2009 Nonprofit Tagline Winners Announced

The winners of this year's Getting Attention Nonprofit Tagline Awards were announced recently by Nancy Schwartz, president of nonprofit services provider Nancy Schwartz & Co. and author of the Getting Attention blog and e-update that organizes the annual competition.

Thirteen tagline winners were selected by more than 4,800 nonprofit professionals from among 60 finalists drawn from 1,702 nonprofit taglines submitted to the competition.

The point of the awards program is to encourage nonprofits to effectively use taglines — what Schwartz says is a high-impact, low-cost marketing tactic often overlooked or under-emphasized by nonprofits.

According to Getting Attention, a 2008 survey showed that seven in 10 nonprofits rated their tagline as poor or didn’t use one at all.

“It’s a huge missed opportunity for nonprofits that don’t implement a tagline,” Schwartz said recently in a Getting Attention press release, “especially when you consider all the places a tagline appears throughout a nonprofit’s marketing and communications program, and how many people potentially digest an organization’s tagline in any given year.”

Winning taglines will be featured in the forthcoming 2009 Getting Attention Nonprofit Tagline Report, due out later this month. The report also will feature tips on creating successful taglines, things not to do with taglines and more than 2,500 tagline examples.

The 2009 tagline award winners are as follows:

Arts & Culture: Big Sky. Big Land. Big History. — Montana Historical Society
Combines the state’s most distinctive characteristics (Big Sky, Big Land) with the organization's mission in an exciting way.

Associations: Building community deep in the hearts of Texans — TexasNonprofits
Tweaks the title of an old American song from the 1940s and connects it to the spirit, passion and mission of the state’s citizenry.

Civic Benefit: Holding Power Accountable — Common Cause
Clearly communicates the organization’s mission, unique value and commitment. "A powerful economy of words," notes Schwartz. For this organization, with a name that doesn't spell out its mission, the tagline does a great job of communicating its focus.

Education: A Mind is a Terrible Thing to Waste® — UNCF - The United Negro College Fund
A 38-year-old tagline that's still strong. A classic.

Environment & Animals: Because the earth needs a good lawyer — Earthjustice
Uses the framework of what we all know — that a lawyer protects rights — to position its role and impact in the environmental movement, with a touch of humor. "If your tagline makes people smile or light up, without stepping on your message, then you’ve made an emotional connection," Schwartz says.

Grantmaking: If you want to be remembered, do something memorable. — The Cleveland Foundation
Clear, concise and recruits people to the cause.

Health & Sciences: Finding a cure now … so our daughters won't have to. © — PA Breast Cancer Coalition
Emphatic and poignant, striking an emotional chord while conveying the focus and impact of its work.

Human Services: Filling pantries. Filling lives. — Houston Food Bank
Clearly conveys the organization's work and impact. Hits on how the literal act of putting food on people’s shelves has an emotional payoff.

International, Foreign Affairs & National Security: Send a Net. Save a Life. — Nothing But Nets
"Short, punchy and laser-sharp, the Nothing But Nets tagline connects the action with the outcome. It’s inspirational in the simplicity of its message and its reason for existing. The kind of tagline nonprofits should model," Schwartz says.

Jobs & Workforce Development: Nothing Stops A Bullet Like A Job — Homeboy Industries
This tagline tells a memorable story that gets your attention in only six words.

Media: Telling stories that make a difference — Barefoot Workshops
For an organization with a name that's vague, this tagline does a good job of conveying its focus. "Saved by the tagline," as Schwartz says.

Religion & Spiritual Development: Open hearts. Open minds. Open doors. — The People of The United Methodist Church
Warm, enthusiastic and embracing.

Other: A head for business. A heart for the world. — SIFE (Students In Free Enterprise)
A "crystal-clear tagline that conveys not only what’s unique about it but also capitalizes on the contrast between profit and compassion," Schwartz says.

For a free copy of the 2009 Getting Attention Nonprofit Tagline Report, subscribe to the free Getting Attention e-update at http://www.nancyschwartz.com/getting_attention.html