Using Social Media Effectively For Your Non-Profit
No matter what your non-profit specializes in, fundraising is an integral part of the operation and social media can be used very effectively in fundraising. To reap the highest rewards, you must follow a few simple rules.
Set your Objectives
If you want to gain a competitive edge, you must increase your total level of social, mobile, and public relations engagement and pay close attention to the response from your target audience. You want to increase your non-profit’s brand awareness, engage your existing brand followers, and convert followers into contributors through multi-faceted marketing and public relations campaigns with your primary objectives in mind.
Your first objective may be to increase website traffic by attracting the right visitors. This means you have to get to know that user persona and script messages and information designed to pique their curiosity prompting them to go to your website to learn more about your mission or program.
Your next objective may be to Increase your conversion rate by turning visitors into contributors. To accomplish this you will want to message directly to the heart, not the mind. You will identify with the priorities of the target audience and give them an opportunity to get involved and make a difference.
Your third objective may be to Increase average donation size by turning one-time contributors into repeat contributors and increasing donation size. This will require regular engagement through drip campaigns, active calls to action, and learning more about your contacts.
Learn the Landscape
According to Bloomberg Business Week Article on February 20, 2014, the wealthier are getting wealthier but they are not sharing it. The report says. “Giving is up since the financial crisis. But while the stock market has made a complete recovery, top-50 philanthropy has clearly not. And this kind of giving has not nearly kept pace with the rise in American billionaires’ wealth over the past decade.” This highlights the stiffer competition in the marketplace for organizations looking to grow through private donations. This climate makes your job harder and highlights the need for consistent messaging across all of your digital platforms to rise above the noise in the marketplace.
Get the Right Tools
Having a hammer when you need a screwdriver is no fun. No matter how hard you try, you can not get the hammer to fit into the straight slot on the screw. The same is true with social media tools. Once you have figured out who you want to connect with you will need to select a toolset. You may choose a blog with integrated social networking like WordPress or you may choose a collaboration platform that informs and educates like Wikis. There are as many options and possible combinations as you have imagination. If you want a comprehensive toolset that does everything from track a visitor on the website to send campaign emails then you may want to consider a HubSpot type tool that handles every aspect of donor cultivation. Other options include Hootsuite, Rignite, Constant Contact suite of tools, and MainStreetHub.
Other Tools Include:
Microblogging and Communication Tools: Blogger, WordPress, Constant Contact, Twitter, LiveJournal, TypePad, Tumblr
Social Networking Tools: Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, Ning, Hi5, Meetup
