Nonprofit External Communications: General Management, Public Relations, or Fundraising Tool?

Abstract

In the nonprofit sector, effective communication with stakeholders is pivotal for promoting a good reputation, gaining financial resources and, eventually, pursuing an organization’s mission. Although nonprofits increasingly use and diversify their communication channels, such as social media platforms, existing research falls short of explaining how nonprofits institutionalize their different communication strategies. Drawing on institutional theory, this study attempts to bridge this research gap by exploring how nonprofits invest in their communication channels, both non-social media and social media communications, using a sample of U.S. nonprofit museums. The results of the study provide empirical evidence that nonprofits do not treat their non-social media and social media communication channels in the same way. In particular, a significant positive association between advertising expenses and social media channels indicates that nonprofit museums institutionalize their social media communication as the main function of public relations. Further theoretical and practical implications of the results are also discussed.

The scope of “marketing” research in the nonprofit sector: Lessons from the last 20 years literature

“…Additionally, scholars have conducted research on publicity and public relations that are implemented through media such as newspapers (Helmig et al, 2012) and social media (Curtis et al, 2010; Suh et al, 2021). Although less studied, scholars have also examined direct marketing (Mallin & Finkle, 2007) and sales promotion (Westberg & Pope, 2014).…”

“…Scholars argue that nonprofits should consider allocating their resources to promotion for better communication with their stakeholders and the public (Suh, 2020; Wymer et al, 2006). Understanding of communication trends is beneficial to nonprofits as they can then choose the optimal medium in which to communicate with their target stakeholders (Suh et al, 2021; Wood, 2008; Wymer et al, 2006) and thereby appropriately apply resource allocation.…”

Determinants of Voluntary Organizations’ Attention on Facebook: The Case of Norwegian Voluntary Organizations

“…Another important line of research using digital traces has investigated whether social media use by nonprofit and voluntary organizations affects their organizational capacity and ability to attract resources, especially through fundraising (Lam & Nie, 2020; Lee, 2021; Lee & Shon, 2021; Olinski & Szamrowski, 2021; Jiwon Suh, 2022; J. Suh et al, 2021; Sun & Asencio, 2019).…”

Message (in)congruence: Tweeting while competing for donations

“…Many nonprofits rely on donated income to deliver on their missions. When it comes to securing donations, we see three trends growing in prominence: online giving (Saxton & Wang, 2014), social media use (Suh et al, 2021), and gamification (Curley et al, 2021; Walk et al, 2022). Mechanisms for giving are evolving, with an ever-growing reliance on web-based platforms.…”