Strategic Online Communication for Nonprofits

Strategic Communications

Many nonprofits are starting to dabble in Web 2.0— Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube—the list goes on.

Some organizations have been tremendously successful fundraising through social media, provoking massive viral responses to their wildly creative ideas.  The majority of nonprofits however, have been slow to see financial returns.

Facebook’s Causes just recently surpassed the $10 million mark for donations.  This sounds like a lot, but when spread between 26,000 organizations it amounts to only $385 per organization.  The reality is that many causes haven’t raised a dime, while others have drawn in over $100,000.

What makes the difference?

Strategy, creativity, and persistence.

It is clear that the most successful organizations have a clearly defined strategy, and each comment or photo or story posted is consistent with that strategy.  This is KEY.  You need to know where you want to go before you start walking, and stay focused until you get there.  Some nonprofits use social media not to raise funds, but rather to engage constituents and raise awareness about their work.  Many in this category consider their strategies to be a huge success because they’ve effectively increased their website traffic, have thousands of followers, and have grown their contacts lists exponentially.  Bravo!

Creativity also goes a long way.  The more you stand out from the crowd, the more Facebook fans you garner, the more you get retweeted, and the more popular your YouTube video becomes.  Again however, that creativity must help you reach your objectives to be considered effective.

As in everything else in life, persistence will take you far.  Maybe you don’t have a particularly creative message or approach, but you can still build your followers and fans little by little, day by day, by routinely getting your consistent messages out there.

There is a lot of information out there about how to make your strategy a success.  I’ve compiled several links below to help you find creative inspiration and follow some key tips for success.  We wish you luck!

4 Facebook Tips for Nonprofit Success

10 Twitter Tips for Nonprofit Organizations

Donations, Volunteers, Supporters on Social Networks

Six Online Fundraising Campaigns that Work

Viral Video for Nonprofits

By Elizabeth Beachy, Upleaf Co-Founder

Many nonprofits are using email marketing tools and diligently sending e-newsletters, event notices, and donation requests online– and increasing their revenues as a result.

Overall these strategies are generally quite effective, but it not done carefully they can actually turn potential supporters or volunteers away.

So how do your efforts measure up?

One of the best ways to get a feel for how you’re doing is to compare with others in the sector.  According to a recent report from MailChimp based on the 273+ million emails delivered by their system, the average email “open” rate for a nonprofit is around 28% and the average click-through rate is 4%.

(This is not by the way a stat representing large and well-financed nonprofits, rather the bulk of the emails included in the analysis were sent by small, “do-it-yourself” organizations).

Take a look at your own stats and see how they compare with MailChimp’s nonprofit averages:

To read the report and view tips for improving email messaging success rates, click here.

The Cone Nonprofit Power Brand 100 report recently published by Cone and Intangible Business, analyzes the top 100 nonprofit brands in the U.S.  The most powerful brands were selected based on a combination of overall revenue and brand image, the latter determined by a consumer survey.

While most of us won’t be found among the top 100, the analysis is useful for every nonprofit:  Does your brand image correspond to your mission and institutional objectives?  Is your online presence enhancing your brand image?  Does the general public have mainly positive, negative or indifferent associations with your organization?

To get a feel for how the public perceives your brand, there are a few low-cost steps you can take: 1) conduct a random informal survey at a place your constituents might frequent; 2) do extensive Internet searches of both blogs and news to see where your organization is coming up, who is talking about you and what they are saying; and 3) send out a quick survey to your email list and ask your stakeholders for some honest feedback.

Whether you need to do some serious work to strengthen your brand or simply maintain your current image, the report offers 10 excellent tips on how to enhance your brand power:

1.  Engage fresh constituencies. Segment your communications and activities to appeal to people beyond your traditional constituents, and use sub-brands to tailor your message to new groups.

2.  Adopt new currencies. Expand the scope of sponsorships, volunteer opportunities, merchandise, or other in-kind products and services so that you can continue to engage constituents even as giving power decreases.

3.  Modernize fundraising. Donor behavior is shifting, and younger demographics are increasingly involved in giving online.  Tap into these potential donors, and streamline your fundraising efforts with new tools.

4.  Deliver crisp communications. Clearly state what you do in either your name or a prominent tagline.  This significantly enhances brand recognition.

5.  Establish (and adhere to) brand guidelines. Protect your brand’s equity by establishing clear guidelines for consistent use by staff, volunteers, media partners, and other entities.  All institutional communication (online, print, audiovisual) must adhere to these guidelines.

6.  Build brand stewards. Your employees, volunteers, and board members are all extensions of your brand.  As such you should encourage and empower them to clearly express (in both words and actions) the organization’s mission and values.

7.  Develop quick reflexes. Be fluid, give people an opportunity to engage with your brand around current events or new trends.

8.  Build corporate partnerships. Identify companies who share your values and have appealing relationships and resources, then recruit them to serve as catalysts to broaden your mission and as stewards to your brand.

9.  Create dialogue with brand ambassadors. Participate in social media venues to not only increase visibility, but to connect with a broad base of supporters and engage in a dialogue to let them know you are an active member of their community. Listen to and participate in the conversations where they are happening, don’t just push information.

10.  Issue a rallying cry. Shift your approach from that of a recipient of funds to a driver of engagement, inspiration and action. Move from a focus on giving discrete donations to joining together in pursuit of a bigger purpose, and help evolve your contributors’ perceptions of their role as donors to that of a community of supporters.  Mobilize your constituents around a common cause, which can energize your brand and strengthen loyalty.

Download full report