Brand Strategist Daniel Francavilla, Marketing Advisor & Brand Strategist and founder of The Good Growth Company, led the session on 10 Things Nonprofits Need to Know About Personal Branding for Changemakers as part of this series.

Read on for a recap of the session with some key takeaways.

During the session, Daniel also answered questions from attendees from nonprofit organizations, which are summarized below.

Get an idea of the content covered, including empowering leaders within nonprofit organizations, charities, and social impact ventures to harness the power of personal branding to meet their goals and make more impact.

Learn from tactics, strategies and examples to craft a compelling personal brand that aligns with your organization's mission and amplifies your influence. From tips on storytelling, content, social media profiles and more, learn to increase your visibility, credibility and ultimately positive impact.

If you’re looking for hands-on support from custom training to consulting, connect with us here to curate a training solution.

Why does personal branding matter?

It helps differentiate your organization in a busy competitive market
It establishes you as an expert. Strong brands build trust and credibility
Branding enhances recognition and encourages loyalty
It helps expand your network and gain more visibility

Let’s look into some of the topics further with these highlights of what was shared during the session.

Top Takeaways & Topics

On the Importance of Personal Branding

Daniel explained that personal branding involves aligning personal values with organizational brand values. He highlighted the significance of how individuals are perceived in person and online, emphasizing that everyone has a personal brand whether intentional or not. He discussed how personal branding helps differentiate individuals in a competitive market, establishes them as experts, builds trust and credibility, enhances recognition, encourages loyalty, expands networks, gains visibility and defines their space in others' minds.

Authenticity, Originality, and Storytelling in Personal Branding

Emphasizing authenticity's magnetic appeal while allowing flexibility to be oneself within professional boundaries. Daniel stressed that being authentic builds trust which is crucial for attracting supporters.

Encouraging original content creation despite automation trends by using one's unique voice and sharing behind-the-scenes insights to stand out from similar organizations working towards similar causes.

Highlighting storytelling as a powerful tool to communicate an organization's mission effectively while engaging audiences deeply. Daniel shared statistics showing its positive impact on donor retention rates compared to traditional reporting methods.

Privacy, Collaboration, and Amplification in Personal Branding

Daniel emphasized the importance of respecting privacy when sharing stories from organizations. He suggested obtaining permission to share stories, modifying information to protect identities, and using platforms to highlight others' stories. He also highlighted the significance of tagging people in posts and comments as a missed opportunity for engagement.

Daniel discussed the value of using one's platform to showcase other individuals' stories, emphasizing collaboration with leaders, hosting events, speaking on panels, and encouraging dialogue. He stressed that social media can be leveraged for sharing ideas and solutions beyond self-promotion.

He recommended leveraging personal accounts such as social media or blogs as additional channels to highlight an organization's work. He underscored the importance of focusing on people within the nonprofit sector while contributing to social validation through community recognition.

Daniel advised actively seeking opportunities outside one's own channels by contributing expertise elsewhere. This approach was presented as a means of reaching new audiences, and enhancing credibility through thought leadership appearances on various platforms.

The discussion included examples where individuals went out of their way to feature other people or organizations in their posts or events. This practice was highlighted as a way not only for self-promotion but also for promoting others within similar sectors.

Content Creation Strategies and Leveraging Collaborations

The session covered strategies for staying active by utilizing every opportunity as content creation potential while attending online meetings/events during pandemic times.

Daniel emphasized the value of expressing gratitude in content creation, citing examples from his experiences as a nonprofit founder. He highlighted instances where he quickly posted thank-you messages and shared reflections on events and conferences, emphasizing the importance of acknowledging and thanking individuals for their contributions. Additionally, he discussed how to turn everyday activities into meaningful content by sharing personal reflections and adding value to posts.

Thought Leadership, Adaptation, and Content Distribution in Personal Branding

Daniel stressed the significance of thought leadership within nonprofit organizations, urging leaders to consider becoming ambassadors for their respective organizations. He advised against aiming for viral fame but instead encouraged leveraging internal teams as sources of user-generated content while aligning efforts with organizational goals.

The discussion touched upon embracing change within personal branding efforts, emphasizing that nothing is permanent. It was underscored that individuals should build a following they can take with them as roles evolve over time while ensuring copies of valuable content are stored off-platform due to potential platform changes or deletions.

Daniel suggested distributing content with varied captions, posing different questions, and using different hooks to engage existing stakeholders. He recommended A/B testing with the same information presented in different styles to gauge effectiveness.

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Answering your questions

A summary of what was shared during the Q&A session

Daniel advised individuals looking to enter the nonprofit sector to engage with industry leaders, follow nonprofit consultants and fundraising professionals on social media, join relevant groups and attend events. He emphasized the importance of engaging in mailing lists and affiliating oneself with organizations within the sector.

Daniel recommended finding common threads between multiple roles when juggling personal branding across various ventures. He highlighted the significance of defining common elements that can be used consistently across all brands.

The discussion touched upon creating inclusive spaces by affiliating with organizations fostering an inclusive mission. It was also suggested that individuals should surround themselves with values-aligned folks both online and offline while staying authentic in their personal branding efforts.

The conversation involved blending nonprofit work into a tech role as an opportunity to collaborate and bridge gaps between these sectors. Upside Foundation was recommended as a resource for supporting causes within both the startup and tech community.

Participants were encouraged to start small when sharing vulnerable personal stories by integrating aspects of their own experiences while discussing other topics or resources before gradually opening up further about their stories.

Get more guidance on your thought leadership brand to make more impact.

The Good Growth Company is here to support you on your mission to make a positive impact. Whether you are looking for custom training or consulting, connect with us here to curate a training solution.

Tips on Personal Branding for Nonprofit Leaders: Thought Leadership for Good