Do you ever find yourself hating the game?
While you love your mission and the dream of impacting your community for good, maybe you struggle with what you have to do to be effective.
The online world is so very loud, so very impersonal, and oftentimes, so very slimy. But what if I could convince you that it doesn’t have to be this way, and that the stigma we often have around nonprofit marketing is actually killing your impact?
Your Resistance Makes Perfect Sense
Let me start by saying that your discomfort with marketing makes complete sense.
You got into nonprofit work to help people, not to trick them. You’re mission-driven, hyper-focused on the human side of things. When you see marketing tactics that feel spammy, bot-driven, or inauthentic, of course it seems antithetical to your work.
The clickbait headlines, the manipulative sales funnels, the “bait and switch” tactics. You’ve been on the receiving end of automated messages that feel cold and calculated. You’ve watched organizations use people’s pain points as marketing hooks.
I get it. In fact I often joke that I’m a marketing professional who doesn’t really like the industry some days. The internet is overrun with ads, spam, lures and tricks, and I hate it just as much as you do. But we all have a chance to make it better by not contributing to practices that are destroying our collective sanity, and by taking the best parts of what marketing has to offer and leaving the rest on the floor.
Here’s what I know…
Marketing is simply about helping people connect. That’s it. That’s the essence of what we’re talking about. The question isn’t whether you should market, but whether you’ll do it in a way that honors your values and your mission.
Where the Stigma Starts: The Myth of “Purity”
Somewhere along the line, we started believing that nonprofits should operate from pure intention and not promote themselves. Because to promote ourselves means we’re being commercial. Corporate. Capitalistic.
We’ve bought into this myth that if your mission is noble, it should speak for itself. That somehow “good work” should naturally attract funding, volunteers, and media coverage.
But that’s not how it works.
Instead, incredible missions are drowned out by louder, shinier things. Work that saves lives gets buried beneath organizations that know how to work the system. Not because they’re better, but because they’re louder.
If we keep waiting for the mission to speak for itself, we might be waiting while our programs run dry.
Your Real-World Resistance
A few years ago, I had an initial meeting with a potential client—a large community health nonprofit needing a complete brand overhaul and new website. The Executive Director was straightforward: “I know this project will cost a significant amount, but money isn’t the problem. The problem is convincing our board and other stakeholders that this isn’t frivolous spending.”
He was fighting the perception that marketing work is vanity. Pure and simple.
That ED was smart and courageous. He knew the importance of professional communication and pushed through the resistance. Today, that organization has a thriving online presence and tremendous growth that’s directly tied to their investment in marketing.
Read how this organization became the authority in their area.
This conversation was a huge wake-up call for me. The work of communication and marketing is crucially tied to mission success. And to be successful means we have to reframe this conversation and be courageous enough not to let stigma stymie growth.
The way nonprofits are structured often means many people get to weigh in, and we feel obligated to listen.
I’m sure you can relate to this EDs comments. You’ve probably heard it all too: “Why did they spend money on a video?” “They’re doing Facebook ads now? Must be nice.” “I don’t need to see another branded t-shirt, just show me the work!”
It’s exhausting. And if you’re a nonprofit leader who already has one foot in programming and the other in donor management, the last thing you want is someone questioning your integrity because you dared to invest in communication.
But here’s what those critics don’t see: the time you spent hand-writing appeal letters that got tossed. The social posts no one engaged with. The outdated website that confused your donors more than it convinced them.
Marketing is not a vanity project. It’s how you get people to care.
Making people care is not manipulation. It’s mission delivery.
Marketing Isn’t the Enemy—Obscurity Is
According to the 2024 Nonprofit Communications Trends Report, one of the top concerns among nonprofit leaders is “being heard above the noise.” You cannot expect to rise above the noise without a consistent, strategic marketing plan.
Organizations that invested in messaging saw higher donor retention and better engagement overall. This is a real return on investment..
Unfortunately, many nonprofits still don’t have a dedicated marketing budget. According to the Association of Fundraising Professionals, more than 50% of small to midsize nonprofits have no formal communications strategy at all.
You wouldn’t run your programs without a plan. You wouldn’t hire staff without a job description. So why are we still winging it when it comes to how we show up in the world?
The problem isn’t marketing. It’s invisibility.
Let’s Redefine Marketing
You’re not selling shoes, you are trying to change lives. The first place to start is by understanding what marketing means to an organization like yours.
Marketing is storytelling. Marketing is visibility. Marketing is trust-building. Marketing is mission communication.
It’s not “tricking” or badgering people into giving. It’s helping them understand why they should care in the first place.
But more than that, marketing is about treating people like actual people—not IP addresses or email subscribers or potential donors. It’s about talking like a real person to real people, not like a bot or someone reading from a script.
Think of it like this: if your mission is the fire, marketing is the chimney. It gives it structure. It helps it burn brighter. It carries the message further.
If you’ve ever tried to explain what your organization does in 45 seconds at a networking event and watched the other person’s eyes glaze over halfway through, then you already know you need better messaging. That’s marketing.
The difference is doing it with the same integrity you bring to your programs.
The Real Cost of Staying Quiet
What’s the cost of keeping marketing in the shadows?
Missed funding because people didn’t understand your impact. Burnt-out staff because storytelling always gets shoved to the bottom of the to-do list. Lost volunteers because your messaging felt confusing or outdated. A mission that no one can repeat, much less champion.
If you’re not clear and consistent, people move on.
Marketing is not the problem. The problem is thinking we shouldn’t need it.
But What If People Judge Us?
They will. Let them.
You will never fully avoid criticism. But you can choose what you’ll be criticized for. I’d rather someone question my Instagram strategy than my lack of donor engagement. I’ll take a comment about spending money on a logo over being completely forgotten.
Besides, it’s 2025. If your nonprofit doesn’t show up online with confidence, consistency, and a point of view, it’s not just seen as outdated, it’s seen as untrustworthy.
People assume you’re not transparent. They assume you’re small-time. They assume you’re not doing much.
Let’s show them something different.
Ways to Start Reframing Marketing in Your Nonprofit
If you’re ready to start shifting the narrative inside your organization, her are some ideas for how to begin:
Own Your Story Stop waiting for someone else to tell it. You don’t need perfect statistics or a Pulitzer-worthy backstory. Just be real. Why do you do what you do? Who are you helping? What change are you fighting for? Say it clearly and say it often. Your story is your strongest asset, so use it.
Budget for Visibility Like You Mean It Put a line item in your budget for marketing. Not “maybe if there’s extra money.” Budget for it like you do for programs, because visibility is program sustainability. Treat it as infrastructure, not luxury. When you invest in marketing, you’re investing in your ability to serve more people.
Educate Your Board (and Be Patient) Sometimes the stigma starts at the top. If your board doesn’t understand why marketing matters, show them the numbers. Tell them your goals. Make it clear: this is not fluff, it’s survival. Help them see that professional communication directly impacts your ability to fulfill your mission. Share case studies. Show them what good marketing looks like in the nonprofit space.
Make Messaging Everyone’s Job Marketing isn’t just your communications person’s problem (if you’re lucky enough to have one). It’s part of every interaction your organization has with clients, donors, funders, and the general public. Train your staff to talk about your work with clarity and confidence. Every person on your team is a messenger.
Call It What It Is Stop tiptoeing. Say the word “marketing.” Say it in your meetings, your budget documents, your strategic plan. Normalize it. Because if you don’t value it, no one else will either.
Start Where You Are You don’t need a massive budget to begin. Start with consistency. Use the same language to describe your work across all platforms. Update your website so it actually explains what you do. Post regularly on social media with intention, not just when you remember.
Measure What Matters Track your communication efforts like you track your program outcomes. How many people visited your website? How many donors came through online channels? How many volunteers found you through social media? Numbers tell a story—use them to justify continued investment.
Let Go of the Shame, Step Into the Spotlight
You’re not greedy for wanting people to know your nonprofit exists. You’re not shallow for caring about your visuals. You’re not manipulative for telling stories that stir emotion.
You’re strategic. You’re smart. And, you’re doing what it takes to make your mission sustainable in the real world, not just in theory.
Let go of the stigma, and stop apologizing for wanting to be seen. You’re doing important work, and the world needs to know about it.
Pick Your Partners Carefully
My team and I understand your concerns about marketing and work to elevate the needs of humans over fake relationships or intrusive tactics that people say they hate. We promise to serve you and your clients ethically, and in doing so contribute to building better businesses and an internet that doesn’t pander to the lowest common denominators of our culture.
When you get ready to take your marketing seriously, lets plan to chat.
