How Many Flags are You Flying?

WHO OWNS THAT HOTEL?

Did you know that the major hotel chains do not own most of their hotels?

In fact, Marriott and Hilton each own less than 1% of their hotels. Instead, independent owner-operators pay to build and run 99% of the hotels. The employees you see at nearly every Hilton or Marriot hotels are not Hilton or Marriott employees – they are employees of the independent owner-operators of the hotel. The independent owner-operators pay Hilton or Marriott a franchise fee to be part of their system.

The big hotel names like Hilton or Marriott are known as “flags” in the industry. The owner-operators count on the Hilton or Marriott brand to help attract and target customers through promotion, reputation, and loyalty programs.

ONE FLAG

Although Hilton and Marriott have a variety of brands from economy to luxury, they only fly one flag at a hotel.

Compare that to most United Ways. You will often see United Ways not only flying their flag, but all of the flags of their partner agencies. The ability to generate awareness, understanding, and support for United Way is compromised when the United Way flag is one of many flags.

I have often said that the hardest job at a United Way is marketing because from day-to-day or sometimes hour-to-hour, the flag you are communicating about changes. A great example of this are social media posts which whiplash back and forth between United Way and a variety of partner agencies and depending on when you pay attention to the social media, the flag you see will be different.

The inspiration for this blog post came from a board member, who during a recent strategic planning session said: “Our own flag is getting buried under all the other flags we are flying, along with staff who have to keep up with it.”

YOUR ONE FLAG

If you want to increase awareness and understanding of your United Way, as well as attract and retain donors, it is essential that you fly only your United Way flag. Think of your United Way as a hotel, it needs to have a consistent and recognizable appearance, image, message, and value proposition that is not cluttered or lost among other “flags.”

Am I suggesting you stop flying the flags of your partner agencies? YES!

If the only reason to support United Way is the partner agencies that are funded, then there is little relevance to United Way.

I am not suggesting that you do not acknowledge your partner agencies, but rather you do not make partner agencies your focus. One way United Ways do this successfully is to shift from being partner-agency focused to being issue focused. Rather than promoting your partner agencies, try saying “When you give to United Way you will be helping 500 families become financially stable.” By focusing on an issue, you provide your donors a clear reason for supporting United Way – which can be your “flag.”

Becoming issue focused not only increases the awareness and understanding of your United Way, it also raises more resources, and creates measurable impact. To learn more about an issue focus, and how it can transform your United Way, watch this video.