What Is the Difference Between Mission and Purpose?
If you pay attention to brands and marketing, you may have noticed that “purpose” is having a moment, particularly with for-profit brands.
According to Accenture, 62% of consumers expect companies to stand up for the issues they’re passionate about. As a result, many businesses are scrambling to connect the services and/or products they sell to causes beyond mere profit.
In the for-profit realm, we tend to call this “purpose.” Although you don’t hear that word as much among nonprofits. To understand why, we need to look at what these foundational statements actually are.
Mission
What your organization does and how you do it.
Purpose
The compelling reason why your organization exists.
Vision
A description of the world your organization is helping create.
Values
The beliefs, philosophies, and principles that drive your organization.
When the What Is the Why
Put simply, the reason you don’t hear nonprofits talk about purpose more is because “the compelling reason they exist” is already present in their missions.
Unlike for-profit organizations, nonprofits’ work and organizational structures were created to make the world a better place. In other words, they wear their purpose on their sleeves.
The Foundation for Growth
This gives nonprofit brands a natural advantage over for-profits. By centering their missions, nonprofits have the opportunity to build their brands on a more authentic and trustworthy foundation that inspires audiences to act.
To explore how you can leverage your mission to create a strong and authentic brand, we invite you to check out our Branding page. You can start by taking a free Brand Health Assessment that will give you a good idea of how your nonprofit brand is performing and what you can do to strengthen it.
Click below to learn more.
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