In nonprofit world, not measuring is not an option according to Katie Paine in Chapter 13 of Measure What Matters. We know relationships are the foundation for success in any business, but good relationships are especially important for nonprofit organizations, because nonprofits rely on volunteerism, goodwill and word of mouth to raise brand awareness.
Paine lists several steps for measuring the strength of a nonprofit organization's communal relationships. The first is using your mission to define your objectives. Measure What Matters mentions Habitat for Humanity, a nonprofit that works to build houses for underprivileged people. The success of Habitat's mission significantly depends on the help of volunteers. So rather than simply measuring the amount of money they raise or the number of houses they build, Habitat must also measure the strength of their relationships, specifically with volunteers, to determine success. With this in mind, Habitat may establish the following objective for measurement: Increase volunteers by a certain percentage over the coming year.
The next step involves identifying and prioritizing target audiences. In the case of Habitat for Humanity, volunteers would make up one of the most important audiences. Nonprofit organizations must remember that these target audiences can make or break the organization; making sure target audiences receive and understand your key messages is vital to their support and your success. It's important to prioritize these key audiences by measuring their impressions, awareness and understanding of your organization's mission. The next steps in measurement for nonprofits include establishing benchmarks, choosing measurement metrics, picking a measurement tool, and then analyzing the data and using the results to make changes that will improve the strength of the organization's relationships.
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