Changing a nonprofit’s name is one of the most invigorating efforts an organization’s leaders can undertake. When a name no longer serves your organization—or leads to confusion—it’s a necessity.
Naming is hard! It requires reflection and commitment from a nonprofit’s leadership team. However, nothing offers greater opportunity for breathing new life into an established organization or cementing the vision of a new one.
Here’s our cheat sheet to making your new name a household name:
Ground your name in your brand.
Everyone at your organization must clearly understand who you are, what you do, and why it matters before your team can evaluate potential names. Take the time to reach consensus on the brand—or reputation—you want your organization to have, so you can determine what kind of name you need.
Adamah emerged from a merger between Hazon—the Jewish movement for sustainability— and the Pearlstone Center—an important Jewish environmental steward and retreat center in Maryland. To bring both organizations under a single cohesive brand, aligning on who they would be was crucial. The Hebrew word “adamah,” meaning ground or Earth, contains within it the word “adam,” meaning person—a symbolic reflection of the intertwining of people and planet. The name “Adamah” weaves sustainability into the fabric of Jewish life. Their tagline “People. Planet. Purpose.” translates this mission in a clear, concise way.
Set clear criteria for what your name should do—before you begin.
Set clear criteria for what your name should do—before you begin. Does it need to sound less clinical? Communicate the national scope of your work? Reinforce your position as a leader? Your ground rules for success will be a helpful rubric by which to judge contenders.
Raise The Future connects young people in the foster care system with adults who can play a meaningful role in their lives as caregivers, mentors, and adoptive parents. But their old name – “The Adoption Exchange” – got in the way of their work. “Exchange” unintentionally reduced the young people they worked with to commodities and “Adoption” made promises that they couldn’t always keep.
Trading the brand equity of their old name for a new one was a significant risk. Today, “Raise the Future” has multiplied their support, added key partnerships, and attracted a top-notch new CEO. NBA star Giannas Antetokounmpo even chose them as his All-Star Game beneficiary. This organization’s old brand wouldn’t have galvanized this type of excitement and support. It took courageous and visionary leadership (and audacious thinking) to move forward despite the discomfort, and it paid off in a big way.
Make sure your nonprofit’s new name sends a powerful message.
Names are vital signals for cash-strapped nonprofits, so they need to work hard. Unlike the private sector, most nonprofits cannot buy their audiences’ attention through paid media. Make sure that your name is strong and clear, and that it sends a message every time your audience sees or hears it. A name can’t say everything, but make sure it conveys something of your uniqueness or value.
We Don’t Waste, an organization that picks up uneaten food from Colorado caterers and redistributes it to local food banks, has a name that sends a powerful message. Their name also grew with their organization as they shifted into a broader niche to address the big, intractable problems of food insecurity and food waste. Having that clarity of purpose was a boon that connected directly back to their roots and your name should, too.
Aim for a name that highlights your impact.
It’s unlikely that your audiences will align with your brand based on what you do every day programmatically. Instead, they’re interested in impact—what it means when your nonprofit meets its goals, and how the world is better off because of it. If your name paints a picture of the positive results of your work, it’s a winner.
California Changelawyers used to be the California Bar Association, but that didn’t reflect the work they do. Their focus had changed from traditional grantmaking to empowering the next generation of lawyers, judges, and activists to create a more diverse legal profession. We recognized the opportunity to reposition them as social-justice leaders who believe lawyers are the most powerful and impactful changemakers in creating a more just society. So we co-created a bold new name and new word – California ChangeLawyers – to fund justice and change the world.
Make your brand emotional.
The relationship your supporters have with you will be based, in large part, on emotion. The mere mention of your name need not make them cry, but if your name is strong, it will make them feel something. When the public feels good about you, they are more likely to proudly tout their support of your work. Have you flaunted your NPR coffee mug lately? Donned your Sierra Club hat? Swung a Humane Society tote bag over your shoulder on your way to the farmers’ market?
Aspire came out of two nonprofit organizations that worked on literacy merging together for operational and mission efficiency. Research revealed that their community didn’t want them to focus on literacy alone. They wanted the new organization focusing on what literacy can do. For students, their families, and communities at large, literacy is a gateway to a better life.
Many nonprofit mergers fail to inspire and engage their communities. However, Aspire’s brand fired up board and staff members from both organizations. Students, donors, and civic leaders who share Aspire’s goal also responded positively. Their community united around their ultimate goal: help students feel confident as they fulfill the promise of learning.
Are you struggling with a name change? Are you re-evaluating your brand? We want to be there for you, so let’s talk.