As we stand on the precipice of a new year, the environmental and socioeconomic issues plaguing our planet are more central than ever – as is the need for imminent action. Therefore, companies within the charity sector are set to take centre stage in 2023.
Every charity has one sole, admirable purpose: to raise funds and awareness for their cause. But, as with every booming industry, it takes a strong marketing strategy to ensure you cut through the digital noise and stand out from the crowd. So, without further ado, let us take you through our top tips to market your nonprofit organisation.
Plans & Priorities
In any industry, you must have a clear marketing plan. Whether you’re newly starting up your charity or have been running for several years, we advise you to take a step back and readdress your plan for the following year. Firstly, what are your goals? Is there a specific event you are building up to? Or a fundraising target you’d like to meet? Your goals could also be specific to your digital marketing: perhaps you want your website traffic to increase by 20% or to reach a milestone follower count on your socials. Whatever these goals are, you need to clearly establish them in order to implement methods of reaching them. For this reason, your goals must be both realistic and measurable.
Another key part of your marketing plan is identifying and understanding your target audience. This generally involves analysing the main demographics you’re targeting, which can be achieved through STP marketing. However, nonprofit marketing is often even more complex, as it involves different audience segments: constituents, customers, volunteers, and donors. It is crucial that you view each segment separately, and interact with them as such. For example, an email targeting new donors will have different messaging than an email updating current members on your latest news.
Once you’ve established your charity’s short-term and long-term goals and the different segments of your target audience, it’s time to implement that all-important marketing strategy!
Powerful Video Campaigns
Nowadays, social media is renowned as one of the most effective ways to communicate with your audience – particularly if you’ve got an important story to tell. Ideally, you want to spread your message as far and wide as possible; therefore, you must utilise the main social media platforms.
Video-based platforms such as Instagram, Tiktok and YouTube are fantastic tools for charities to spread the word. We naturally process visual content 40,000 times faster than written content, and short-form video reels are all the rage. For charities, in particular, we recommend including footage of people: audiences relate most to real life and real stories, and video content is the most effective way of pulling on people’s heartstrings. Remember, your ultimate goal is to encourage support and donations while raising awareness for the issues your charity is fighting against. Age UK, for example, has been renowned for its powerful video campaigns for many years, setting a precedent for emotive and effective brand messaging.
For more tips on how to implement a successful social media strategy, have a read of our blog here.
Content Is King
As a charity, you must ensure that you share relevant and responsive content. Keep an eye on trending news stories around the world – and within your local community. The charity sector itself is responsive to the issues around us; therefore, it is imperative that you stay ahead of the curve, and act as an educator for your audience. We always suggest that businesses position themselves as industry experts – nonprofits are no exception.
We recommend posting regularly across your social media channels and planning diverse, engaging content that reflects your brand message. You want people to scroll through your feed and be crystal clear about who you are, what you stand for – and, importantly, how they can get involved. Just take a look at Oddbox’s Instagram: we love, love, love their content! Plus, the aesthetic of their feed definitely gets a thumbs-up from us.
Also, did you hear? Blogs are in! You should aim to write and upload at least one SEO-optimised blog post per week. Blog posts are a top-notch opportunity for charities to educate and inspire their communities, again positioning themselves as thought leaders within their industry. Stuck for ideas? Your social media and blog content could include company and industry news, promotional material and educational pieces about your mission.
PR & Outreach
Everyone wants to get in the headlines! Digital PR is a fantastic way of reaching a wider audience, and we advise networking as much as possible to build those all-important journalistic connections. You can build these links by attending networking events (many of which can be found on trusty LinkedIn!) and inviting journalists to your own fundraisers to gain online press coverage. It’s also worth attending relevant events as a guest speaker. This has the same effect as writing a guest post online; you are essentially providing an inbound link to your charity’s website and socials – in person!
Moreover, wherever you can, you should aim to put your money where your mouth is and interact with the communities you support. Your team should be seen to be active participants in the fight for change, as opposed to simply hiding behind a screen. It goes without saying that charity work requires a human touch. It is, therefore, essential to put a personable face to the name and get yourselves out there!
How Digital Marketing Can Help Your Charity
Nonprofit marketing is important for a whole host of reasons. It crucially helps raise funds and awareness for your charity, whilst also onboarding volunteers and regular donors – whom you simply couldn’t do without! Digital marketing can also help you find your brand voice and position your charity at the heart and centre of your sector.
If this all sounds a little daunting – don’t worry! You can always seek the guidance of a digital marketing agency like Social Chameleon. Our award-winning agency is very excited to be soon launching ‘Chameleon Social’: an exciting new branch of our agency, dedicated to Social Impact. Stay tuned for more information on how we can help your charity achieve its digital marketing goals.
