134: What is a Transformational Economy, and How Can it Help a Nonprofit? Interview with Mark S.A. Smith, Co-Founder of Nimbility Works

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The collective values and priorities of a society change with each generation. We express our values with our time and money, so those values then drive the economy through the demand for relevant products and services. With each economic shift, the value proposition and marketing methods adapt to the current priorities to provide the most perceived value.

As a nonprofit, you want to be on the peak of the value curve. During our discussion, Mark provided a journey of economic shifts through the history of America to help us understand where we are today and how nonprofits can take advantage of the current transformational economy to engage supporters.

Join us for a journey through history to discover how you can help your nonprofit grow using assets you already have on hand.

What is the Transformational Economy?

Civilizations start as tribes in the subsistence economy, where we get enough to meet our needs and live. The goal is to say, “I'm alive.”

As tribes settle, we move to the commodity economy where we harvest commodities such as crops, wood, and mining to buy and trade. The goal is to say, “I'm productive.”

As the value of commodities increases, people move into the product economy where we buy labor savings. So instead of making your own products, we buy products someone else made. The goal is to say, “I’m efficient.” In the United States, we shifted to the product economy during the Industrial Revolution.

As the need for products is met, we shift to the service economy where we free up time by paying for services we previously did on our own. 

Then we moved to the experience economy, where people wanted more than a service—they wanted a memorable service.

Now, we are living in a transformational economy, where people want more than interesting memories. They want authentic, meaningful experiences to make things better, whether it’s improving themselves, their workplace, their family, their community, or the world. 

This is what people are craving and paying for today, so rapidly growing companies are providing an opportunity for their customers to be better people through their products and services.

How the Transformational Economy Can Help a Nonprofit

The marketing efforts of nonprofits have operated on a service economy mindset, where we focus our recruitment messaging on the services we provide. But since we are in the business of transformation, it should feel natural to embrace the shift and showcase how a contributor makes the world a better place by supporting our cause.

However, amid this shift, nonprofit organizations face a larger struggle to be heard through the noise with minimal marketing dollars. So how does a nonprofit get and sustain supporters’ attention long enough to appeal to their sense of purpose?

The Power of Story to Embrace the Transformational Economy

The most powerful and entertaining way to showcase transformation is through storytelling. 
Mark explained, “You can't sell transformation with features, advantages, and benefits. A person will not understand until they have been through the experience. How we do that is by telling a story of somebody who has been through the transformation. You have to tell it as a hero's journey.”

To read today's full episode: What is a Transformational Economy, and How Can it Help a Nonprofit?

 

Challenge Question:
What is a recent initiative you can search for stories of transformation?

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