Is musician Joe Hayden a rapper, classical banjo player, pop singer or symphonic musician? At a PR workshop I conducted recently for the Jackson Arts Council (JAC) in Jackson, Tenn., participants brought him to life in each of these ways.

At the end of the three hour morning class, I challenged them to practice what they had learned by working in small groups to come up with a public relations plan (with a goal, target audience, key messages and strategies) to promote a fundraising concert by imaginary Jackson native, Joe Hayden, a famous musician returning home to perform a fundraiser for their organization. Each group gave him a different personality, but all came up with effective plans to achieve their stated goals for the event.

The Center For Nonprofit Management in Nashville recruited me to lead the workshop for a cross section of Jackson’s nonprofit leadership. It included executives and board members from organizations including JAC, the Jackson Symphony, CASA, Jackson Theatre Guild, local colleges, even The Ned.

After exploring the nuts and bolts of creating and implementing a strategic public relations plan that can be implemented without a large budget or paid staff, I was impressed by how committed the participants were to operating their respective organizations like businesses and maximizing their resources to achieve success.

While success varied from agency to agency, there are some constants. All are dedicated to their organization’s mission and to achieving the financial goals to enable them to further that mission and achieve their goals, whether through fundraising, ticket sales, enrollment or some other measurement.

It struck me that their grasp of the importance of tying your public relations efforts to business goals, pursuing a strategic direction, creating a realistic timeline and budget, measuring progress and doing more of what works and less of what doesn’t was far greater than that of many for-profit businesses.

When you have less to work with, every minute and every cent you spend on your effort is critical. You don’t have the luxury of trial and error. Perhaps those of us in for-profit business could learn some lessons from the successful nonprofits in our midst.