Some of the nation’s most prominent brands exist, in part, because they have spent billions to advertise their names and products.

Nonprofit groups, however, are not among the big spenders in the advertising world.

And that is selling their missions short, Dan Pallotta writes on Free the Nonprofits, a blog on Harvard Business Publishing’s Web site

“Charity goes without this function with respect to the mass market; in part because of a reactionary disdain for anything that smacks of commercialism, but mostly because of public pressure to maximize short-term program spending without regard for building scale or long-term problem-solving,” Mr. Pallotta writes. “Donors consider paid advertising wasteful.”

Collectively, American companies, nonprofit groups, and other entities spend about $730-billion on marketing and advertising, writes Mr. Pallotta, the author of Uncharitable: How Restraints on Nonprofits Undermine Their Potential.

“A liberal estimate of annual health and human-service nonprofit marketing spending is $1.9 billion — one dollar for charity, $384 for something else,” he writes.

Because of this disparity, Mr. Pallotta argues that nonprofit groups are hamstrung in their efforts to get the attention of potential supporters and to raise awareness of their causes.

“If The New York Times every morning were full of ads for ending AIDS, eradicating poverty, and curing cancer, those causes might just stand a chance against Bloomingdale’s and Netflix,” he writes. “And make no mistake about it — that’s who the competition is.”

Should nonprofit groups spend more money on advertising? Or do online social networks or other tools offer other ways for groups to spread their messages in a cost-effective way?

Click on the comments link below this post to share your thoughts.