"There's no excuse for not knowing a little bit more than you do right now about your audiences." (Ben Smithee) In 2024, transparency and adaptability are more essential than ever for the survival of your brand.  Transparency, because stakeholders have so many options to pick from that if your marketing material fails to clearly outline what you are offering and what they must do to obtain it, they will distrust you and switch to your competitors. Adaptability, because easy access to information about global pandemics, contentious elections, and technological upheavals puts their values and priorities in a state of continuous flux. According to Ben, if you want your marketing to be effective in 2024, you must invest in results-driven creativity. Converting the adjective 'creative' into a noun, when Ben talks about developing your 'creative', he refers to original marketing that is efficacious instead of merely making art for art's sake. "I've seen really beautiful pieces that have caused nobody to donate and then I've seen artistically not my style [pieces] that have been really great optimizations." Marketing experts cannot rely on the same old best practices in today's shifting landscape, but they have to make sure that their creative efforts actually drive results. Learn how to do both by streaming the full episode. Ben Smithee is CEO of The Smithee Group, a digital growth agency with a mission to empower entrepreneurs and businesses to dream bigger and achieve multi-generational integrity. Ben has spoken to audiences in over 20 countries and is regarded as an expert in the next-gen consumer. Get free nonprofit professional development resources, connections to cause work peers, and more at https://nonprofithub.org