does that mean it’s the best choice for our annual appeal if you’re trying to evoke growth and renewal of purpose?
What do you do when your logo colors do not reflect the key emotion of your brand?
Often nonprofits get stuck with an historic color palette that no longer serves your purposes. What about a child-focused organization with a black and brown logo? A senior-focused organization that uses mostly red? An environmental organization that uses red, white and blue? A cutting-edge theater group that uses green and blue? A visual arts organization that uses grey and maroon? If you keep your eyes open, you’ll find many less than optimal pairings exist. These folks aren’t doing themselves any favors. Can this be fixed?
Take a look at some of the most well-known nonprofit brands and you’ll see a lot of thought goes into their color choices.
Sierra Club uses a lot of green. One Drop uses a watery blue. Susan G. Komen is all pink. The Humane Society uses a neutral pallette so their visuals and call-to-action buttons stand out. World Wildlife Fund does the same. Juma Ventures evokes youthful spirit, energy, enthusiasm and creativity. Sometimes you can get around unfortunate legacies by selecting photos with colors that evoke the message you’re trying to impart. Or you can add secondary colors to your communications. Or you can create special pieces for special purposes, including your logo in black and white. Or perhaps just a splash of color to draw attention where it’s needed most.
Speaking of a splash of color, use it to call attention to important engagement opportunities.
The most important of these is your donate button. It’s a mistake to use your brand colors here because your call to action will fail to stand out. There have been studies showing the benefits of green vs. red buttons, but what these studies fail to take into account are the other colors on the page. A green button might do great for SAFE, for example, because their brand palette is mostly red (they’ve actually chosen to use yellow, which also pops). Green would likely not do as well for Oxfam because it will get lost on the predominantly green page; they currently use orange for their donate button, which is a secondary color to green (note they saved red for a more urgent call to action around the coronavirus response). The Water Trust, with its blue palette, decided to use the contrasting primary color of red. In other words, it’s not possible to say “green buttons (or red ones) always work best.” It depends. It’s always best to conduct A/B tests for your own organization. Here’s an online “color calculator” and an article about color theory that can help you choose contrasting or complementary colors.
Don’t forget to think about your target markets.
You may serve children, but the folks reading your messaging may be parents or grandparents. Kids like primary colors (red, yellow, blue). Grandparents may require a dose of trust (blue). So you might have splashes of red and yellow with a predominance of blue. As long as you’re thoughtful about what you’re doing you’ll be ahead of the game.
Keep in mind preferences are not universal.
Your best bet is to test for yourself. Depending on the predominant demographics and psychographic of your audience you may get different results than a similar nonprofit located elsewhere. A/B testing can be your best friend, plus it’s a lot of fun!
Want to Be More Thoughtful about Everything?
ON COLOR: Here are some additional articles that may be of interest: The Importance of Color in Brand Strategy; The Psychology of Color in Logo Design; Branding & Color Tips for Nonprofits, How to Choose the Right Colors for Your Brand and Choosing the Right Colors for Your Nonprofit’s Brand. Even if you as the fundraiser don’t have authority in this area, this is useful information to share with executive management and marketing staff. You certainly don’t need a hard-to-notice ‘donate’ button undermining all your hard work! Plus it’s food for thought as you design your appeals and fundraising communications.
ON EVERYTHING ELSE: Grab the 7 Clairification Keys to Unlock Your Nonprofit’s Fundraising Potential. How much time do you spend right now being genuinely thoughtful about your goals and objectives? This guide has tips, tools, templates, exercises, worksheets and checklists to get you to the next level. You can’t go wrong, as I offer a 30-day, 100% refund if you’re not happy.
Have a colorful day!
