Optimal Messaging for an Environmental Nonprofit

Student

Erin Maxwell

College(s)

Mendoza College of Business

Faculty Advisor

Joe Cherian

Class Year

2019

Source: tripadvisor.com

Thousands of nonprofit organizations worldwide aim to mitigate human impacts on the environment and promote sustainability in order to protect the Earth for generations to come. In recent years, nonprofits have begun to recognize the benefits of marketing for sharing their missions, driving donations, and educating their communities. Simultaneously, the field of marketing has begun to understand its role in contributing to the global environmental crisis, resulting in an influx of marketing research on sustainability. This project examined the intersection of sustainability and nonprofit marketing in an attempt to determine the best practices for constructing effective marketing messages for a sustainability-focused nonprofit organization.

The findings were applied in the context of a case study of the Eco-Justice Center, an environmental education center and sustainable farm located in Racine, Wisconsin. An in-depth analysis of their current marketing efforts identified points of strength in their utilization of Facebook as an inexpensive, accessible, and effective platform for communication, the use of event marketing to build awareness and drive donations, and the cultivation of beneficial long-term relationships. Weak spots in the current strategy, as identified by the case study, were identified in the project’s final product, which consisted of a marketing handbook that provided guidelines for improvement in each of the five areas. Ultimately, while the guide was targeted for use by the Eco-Justice Center, it could be utilized by any number of sustainability nonprofit organizations to increase the effectiveness of their marketing efforts.