Social media is an incredible tool to help organizations spread their message and build a community. You can use it to raise funds, organize volunteers, and engage people in your cause. But it’s hard to get started on social media. According to a report, 29% of online donors found social media platforms to be the most inspiring for donating.
There are so many different platforms out there, each with unique rules and etiquette, that you need to know how to navigate before diving into the pool’s deep end. For a nonprofit, social media has a different set of rules. Here are some top social media marketing tips for nonprofits to build an effective online presence:
Start a Blog
Blogging is one of the best ways to establish your presence online and build an audience while allowing your team members to showcase their expertise and share their personal stories. Start by writing content relevant to your target market, and make sure you have a blog strategy in place before you launch so that you can keep up with it once it’s live.
Once you’re writing regularly on your blog, consider setting up Google Analytics to track how many people read your posts each month (and where they came from). It will help show whether blogging is worth your organization’s investment.
Figure Out Which Platform Works The Best
Building a social media presence for your nonprofit organization can seem like there are a million places to start. There are many platforms, each with its unique audience and rules. But the good news is that most share standard features and functions. So no matter which platform you choose, you should be able to figure out how best to engage your target audience by learning its nuances and getting comfortable with its interface.
The first step in determining which platform is best for you is deciding which one fits your audience. If they’re young adults in their 20s through early 30s who grew up on Facebook or other online networks like Tumblr, then Facebook might be a better fit than Twitter or Instagram. And vice versa if most of them spend their time on YouTube or Twitch rather than Twitter or Instagram.
Once you’ve determined where your ideal donors/volunteers hang out online, consider how much time and energy each site requires from you as an administrator. For example, do they allow automated posting so that multiple people can update content without having someone constantly monitoring their accounts? Or do they require constant work from administrators because automation isn’t available yet (if ever)?
Collab with Influencers to Establish a Strong Online Presence
Collaborate with influencers to establish a robust online presence. Influencers have the power to reach your target audience and help you spread your message. Collaborating with them can be tricky, but it’s possible to make it work.
Create a list of all the influencers you know or could potentially work with as part of your marketing plan. Think about what type of content they produce, their audience, and how they’ve helped other businesses in the past. You may want to narrow down the list based on which ones are most relevant for your organization’s audience or goals.
Once you have identified potential partners for collaboration, set up meetings in person, so there are no miscommunications about expectations or roles when working together on social media campaigns (like photo shoots, for example). It will help ensure everyone gets on board before starting any projects together.
Establish a Positive Outlook on Social Media Platforms
Building a social media presence for your organization is not difficult. If you are upbeat, use positive words and phrases, focus on the good things in life, and avoid getting into arguments or debates with other users, you will have no problem building a successful and reputable image for your nonprofit organization.
Be sure not to be too serious in your social media posts. You don’t want people thinking that all you care about is work. You should also include personal life details so that people know they can relate to you on an emotional and professional level.
Try not to post anything too promotional. People don’t want constant advertising from anyone (especially nonprofits), so keep it at minimum levels if possible.
Claim a Unique Hashtag for Your Nonprofit
Next, you’ll want to claim a unique hashtag for your organization. A unique hashtag is essential because it will help you reach a wider audience. It would help if you made it easy for people who follow your nonprofit on social media to use this hashtag by including it in the title of your posts so that when people search for that phrase, they can find content from your organization quickly.
Additionally, suppose someone else already has taken the same hashtag as yours and started using it first. It might confuse or frustrate them if they see other organizations using that same tagline. Lastly, remember that you don’t want inappropriate words or phrases in there either. They may cause negative impressions about your brand online.
Most Relevant and Interesting Content
If you want your social media content to be effective, it needs to be relevant and exciting. If a post is relevant, it will pique your audience’s interest. And if it’s exciting, they’ll want more, which translates into more engagement and traffic for your website.
The best way to ensure you’re posting content that will appeal to others is by using analytics tools like Google Analytics or Facebook Analytics. These tools help you understand what kind of posts get the most engagement from your audience and which ones don’t work well at all.
Create Attention-Grabbing Posts with High-Quality Graphic Assets
To build a solid social media presence for your nonprofit organization, you should create attention-grabbing posts with high-quality graphic assets. These images should be relevant to the post, the message, and the audience.
For example, if you are posting about an upcoming fundraising event, consider using an image of people joyfully dancing or running in their costumes at a previous event. If you’re posting about volunteer opportunities for children and families in need, consider using an image of happy children splashing in a pool at their local community center or park during summer programs.
Bottomline
Many people think creating a significant social media presence for their nonprofit organization is impossible, especially if they do not have the resources. But this is not true. You can still build an amazing social media presence with limited resources, and you must do so.
Social media is a great way to connect with your supporters, and it has never been easier to build an online presence. It can be overwhelming trying to figure out where to start. Still, the tips above should help you build a better social media presence for your nonprofit organization.