Nonprofits Getting a Marketing Strategy

In January the US Postal Service will be increasing the rate of a domestic stamp by one penny, raising the rates for postage to other discount jerseyscountries by various amounts, trying to reduce delivery by one day, closing some offices and considering a few other changes, most of which seem to be disincentives toward use of their service.

Now it is certain that this venerable institution faces significant financial challenges which cannot, according to the Christian Sciencesteelers jerseys cheap Monitor, be singularly traced to its marketing strategy. But, its cost cutting and revenue generating plans provide fodder for what a marketing strategy should not look like--one which drives away the core customer.

Let me be specific. A marketing strategy, reflecting on what I generally construct in a business plan, is actually built on five strategies oftennfl jerseys cheap referred to as the 5 P's: Product (offering), price (cost), place (access), promotions (communications), and position (value proposition). A nonprofit's successful marketing strategy for a given program or revenue-generating project is one which develops a 5 P plan around the needs, wants and or interests of a particular customer. Once upon a time one of the strategies the Postal Service excelled at was jerseys wholesaleplace now referred to as access or distribution. The location of its post offices, six day home delivery and the ability to acquire a stamp and mail a letter pretty much anywhere were hallmarks of this distribution strategy.

This is about to change as will the pricing strategy for those who mail domestically and even more so for those who mail out-of-country.cheap jerseys Bottom line: maybe folks' choices are limited and they will still rely on the US Postal Service for some degree of communications, but there are likely to be further drifting away of dependence if not fondness.

Nonprofits beware! This is a lesson in the need to understand what is important to your customers and not changing your marketing strategy for purely financial reasons. Maybe the Postal Service should consider turning to philanthropy for a solution because such significant changes to its marketing strategy can only result in significantly more losses, at least in the long run. A marketing strategy that is customer-focused matters.