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By Lisa Lane
Now more than ever, donors expect nonprofits to be transparent, impactful, and relatable on a human level. Changes in our society’s day-to-day habits have prepared supporters to make quick, visual, and emotional connections with your organization. The question is – Do you have a clearly defined social media strategy and are you posting relevant content, consistently? For nonprofits that rely heavily on donors to give for emotional reasons, this is even more critical. For those of you saying “we just don’t have the resources”, we want to suggest a new approach.
Why – Social Proof
Social proof is the psychological phenomenon which proves that if individuals think ‘everyone else’ is acting in a certain way, they are likely to act that way too. Importantly for nonprofits, it means if people see others engaged with an organization, they are far more likely to do so themselves.
Remember the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge?
Resources
Time, staff, funding – are all competing for resources in a nonprofit. At Nonprofit Garden, we believe you can accomplish this affordably with a solid team – an internal thought leader and a young nonprofit professional. The thought leadership, content ideas, and messaging can be driven from a seasoned and well-respected institutional leader, then implemented by a tech-savvy young nonprofit professional. This should take no more than 10 hours a week. Obviously, not a full-time job but one you can either outsource to a service provider or add to an internal resource. This provides not only a mentoring opportunity but an opportunity for both individuals to look at their organization with new eyes. Quality content curated for your specific mission and delivered in a timely, relatable manner.
Automate!
There are all sorts of inexpensive automation tools your organization can use to reduce staff time on social media. A few of our favorites include Loomly, Hootsuite, and Lightful. The key to using any of these will be:
• Schedule content in advance with a well-defined strategy
• Prioritize your messaging and ensure it is supported across platforms
• Use the right tools for the right audience.
Results
Donors are more likely to remain loyal donors, if they are engaged more frequently. Harvey McKinnon said it best “The key to donor loyalty is being loyal to your donor”[1]. Strategic use of social media makes your ‘brand’ easily accessible and increases visibility to your audience without encroaching or asking them to take an action. Instead, take your content where the people are and they will follow. Online followers will become engaged with your website, and your mission only after trust has been built. Posting good content regularly is an inexpensive way to multiply outreach quickly and maintain frequent ‘touches’ with your audience.