The other article I read today is called “Strategies for Introducing Marketing into Nonprofit Organizations”, a very very outdated article from the January 1979 edition of the Journal of Marketing.
I chose this article knowing it was outdated in order to get a better understanding about how the practice of marketing seeped from for-profit corporations into the worlds of the “third sector”, as author Philip Kotler considers non-profits to be a part of. This article did describe this quite well, starting with how the difficult economy forced universities to attempt marketing, in turn inspiring hospitals to do the same, and eventually non-profits caught on.
“Ten years ago, Sidney J. Levy and I advanced the thesis that marketing is not just a business function-it is a valid function for non-business organizations as well-and that all organizations have marketing problems and all need to understand marketing (Kotler and Levy 1969). The article created considerable controversy. Many academic marketers attacked it, saying that marketing made sense only in profit oriented enterprises. However other marketing professors found the idea stimulating and, without necessarily agreeing that it was valid, began to study and experiment with it.”
This quote indicates that discussion of marketing in the “third sector” began in 1969 (’69!!!) but wasn’t taken seriously. I find this very interesting considering now, nearly 50 years later, it goes without question that non-profits should take marketing efforts seriously, perhaps even more seriously than others! I think one possible explanation for this distract change in trend and in thinking is of course, the economy, which was a MAJOR pressure for organizations of all kinds to be much more active in making profits, but also the effect of the Information Age, wherein consumers are so overwhelmed with advertising and products that organizations have to try harder to differentiate themselves and stand out (the internet and Information Age came full force 10-20 years after this article came out). Interestingly enough, Kotler goes on to say: “It is likely that within
10 years, much of the third sector will have some understanding and appreciation of the marketing concept.”
“Marketing will lead to a better understanding of the needs of different client segments; to a more careful shaping and launching of new services; to a pruning of weak services; to more effective methods of delivering services; to more flexible pricing approaches; and to higher levels of client satisfaction. Altogether, marketing offers a great potential to third sector organizations to survive, grow, and strengthen their contributions to the general welfare.”
Updating this conclusive quote would be beneficial to think about in what ways my role as Marketing Intern is or isn’t achieving these things. Firstly, “a better understanding of the needs of different client segments” can definitely relate to the inclusion of social media within marketing strategies. As part of the research for the social media plan I created for BBBSCM, I learned that each network should be used for a different purpose (at least slightly) considering each network is comprised of a different market. It is the duty of the organization to discover who these different markets are and what kind of content they prefer. This could also pertain to the e-newsletters, in the sense that each segment of the newsletter is aimed at a different client segment (alums, parents, sponsors, donors, volunteers, etc.).
As for the other effects of marketing, I’m not sure that my position covers these things. However, it goes without saying that with every marketing effort is the desire and hope to “strengthen contributions to the general welfare”–making people see why what we do is important, making people want to volunteer or sponsor, ultimately aiming to close the achievement gap in the lives of many underprivileged youth.
I'M A MKTG INTERN! 