Ten tips for better board marketing

1. Have the right people on board

The type of people that are on your board will influence every decision they make as a whole - including marketing decisions. Having one or more board members who have knowledge of - or are involved in - marketing and promotion will provide a positive and constructive influence on the boards marketing activities.

2. Use existing relationships

Having a board member with useful links to promotions or marketing businesses (through friends, family or career) is something a board should take advantage of. Through these links your board can use the knowledge of professionals to help improve marketing. Also, having this resource available will help sway any board members who are reticent to see the value certain initiatives could offer to the group.

3. Expert explanation

The best way to emphasise a point is to get an expert to do it for you. Having a public relations or communications professional explain the importance of marketing and the benefits it can produce for your board will provide a useful and credible perspective for your board. Ensure that this 'expert' has an acceptable knowledge of the not-for-profit sector before inviting them to speak to your board.

4. Training time

Providing board members with basic marketing training will help them become better spokespeople and give them a greater understanding of marketing concepts. A board that has been given even the most basic marketing training will look at the benefits of marketing with a more positive eye.

5. Give the board a say

Working hard to ensure your board becomes involved in the marketing process will be a useless action if they aren't given a real say in marketing plans. Ensure your board is given a say in the development of strategies for marketing events or initiatives, along with the ongoing marketing and promotion of the group itself.

6. Provide evidence

Convincing the board that marketing is an important aspect for your group to focus on will not be a fruitful experience if you cannot provide any evidence that it gets results. Collect evidence of outcomes that are linked to marketing to give to the board - this evidence should include figures pointing to increases in membership, event attendance, awareness, inquiries and other positive results.

7. Constant updates

When new figures concerning your marketing efforts become available ensure that the board is kept up to date. Marketing updates and reports should be made available often enough to become a constant agenda item at board meetings. Marketing components linked to group work - events, membership, donations or general awareness - should be detailed.

8. Keep a media mentions file

One of the best ways to show your board the importance of marketing is to keep a media cuttings file. Every time your organisation is mentioned in a newspaper, newsletter, magazine, on television or on radio be sure to keep a file of cuttings or sound/video files to show to the board. This is a great way to prove your marketing efforts are getting results.

9. Get board members involved

While the board chair will usually be given the duties of spokesperson it will be useful to ask the board if there is anybody else keen to give it a shot. If a board member wants to be spokesperson you should encourage them to do so and provide support and training if needed.

10. Get board members involved II

If board members aren't willing or able to act as spokespeople, there are other ways they can personally get involved in marketing - ranging from "talking up" your group and its work with their business or community contacts or VIPs through to just attending group events and chatting to attendees and members of the general public.