Field Guide to
Nonprofit Program Design,
Marketing and Evaluation
Fourth Edition
By Carter McNamara, MBA, PhD
Authenticity Consulting, LLC
Minneapolis, MN USA
Copyright © 2002, 2006 Authenticity Consulting, LLC, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
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Credits
Cover design by Erin Scott/Wylde Hare Creative, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Photographs © 2005 JupiterImages Corporation/Comstock.com, primary cover photo;
© Teri McNamara/ Impressions & Expressions and Erin Scott/Wylde Hare Creative,
secondary cover photos.
Clip art by Nova Development Corporation Art Explosion 750,000 Images.
Printed by Graphic & Printing Services, Big Lake, Minnesota.
Manufactured in the United States of America
First Edition, June 2002
Second Edition, February 2003
Third Edition, June 2003
Fourth Edition, May 2006
Second printing, December 2007
Waiver of Responsibility
Various Web addresses are referenced in this book. The author and publisher have no legal
responsibility or liability for the currency or accuracy of these Web addresses or the content at these
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Publisher’s Cataloging in Publication Data
McNamara, Carter, 1953 Field Guide to Nonprofit Program Design, Marketing and Evaluation / by Carter McNamara
ISBN 1-933719-08-7
ISBN 978-1-933719-08-5
1. Nonprofit programs. 2. Marketing. 3. Evaluation. I. Title
Table of Contents
Table of Contents .................................................................................i
Introduction........................................................................................vii
Focus of this Field Guide.............................................................................................................. vii
Uses for this Field Guide .............................................................................................................. vii
How to Use Guide ........................................................................................................................ vii
Get Help – You Do Not Have to Do It All Yourself ...................................................................... x
About the Author .......................................................................................................................... xii
About Authenticity Consulting, LLC ........................................................................................... xii
Acknowledgements......................................................................................................................xiii
PART I: BACKGROUND AND PREPARATION .................................1
Understanding Nonprofit Organizations and Programs ..................3
Benefits of Systems View............................................................................................................... 3
Understanding “System” of Organizations and Programs.............................................................. 4
System Direction: Mission, Vision, Values, Goals and Strategies ................................................. 8
Nonprofits Programs, Configurations and Types ........................................................................... 8
Organization Chart of Typical Start-Up Nonprofit....................................................................... 11
Organization Chart of Typical Small Nonprofit with CEO .......................................................... 12
Organization Chart of Typical Medium-to-Large Sized Nonprofit.............................................. 13
Depicting the “System” of a Nonprofit Program.......................................................................... 14
Understanding Life Cycles of Organizations and Programs......................................................... 16
Understanding General Planning Process......................................20
Basic Planning Process and Terms ............................................................................................... 20
Guidelines to Ensure Successful Planning and Implementation................................................... 21
Guidelines for Successful Program Development and Evaluation ............................................... 24
Common Approaches to Program Planning ...................................27
“Build It and They Will Come” Approach ................................................................................... 27
Seat-of-the-Pants Approach.......................................................................................................... 28
Incremental Planning Approach ................................................................................................... 29
Business Planning Approach ........................................................................................................ 29
Business Development Approach................................................................................................. 31
Approaches and Good Program Management .............................................................................. 32
Strategic Planning: Direction for Programs and Staff ..................33
What Is Strategic Planning?.......................................................................................................... 33
All Else Flows from Strategic Planning ....................................................................................... 34
Developing Your Basic Strategic Plan ......................................................................................... 35
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Field Guide to Nonprofit Program Design, Marketing and Evaluation
PART II: PROGRAM PLANNING...................................................... 39
Chronology of Activities in Program Planning .............................. 41
Importance of Strong Marketing Orientation.................................. 43
Good Marketing Is Good Management ........................................................................................ 43
Critical Role of Market Research ................................................................................................. 43
Developing Program Framework..................................................... 45
Assessment of Community Needs and Interests........................................................................... 45
Vision for Program Participants ................................................................................................... 48
Desired Outcomes for Program Participants ................................................................................ 49
Program Methods to Help Participants Achieve Outcomes ......................................................... 50
Outcomes Goals/Targets and Indicators toward Hitting Targets.................................................. 52
Outputs/Tangibles Produced by Program Methods...................................................................... 54
Preliminary Program Logic Model............................................................................................... 54
Marketing Analysis ........................................................................... 56
Target Markets and Their Unique Features .................................................................................. 56
Perceived Program Benefits to Each Target Market .................................................................... 58
Packaging ..................................................................................................................................... 59
Unique Value Proposition ............................................................................................................ 60
Naming and Branding................................................................................................................... 60
Pricing Analysis............................................................................................................................ 62
Know Your Competition .............................................................................................................. 63
What Current or Potential Collaborators Exist? ........................................................................... 64
Applicable Laws and Regulations ................................................................................................ 65
Intellectual Property – Copyrights, Trademarks and Patents ....................................................... 65
Summary Description of Programs and Service........................................................................... 66
Remaining Marketing Analysis Tasks and Considerations .......................................................... 66
Marketing Goals ........................................................................................................................... 66
Planning Program Development...................................................... 68
Guidelines about Estimating Costs............................................................................................... 68
Starting Your Program ................................................................................................................. 71
Planning Program Operations ......................................................... 73
Advertising and Promotions ......................................................................................................... 73
Sales.............................................................................................................................................. 74
Customer Service.......................................................................................................................... 75
Delivery of Services ..................................................................................................................... 76
Personnel Management ................................................................................................................ 77
Materials (Supplies, Tools, Equipment and Facilities)................................................................. 78
Planning Finances to Operate Program.......................................... 80
Key Financial Concepts................................................................................................................ 80
How to Develop Summary Program Budget................................................................................ 81
Sample Summary Program Budget Format.................................................................................. 87
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Table of Contents
PART III: PROGRAM EVALUATION.................................................89
Understanding Program Evaluation ................................................91
Myths about Program Evaluation ................................................................................................. 91
What Is Program Evaluation?....................................................................................................... 92
Reasons to Do Program Evaluation .............................................................................................. 92
Basic Ingredients for Program Evaluation.................................................................................... 93
Major Considerations to Designing Your Program Evaluation................................................... 94
Common Types of Program Evaluations ........................................96
Implementation Evaluation – What Are We Doing?.................................................................... 96
Process Evaluation – How Does the Program Work? .................................................................. 97
Goals-Based Evaluation – Are We Achieving Goals? ................................................................. 98
Outcomes Evaluation – What Are Impacts on Clients?.............................................................. 100
Planning Your Program Evaluation ...............................................102
Should You Hire a Program Evaluator? ..................................................................................... 102
Who Is the Audience for Your Program Evaluation?................................................................. 103
What Management Decisions Do You Need to Make? .............................................................. 103
What Evaluation Questions Should You Answer? ..................................................................... 105
What Information Is Needed to Answer Evaluation Questions? ............................................... 106
What Are Best Sources for This Information/Data?................................................................... 106
What Are Best Methods to Collect Information/Data? .............................................................. 107
How Will You Analyze and Interpret Your Results? ................................................................. 109
How Will You Report Your Evaluation Results?....................................................................... 110
Who Should Conduct the Evaluation?........................................................................................ 111
Review and Test Evaluation Plans.............................................................................................. 111
Ethics and Information Privacy .................................................................................................. 112
Pitfalls to Avoid During Evaluation Planning ............................................................................ 112
PART IV: ASSEMBLING AND IMPLEMENTING PLANS.............115
Role of Leadership ..........................................................................117
Assembling Plans............................................................................118
Sections Common to Many Plan Documents ............................................................................. 118
Assembling Program Development Plan.................................................................................... 120
Assembling Program Marketing Plan......................................................................................... 121
Assembling Program Promotions Plans (Sales, Advertising and Promotions) ......................... 122
Assembling Program Operations Plan........................................................................................ 123
Assembling Program Staffing Plan ............................................................................................ 124
Assembling Nonprofit Business Plan ......................................................................................... 125
Assembling Program Evaluation Plan ........................................................................................ 129
Assembling Fundraising Proposal .............................................................................................. 130
Have Plans Reviewed By Others ................................................................................................ 133
Approve Final Version of Plans ................................................................................................. 134
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Field Guide to Nonprofit Program Design, Marketing and Evaluation
Implementing Plans ........................................................................ 135
Tools to Track Status of Implementation ................................................................................... 135
Capture Learnings from Implementation of Plans...................................................................... 136
APPENDICES................................................................................... 137
Appendix A: Key Terms................................................................. 139
Appendix B: Resources for Nonprofits........................................ 143
Free Management LibrarySM ...................................................................................................... 143
Free Nonprofit Micro-eMBASM Organization Development Program...................................... 144
Organizations Assisting Nonprofits............................................................................................ 145
Free, On-Line Newsletters and Forums...................................................................................... 146
Appendix C: Checklist of Nonprofit Management Indicators .... 147
Appendix D: Worksheets............................................................... 161
Assessment of Community Needs and Interests......................................................................... 163
Vision for Program Participants ................................................................................................. 166
Desired Outcomes for Program Participants .............................................................................. 168
Methods to Help Participants Achieve Desired Outcomes......................................................... 170
Outcomes Goals/Targets and Indicators toward Hitting Targets................................................ 172
Preliminary Program Logic Model............................................................................................. 173
Target Markets, Their Features and Benefits They Perceive ..................................................... 174
Packaging Analysis .................................................................................................................... 175
Unique Value Proposition Description....................................................................................... 176
Program Name Analysis............................................................................................................. 177
Pricing Analysis.......................................................................................................................... 178
Competitor Analysis................................................................................................................... 180
Collaborator Analysis................................................................................................................. 182
Laws and Regulations................................................................................................................. 183
Description of Service ................................................................................................................ 185
Summary of Remaining Marketing Analysis Tasks and Considerations ................................... 187
Marketing Goals ......................................................................................................................... 188
Program Planning Development................................................................................................. 189
Advertising and Promotions ....................................................................................................... 193
Sales Planning ............................................................................................................................ 194
Customer Service Planning ........................................................................................................ 195
Delivery of Services ................................................................................................................... 196
Personnel Needs ......................................................................................................................... 200
Materials (Supplies, Tools, Equipment and Facilities).............................................................. 203
Summary Program Budget ......................................................................................................... 206
Planning Your Program Evaluation............................................................................................ 210
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Table of Contents
Appendix E: Basic Methods in Business Research ....................215
Planning Your Business Research .............................................................................................. 215
Overview of Methods to Collect Information............................................................................. 217
Ethics: Information Release from Research Participants............................................................ 219
Guidelines to Conducting Observations ..................................................................................... 220
Guidelines to Writing Questionnaires......................................................................................... 222
Guidelines to Conducting Interviews ......................................................................................... 225
Guidelines to Conducting Focus Groups .................................................................................... 229
Guidelines to Completing Case Studies...................................................................................... 231
Guidelines to Conducting Pilot Research (Test Market) ............................................................ 231
Convenient Methods to Collect Information .............................................................................. 233
Major Sources of Trends Information about Nonprofits ............................................................ 234
Major Sources of Market Research Information ........................................................................ 234
Analyzing and Interpreting Research Data................................................................................. 236
Appendix F: Major Methods of Advertising and Promotions .....237
Collateral, Advertising and Outreach ......................................................................................... 237
Promotional Activities through the Media.................................................................................. 240
Other Promotional Activities and Events ................................................................................... 241
Recommended Readings – an Annotated List .............................243
Index .................................................................................................249
v