Why Community Is Your Org’s Best Competitive Advantage
Nonprofits are running on fumes. Financially and emotionally.
Donor pools are shrinking. Volunteers are harder to recruit and even harder to keep. Inflation has driven up the cost of everything from postage to payroll. Government support is receding just as the demand for services keeps climbing.
The old mantra of “doing more with less” has given way to a harsher truth: most organizations are simply doing less with less.
In that kind of environment, the question becomes: what advantage can any nonprofit actually hold onto?
Competitors can copy your “product.” They can even copy your website design.
But they can’t copy your community.
That’s your moat.
The Psychology of Belonging
Psychologists have studied this for decades: people aren’t just rational actors making choices based on price or features. We’re social creatures first.
Belonging isn’t a “nice to have.” It’s hardwired. When we join a group, even something as simple as a Facebook fan page or a volunteer team, we begin to absorb the group’s identity as our own.
That’s why communities are so sticky. Once you see yourself as a member, you don’t leave easily. It’s not just about what you buy, it’s about who you are.
A Shoe Brand That Built a Moat
Take Tieks, the ballet flat brand. There are at least 17 cheaper alternatives in the market. Same basic shoe. Same color palette. Similar comfort claims.
But Tieks has something the others don’t: Tieks Anonymous, a massive online community. Thousands of women (and some men) gather to share photos, trade stories, and yes, sometimes even buy and sell shoes.
Competitors can make a flat shoe. They can’t make that.
Once you’re part of Tieks Anonymous, you’re not just a customer. You’re a Tieks person. And that’s an identity.
The Lesson for Nonprofits
Katrina VanHuss and I see this up close when we work with nonprofits. Leaders often think their “product” is the service they deliver—feeding families, funding research, running programs.
But what keeps donors and volunteers coming back is rarely the program itself. It’s the sense of community wrapped around it.
That Friday night potluck at the food pantry? Community.
The private Facebook group where parents of kids with cancer share their stories? Community.
The thrift store where volunteers take in donations and sell them to fund programs for the intellectually disabled? Community.
The walk event where you meet other survivors who look you in the eye and say, “me too”? Community.
Programs meet needs. Communities meet identities.
Why Communities Are So Hard to Kill
Once a community takes root, it’s almost impossible to stamp out.
Why? Because the value is no longer controlled by the organization. It lives in the relationships between members. Psychologists call this “many-to-many” connection. The nonprofit sparks the fire, but the members keep it burning.
Even if the organization stumbles (or even disappears) people often keep the community alive. We’ve seen it happen with alumni groups, patient networks, and grassroots movements.
That’s why community is your true moat.
What This Means for You
If you’re running a nonprofit, stop thinking only about how to get the next donation. Ask yourself:
Where do our supporters find each other?
Do we give them places to connect without us in the middle?
What rituals or traditions are we nurturing that make people say, “This is my group”?
Because in the end, it’s not your tax status, your logo, or your annual report that protects you.
It’s the community of people who’ve decided that being part of you is part of who they are.
Community is fire. Once lit, it’s hard to put out.
But you’ve got to strike the match.