Turning Community Impact Strategies into Products

1. Turning Community Impact Strategies into Products August 15, 2006

2. Our Big Shared Project • Helping local United Ways to turn community impact strategies into products that can be offered as investment opportunities

3. Topics What are we talking about it? Who’s thinking about this? What are we learning? Final thoughts

4. What are we talking about? • In classic marketing terms, product development is: • Describing and promoting goods and services as items that have both monetary value and satisfy customers’ needs and wants.

5. What is “productizing”? • In United Way of America’s evolving thinking, productizing is: • Describing and promoting community impact strategies as items that have both monetary value and satisfy donors’ needs and wants.

6. Who’s thinking about this? • Brian Gallagher’s theory of the business • Standards of Excellence • Impact Design and Learning • Investor Relations • Aligning for Growth learning circle • Born Learning Enhanced Campaigns • ???

7. Community Impact Business Model • Develop and implement • Impact Strategies that improve lives • Turn Impact Strategies into investment products • Segment investor markets • Connect investor aspirations with need/opportunity

8. Standards of Excellence • 2.1(d) United Way’s Part in the Change • 2.1(e) Planning for Monitoring and Measuring Progress and Results • 2.1(f) Investment Products • 2.3(c) Market Segmentation • 2.3(d) Relationship Management Approach • 2.5(b) Integration and Communication of Community Impact Messages

9. Focus Area Vision Target Issue Objective Community Impact Strategy Impact Design and LearningLevels of Focus Investments of time, relationships, technology, expertise, money, other resources

10. Community Impact Strategies • the carefully selected and research-based set of approaches that will address the underlying causes of an issue and lead to lasting change in community conditions and improving lives

11. Getting Focused e.g. Focus Area: Healthy Children Vision: Our community’s children are physically and mentally healthy Target issue: Dental health of preschool children • Objectives: • Ensure that children establish good dental health habits early • Promote regular dental check-ups and needed treatment beginning at age 1 Specific Strategies:

12. Increase parents’ knowledge of child dental health • Amend state Medicaid guidelines to cover children’s dental care Efforts to influence community changes that: • Incorporate information on children’s dental health care in parenting programs • Promote dental health education activities in child care centers Prevention & development services that: Basic human-needs & crisis services that: • Provide evaluation and referrals for emergency dental care for children in homeless shelters Specific Direct-service and Community- change Strategies e.g. Breakthrough opportunities to advance community change efforts • Influence a media campaign on children’s issues to spotlight child dental health

13. Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) & Asset Growth InitiativeTheory of Change Highlights Target Outcome Low-income families in Southern Arizona gain & grow financial assets. At VITA sites, low-income families talk to “wealth coaches” who enroll them in no-fee no-minimum bank accounts, refer them to financial education, IDAs. Low-income families gain assets through free VITA tax preparation help and EITC. Population Changes Low-income families know about VITA services & where to get them. Human service agencies review clients’ EITC eligibility, refer as appropriate. Community sites provide: • volunteers, space, equipment, etc. to host VITA services • information about the service Banks/credit unions offer no-fee no-minimum accounts. Nonprofits offer financial education. Social service agencies offer IDAs. Community Condition Changes Multi-sector EITC Task Force mobilizes sites to host VITA. City & County include funds for equipment, training, outreach materials, coordinator’s salary, etc. in annual budgets. AARP Tax-Aide trainers train VITA volunteers. Volunteer Center supports VITA vol recruitment.

14. From Investor Relations….6 Steps in Product Development • Market Analysis • Product Strategy • Product Plan • Sales Readiness • Sales Support • Evaluation

15. 6 Steps in Product Development

16. Product Strategy • Focus and set achievable goal(s) • Decide on target to serve & set success metrics • Describe the offering: Features-What is it? Functionality-How does it work? • Buy, build or partner? • Scope donor potential and likely types of donors • Consider naming and branding • Determine pricing: strategy and tactics

17. 6 Steps in Product Development

18. Product Plan • Assess operational readiness • Develop positioning statement • Set sales goals • - Annual • - Multi-year • - Capital • - Endowment • Describe advantages and benefits by donor segment • Prepare marketing plan - Success stories - Testimonials - Media Plan - Events • Establish sales plan and roll-out schedule

19. Why Do It? (IR) • Process itself yields: • Better quality • More efficient operations • Alignment among staff • Improved donor relationships • Better brand differentiation • Expanded reach and….. • More Dollars to support the Impact Agenda

20. From Aligning for GrowthOperating Assumptions • The community impact business model is associated with financial growth. • Greater alignment is associated with greater financial growth.

21. Aligning for Growth:What is the focus of our work? Focus on issue(s) Segment market Diversify development strategies Identify impact strategies Refine messages Report results

22. Begin with a cross-functional conversation • Clarify the impact strategy • Specify the impact on individuals and community • Identify fund raising needs

23. Born Learning &The Selling Strategy:Our Big Learnings

24. Learning No. 1 • Need for Clarity • UWSB6 needs to be clearer about defining Born Learning as • a strategyof Success By 6. We need to explain more clearly • that SB6 is the community impact “engine” for early learning • community change – and Born Learning is simply one kind of • “fuel.”

25. Learning No. 2 • Language matters • UWSB6 needs help in describing Success By 6 and Born • Learning in a clear & compelling way. We need a catchy • positioning phrase that sums it all up and helps others “sell.”

26. Learning No. 3 • Born Learning can fuel other UWA departmental goals • We have a better understanding of how Born Learning can • “fuel” other departmental “engines” • NCL examples • Big donor possibilities

27. Learning No. 4 • There are 4 different audiences & approaches to selling • National selling strategy • National pitch to external audiences (i.e. Walmart or Kellogg) -- They’re more likely to fund specific national change model • National pitch to internal audiences (i.e. NCL companies) – HQ company may be more likely to fund local change model in its community • Local selling strategy • 3. Local pitch to Major Markets -- It may be important to persuade more Strategic 31 to take on Born Learning 4. Local pitch to medium & smaller LUWs -- They need tools to persuade their companies to support them

28. Learning No. 5 • Born Learning can be a great way to reach minority populations/market segments. • It can help UWA differentiate a unique selling proposition, or • a fundable niche in early learning communications.

29. Learning No. 6 • Results matter & capturing that is hard • SB6 and our Born Learning campaign are the “poster children” of • larger challenges facing UWA. We’re trying to sell community • impact, which has concrete results -- but don’t know exactly what • our field is doing. We’re struggling with best way to determine & • define: • Reach • Who’s doing what • How to answer the question about how we’re making measurable differences.

30. Learning No. 7 • Consultative selling frame applies here • The phases of consultative selling are relating, discovering, • advocating, supporting. We think that a successful Born • Learning selling strategy has to be the same way – i.e. we can • and need to work from the same frame.

31. Our Big Learnings • Need for clarity • Language matters • Born Learning can “fuel” other UWA departmental goals • There are 4 different audiences and approaches to selling • Born Learning can be a great way to reach minority populations/market segments • Results matter and capturing that is hard • Consultative selling frame applies here

32. Final thoughts • Productizing is integral to the community impact model • Our knowledge about what it is and how to best “do it” are evolving • We know a lot already • Like all transformational change, we are learning as we go • It will require more aligned behavior • among CIL and other functions at UWA • within CIL • Our “big shared project” will help!

33. Thank you