Thinking about stepping up your nonprofit marketing game? If you’re looking for some new nonprofit marketing ideas to implement in your strategy, you’ve come to the right place!
According to a recent study, the most effective communication and fundraising tools for nonprofit organizations are: website (51%), social media (47%), video (45%), and email updates (41%).
What do these tools have in common? Marketing.
Nonprofit marketing is very important, especially if your organization wants to appeal to a larger audience. It raises awareness, drives donor memberships and donations, and so much more.
We have put together 5 different nonprofit marketing ideas you can use in your organization to enhance your nonprofit organization’s cause and mission.
Read on to learn more!
Stay active on social media
Did you know 55% of people who engage with nonprofits on social media end up taking some sort of action?
So, is your nonprofit organization active on social media?
Nonprofit organizations can use social media to increase online brand awareness and fundraising, inspire social change, promote organizational events, recruit volunteers and event attendees, and motivate people to take action.
By posting more content on social media, you are able to share your nonprofit organization’s story, strengthen your online community, communicate your mission and values, drive website traffic, and ultimately, attract new donors.
Here are some tips you can use in your social media platforms:
- Establish goals and create a social media marketing plan. Staying active on social media is not an easy task. Therefore, knowing your why and how will help you stay on track and will keep you motivated.
- Be responsive on social media. Recognize those who leave comments on your page, share your content, or send you a direct message. When your social media community feels acknowledged, they are more likely to become loyal followers.
- Encourage tagging on social media. Posting content with a caption as simple as “tag someone that can benefit from this today,” can potentially boost engagement and brand awareness.
- Use hashtags to get found on social media. Do not just use popular hashtags because your posts can get lost in a sea of posts. On the flipside, do not just use hashtags that are too obscure because people will not search for those hashtags. Ultimately, make sure to regularly conduct hashtag research and use relevant hashtags that relate to your content.
For more tips on social media marketing, check out our blog post on 6 tips to jumpstart your nonprofit organization’s social media marketing strategy!
Update your website
Chances are, your nonprofit organization already has a website. But when was the last time you updated it?
The last thing you want is for your website to communicate that your organization is irrelevant due to undesirable and outdated website content.
Use this checklist when updating your website:
- An easy-to-navigate website that keeps your visitor engaged and informed.
- A website that is filled with useful and up-to-date information to demonstrate that your organization is legitimate and an industry expert.
- A mobile responsive website that keeps your visitors and potential donors on your page, no matter what screen size they are viewing it from.
- Multiple call-to-actions to increase donation and support.
- Written content that utilizes high-performing and relevant keywords so that your pages can rank higher in search engines.
- Up-to-date photos that are high quality.
- Links, plugins, and features that are not broken.
- Consistent branding and colors.
You can also brainstorm other ways to improve your website, such as checking your website analytics to update pages that may have unusually high bounce rates.
A good place to start with updating your website content is to visit and evaluate your competitor’s websites. Figure out what content they may have that you can adopt onto your website.
The purpose of this exercise is not to simply copy your competitor’s websites but to compare your website to see if your website may be missing crucial information and to find design/content inspiration.
Updating your website can lead to lower bounce rates, higher traffic, increased trust in your organization, and more donations.
Use email marketing
Before getting into the nitty gritty of email marketing for nonprofits, check out these data points from the 2020 Global Trends in Giving Report:
- 33% of donors say that email is the communication tool that most inspires them to give.
- Of those inspired to give by email: 45% say NPOs should email updates quarterly.
- The communication method that is most likely to inspire repeat donations is regular email communication.
These statistics communicate one central message: email marketing is a powerful way to connect with donors.
Email marketing is not dead and it is still one of the most effective ways to attract, retain, and build relationships with your donors.
Here are some ways you can leverage email marketing:
- Grow your email list with an easy-to-find email signup form. You can do this by placing an email signup form on your homepage, blog, or on your social media platforms. You can also get creative with capturing emails by offering free incentives, like an ebook, in exchange for someone’s email address.
- Send update emails and keep your donors informed on any company news. Although update emails aren’t the most exciting emails to receive, if written correctly, they can actually be a great way to show off how your organization is constantly improving and staying proactive in your community.
- Send thank you emails to those who donate to your organization. Gratitude is the proper attitude to have if you desire to maintain strong donor relationships. So, after someone makes a gift, no matter how big or small, make sure you send them a message of appreciation.
- Ask for donations. Include a compelling reason to support your cause, a summary of what you’ll do with the donations, and a clear call-to-action. As a word of caution, do not only send these types of emails and do not overwhelm your email list with donation asks.
For more email marketing tips, check out our blog post on Nonprofit Email Marketing Best Practices!
All in all, email marketing is a great way to build personal relationships and to attract new donors.
If you are not sending emails, it’s never too late to start! Use email service providers like Mailchimp or ActiveCampaign to send emails and also to automate your email marketing.
If you’re part of a political organization, check out our blog post on the best email service providers for political campaigns!
Create a blog
Utilizing a blog is one of the best ways for nonprofit organizations to stand out from the crowd.
A website alone cannot communicate your organization’s personality, mission, goals, and accomplishments.
Here are some topics you can write about in your blog:
- Your mission statement and spreading awareness of your cause.
- Writing about industry specific topics that establishes your organization as an industry expert.
- Company news or updates.
- Inspiring case studies or testimonials that provide real-life examples of how your organization is making a difference.
- Progress and updates of fundraising campaigns.
- Upcoming events or conferences your organization is hosting.
- Behind-the-scenes look at your organization through employee spotlights or volunteer testimonials.
Be sure to embed calls-to-action throughout your blog content. Whether it is to sign up for email updates or to donate to your organization, a blog should always include ways for a reader to take the next step of supporting your cause.
Having a blog is a fantastic way for your organization to be found online. Blog posts are also great pieces of content that can easily be shared, which boosts engagement and traffic to your website.
Ultimately, it is a great way to inspire your readers to take action.
Find other creative ways to raise funds
Lastly, be creative with how you raise funds.
Instead of always relying on one specific way to raise money for your organization, try to think outside the box and brainstorm other ways to reach your fundraising goals.
Here are some creative ways to raise funds for your nonprofit:
- Consider applying for grants. We have put together a long list of grants for nonprofit organizations.
- Request a Google for Nonprofits account. Once you’re approved, you will have access to Google’s free suite of tools for nonprofit organizations. One of the best features of Google for Nonprofits is Google Ad Grants, where Google gives nonprofits $10,000 USD of in-kind advertising each month to create text-based ads.
- Participate in Giving Tuesday. Giving Tuesday donations have steadily increased since its start in 2012. And compared to 2019, this year, there was a 25% increase in Giving Tuesday donations!
- Meet your donors online by implementing virtual fundraising strategies. With our world continually shifting towards the digital, there are many benefits to virtual fundraising. Check out our blog post on 11 virtual fundraising ideas you can use in your organization to raise more money.
The best way to raise money for your nonprofit organization is to implement an online giving solution.
With Anedot, you are able to raise more money with our beautiful donation forms and drag-and-drop landing page builder.
We’ve optimized the donation experience, so that it’s easy for you to raise money and for your supporters to donate.
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