In the world of nonprofit sponsorship, it’s no secret that cause marketing has rapidly become the most popular method for nonprofits and businesses to simultaneously make money. A lot of money.

According to a recent study, 90% of Americans want companies to tell them the ways they are supporting causes. And 83% of these consumers say that they wish brands would support causes.

Arguably, cause marketing is becoming something of a social movement.

I have seen my fair share of nonprofit marketing: the good, the bad, and the outrageous. My nonprofit experience runs the gamut from granting sick kid’s wishes, to helping torture survivors from around the world and even fundraising for first-class symphony orchestras. (Some days I question whether or not I might be a nonprofit junkie. All signs point to yes.)

These experiences have led me to wonder— are cause-centric promotions a good thing? Or bad thing?

I have worked on cause marketing campaigns that brought in millions and millions of dollars. The supremacy of slapping a logo on a product is often mind-boggling to me. If a water bottle, toy, pen, key ring, t-shirt, water heater, or whatever, has a nonprofit’s logo on it— you are more likely to buy it. And that purchase can bring copious amounts of cash through the doors of nonprofits. Nonprofits that otherwise would not…

I really hesitate to use the phrase “perfect storm” here, because it has become so over-used since the movie of the same name was released more than a decade ago. Nonetheless, I think it is descriptive for what nonprofit publishers, like me, have experienced recently. But I’m a first time blogger here, so before I invoke that well-worn (but apt!) cliché, I think some context is in order.

My job title indicates that I am responsible for publishing and community at a Scottsdale-headquartered nonprofit profession association. In case you haven’t heard of WorldatWork, we have more than 20,000 members and annual revenues of around $20 million. Although, we serve members around the world, our average member works in the human resources department of a large company (5,000+ employees) in North America. My guess is that we are larger than the average Arizona nonprofit, in both employees and revenue, but if part of your organizational mission is to deliver information, content or education, this story may resonate.

Our publishing operation is extensive— it consists of a monthly printed magazine, a quarterly journal, various e-newsletters and about a dozen books per year. We have in-house, full-time editorial and creative staff. The good news for us has been that there are many consultants, vendors and other service providers who are eager to sell to and serve our membership. For about two…

Welcome to Research Friday! As part of a continuing weekly series, each Friday we invite a nonprofit scholar, student, or professional to highlight current research reports or studies and discuss how they can inform and improve day-to-day nonprofit practice.

Public funding for social programs is in a state of uncertainty due to our country's economic strain. While government-run programs are in direct risk of losing funding, nonprofit funding is precariously reliant on both a legislature driven to increase federal revenue, and philanthropists who expect tax relief for donating to charities. One proposed solution to increase federal revenue is to reduce the charitable deduction for high-income philanthropists. Many philanthropists and scholars oppose this idea, citing concerns about lower overall giving.

This policy brief examines how a charitable deduction cap of 28% of for high-income earners will affect philanthropic giving in the context of upcoming policy changes, current donor demographics, and the breadth and scope of nonprofit services.

Like many people, every year as I file my taxes I have an itchy feeling when I consider I might be audited by the Internal Revenue Service. I have always been squeaky clean honest in my filings, but the idea of being scrutinized by people portrayed as whimsical and unreasonable is nerve-wracking.

Imagine my surprise when in my new position as Director of Research, Behavioral Health and Wellness, I was subjected to audits by not one or two regulatory bodies, but by four: the Food and Drug Administration, the State, the County, and the Regional Behavioral Health Authority. While none of them are the IRS, my fear has greatly subsided after experiencing FOUR audits in the last six months.

I have learned several things that may help you:

PRIOR TO THE AUDITORS ARRIVING:

1. If possible, get as much advance information about what the regulatory body may be auditing.
2. Review any guidelines that have been provided in the past about the rules that govern the area being audited. For example, the auditors may review where files are kept and the security surrounding them.
3. Then, perform an internal analysis of the information to be audited.
4. If the analysis shows that there are holes or areas that will be a problem, fix anything that is fixable. DO NOT FALSIFY OR CHANGE ANYTHING THAT WOULD BE UNETHICAL TO CHANGE.
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Welcome to Research Friday! As part of a continuing weekly series, each Friday we invite a nonprofit expert to highlight current research reports or studies and discuss how they can inform and improve day-to-day nonprofit practice.

In celebration of the ASU Lodestar Center’s official expansion of programs into Southern Arizona, we have put together a fun 11-question quiz on Southern  Arizona’s nonprofit sector.  It is based on our newly released research report: Scope of the Nonprofit Sector: Southern Arizona.

Click here to take the short quiz.  At the end, you’ll find out your score and there will be a link back to this page. We’ll report the results in a future blog post.
Note: Southern Arizona, in this report and quiz, is defined as Pima, Cochise, and Santa Cruz counties. 

Scoring:
9-10 — Sector Sage - You are a nonprofit guru. Your wisdom is second to none!
7-8 — Sector Scholar - You are learned and knowledgeable about the AZ nonprofit sector.
5-6 — Sector Savvy - You know your nonprofit stuff!
3-4 — Sector Student - Aren't we all?
0-2 — Now you know!

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