Coggin of Quo Vadis to stress importance of proactive marketing at key July NPO workshop

June 11, 2012 - PRLog -- A three day workshop, focussing on NPO’s  is being held in Johannesburg at the beginning of July, and attracting a lot of interest  not just from the non profit sector, but, with a high powered line up of speakers, from the commercial sector as well.  The conference, which will be held in Bedfordview, features Human Rights Attorney of the year for 2011, Egon Oswald, as one of the keynote speakers.  The workshop will introduce experts in the field of justice, fundraising, advocacy, good governance and technology, and has been billed as the one workshop which simply should not be missed for any NPO’s experiencing difficulties in the current economic climate.

One of the highlights will be a presentation by well known communications expert, Theo Coggin.   Coggin has more than 40 years experience in communications and started his career in newspapers and radio before moving on to the civil society and corporate fields. He joined Quo Vadis Communications in 1996 after a distinguished career with Nedcor.  During his time with the bank, he formed and headed the Corporate Communications Division. He is a past South African Chairman of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC).

He has travelled and worked extensively overseas and has presented in many international forums in the US, Britain, Europe and Africa. His experience includes the corporate, financial, civil society, socio-economic, religious and political fields. He has served on many boards, and has been chairperson of the panel of judges for the Africa Region of the IABC Gold Quill Awards. He is a skilled trainer, facilitator and coach. His knowledge and experience within the public relations and communications fields is much sought after, and he is the recipient of an International (IABC) Gold Quill Award for his publication, “Stop Crime”.

Coggin says “As we all recognise, economic times are tough – and have been for a while. In a sense this is not new to NPOs – almost by definition they operate in a deleterious economic climate, since their “products” are generally not income producing. In general they rely on public funding, grants from foundations and overseas funding. Whether such funding is forthcoming depends on their reputation and governance. In the modern era, projecting a good image ensures that publics are convinced of NPOs’ good governance (and this includes delivering on their “products”).

Regrettably, many negate the importance of projecting this image and have a short-term view of publicity. They cut the line items for media relations, public relations and proficient corporate communications from their budget. The result: limited or no knowledge in the market place about who they are or what they do and this ad hoc short-termism approach to public relations has a dramatically negative effect.”

Coggin’s presentation will focus on getting NPO’s into the habit of being proactive in their marketing campaigns, sharing the news about their projects and organisations and ensuring that their existing donors are kept in the loop about the work they are achieving.  This approach will also assist with building a broader public profile and attracting new donors or volunteers and ensuring ongoing awareness of their organisation.

With South African NPO’s   finding it more and more difficult to access funding, both national and international, a more dynamic marketing campaign and brand development is vital to the ongoing survival of these organisations which from such a vital part of South African society.    

The workshop, which is being staged by the Coalition of Anglican Children’s Homes (COACH) is entitled Survival, Strategy and Sustainability: South African NPO’s in 2012, takes place from 3 – 5 July.

Registrations for the workshop are currently being accepted and more information is available from sandhira@coach.org.za or by calling Sandhira on 011 6164015/6/7 or by logging onto the COACH website http://www.coach.org.za where you can download the workshop brochure and complete an online registration document.  The price for the three day workshop is R3450.00 per delegate.