Only beginning this class, it seems that the marketing orientation is one focused not on changing hearts and minds, but of changing, channeling, or influencing behaviour. In the nonprofit world, we would like it if everyone saw our particular mission as "the mission", the aspect of societal life that is very important and deserves attention. In certain cases such as with health related concerns, and in the cause of advocacy, we want others to see the way we do. We want to change their hearts and minds to align with ours. Sometimes this approach is needed so that we can get some people to be more sympathetic or nurturing of the plight of others for instance. But, what if we can get people to treat people in a nurturing way without changing their hearts and minds?
Hrmmm....I don't believe that is possible. It is possible to influence behavior...and in that regard nonprofit marketing is helpful. But, for instance, as a trans woman I may want healthcare providers to treat transgender people overall with a better sensitivity, a better sense of professionalism, and an interest in regard to the welfare of these people, their patients. Professionalism I can influence as a behavior set, and some degree of marketing might help with that. However, getting such individuals to think proactively in regard to nurturing transgender persons in their care....that requires a fundamental internal change that I cannot force on them, that marketing cannot change - as its focus is not on the internal heart and mind - and that might not happen unless that person wants to make that internal change.
My point is this. Marketing is a great tool, but it is one tool in a tool set. No amount of what we do in the nonprofit world is going to "make" someone do something that we want them to do. Marketing is powerful in nudging behaviour in the desired direction, but other factors influence more core elements of a person. Take a more concrete example talked about in the text in regard to health concerns such as smoking.
One thing that bothered me about the text was this insistence that an audience centered mindset can miraculously change smokers to stop their habit, or those of us who are obese to live more active lives with higher fiber and less fat. Health educators are taught first and foremost that no amount of teaching, no amount of imparting of good information is going to make someone change. Will marketing help in that equation? Perhaps, some...by meeting the person where they are at. However, the central tenet in health education is that the equation is so much complex than that. What is my environment? Do I tend to have bags and bags of potato chips at home, even when I do shop healthy? Do I go out to eat with friends? (some research shows that eating with friends may be linked to one eating more than they should, specifically if some members of the friend group are eating more as well). How do my genetics play into the equation? Am I on prescription meds that impact my ability to lose weight? All of those things marketing cannot effect.
2. How would you describe the importance of the mission statement of a nonprofit organization? How would that apply to nonprofit marketing?
Simply put, the mission statement of an organization is the container that the plant that is the organization is placed into. It helps define perspective, boundary, and gives nurturance, and even "soil" to the group of people who have come together. As the organization changes, sometimes the mission needs to shift (get bigger perhaps) to accomodate the changing organism that is the organization.
Applying this to marketing shows that the mission is the boundary limiting agent for marketing while also the vehicle through which it can do its work to change behavior. The organization can adapt to meet target audience needs, desires, etc. However, there is a limit to that adaptability, and that is what the board of directors through the mission have demarcated that the organization will provide for the public.
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