Breaking Down Nonprofit Social Media

In a recent post on this blog, we covered ways to encourage millennials and Gen Z-ers to become consistent donors for nonprofits and charities. One essential step is to develop a vibrant platform on social media. There are countless benefits to increasing your nonprofit’s social media presence, from building your legitimacy to creating a reliable community of followers.

However, it can be difficult to differentiate your organization from countless others online. Luckily, there are plenty of resources available that you can take advantage of in order to stand out. Here are a few tips to keep in mind if you’re a nonprofit or charity organizer who wants to transform your online presence.

Show the Results

One major obstacle in securing donations is convincing prospective donors that your organization will put their money to good use. Transparency is key to creating a sustainable pool of donors. Social media is a great tool to show the results of your work. From pictures with the communities you’re working with to raw data and infographics, social media posts can be a great way to increase donor trust.

Social media can also help you spread and share your mission. Oftentimes, a statement on a website can seem like empty words, but pictures and numbers can be incredibly convincing for people interested in donating.

Understand the Features

There are plenty of built-in features on social media which can help maximize the audience you reach on different platforms. Some are easily accessible, while others may require a fee or special account.

For example, most platforms have a “stories” option, where you can make posts that expire after a day. These work best when you’re promoting an event and want to spread the word in as many ways as possible. Stories also tend to have donation buttons, a topic we discussed in our donor support post.

Another benefit can be specific nonprofit resources, which are available on many different social media platforms. Some, such as LinkedIn, even have nonprofit consultants available.

Build Communities and Awareness

Because of interactive features, such as hashtags, social media platforms are a unique way to create a community of like-minded individuals who are passionate about your organization’s cause. Hashtags should be added to every post in order to maximize the chance that someone will come across your pages.

You should always be engaging with followers. Social media accounts can’t be built if you post in a vacuum. Respond to posts about topics related to your organization and find influencers and other groups that could be interested in your work.

Beyond community building, social media can be used to spread awareness. It’s possible that some users may not be familiar with your cause, so anything you post could be eye-opening. Create posts with the assumption that some people may be coming to the topic with little prior knowledge.

Measure Success

Blindly posting and hoping for the best doesn’t work when it comes to building a presence. You should keep track of your engagement, starting with the number of likes and shares you have. You can also track your follower growth to make sure it is consistent. It is important to consistently redesign your strategy based on these results.

Following these tips will get you on track to creating an engaging social media profile. However, it is still critical that you remember to always stay aware of how others view your platform. Generating engaging content can set your organization apart and get you closer to achieving your goals.