When thinking of ways to promote your nonprofit, ask the question: “How do I get people invested?” After all, with more than 170,000 Canadian charities and nonprofits eager for support, standing out from the crowd is a constant challenge.
If you’re looking for ways to pique supporter interest, we’ve got a few tips that can help.
Get specific
When you’re trying to get people to donate, volunteer or support your cause in other ways, details are a powerful way to win them over. Share how you ensure your goals become reality and be sure to mention the tangible results. For example, instead of saying that a $100 donation will help feed the hungry, mention that the $100 will help feed a family of six for a month.
People love transparency. Especially when it comes to how their funds will be used. Share where each dollar goes, including what portions go to overhead.
If you’re working with a potential major donor, present plans, reports and accomplishments in a folder or on a USB drive. This not only looks professional, but it also makes reviewing data and asking follow-up questions easier.
Get original
Caring for animals. Caring for people. Caring for the planet. All these things have been done and done well by a variety of charitable organizations.
What you need is a way to promote your nonprofit that stands out. A memorable hook will capture interest and get people invested in helping. Try focusing on a niche aspect of your goals, like trying to find homes for senior animals. Offer an unusual fundraising idea or goal to pique interest, such as collecting and selling used books or raising funds for a community greenhouse or garden to feed the hungry. Better yet, see if you can find a way to make sure 100% of every dollar raised finds its way to the cause. If you can, be sure to promote it.
Reinforce your organization’s uniqueness with a nonprofit promotional giveaway. For example, give away bookmarks to your book sale customers or seed packets to promote your community garden.
Get real
While details about the number of people you’ve helped or the amount of money you’ve raised are a great way to appeal to the mind, storytelling is a powerful way to appeal to the heart.
Collect stories and share them through video, blogs, social media or as part of your annual impact report to help get people invested in a way that facts and figures cannot.
Ensure your story has maximum impact with this simple, three-part structure:
- Talk about your hero: Share your subject’s background, why they needed help and how they came to know your organization.
- Make it personal: Explain how your hero encountered a villain—which is to say, the thing your organization helps fight.
- Share a happy ending: How did your hero get the help they needed? How has your organization positively impacted their life?
Get up to date
While people still reliably use their desktop computers to access the internet, 74% now regularly use their mobile devices to surf the web too. In other words, if you’re looking to get the attention of supporters and volunteers online, it’s critical to create a good mobile experience. That can be a mobile-first website or an app.
Be sure to clearly state your mission, goals and accomplishments while making it easy to donate from every page. Make sure your contact information is easy to find and use a modern, easy-to-navigate design.
Brand your donation page—this helps people experience the same emotion they felt when reading the email or social post that enticed them to click over to your site. Branded donation pages raise nearly $15,000 more than generic donation pages.
Want to remind people of your updated website or mobile app? Pass out a nonprofit promotional giveaway like an imprinted phone grip and stand, stress reliever or smartphone wallet.
From attention to acquisition
When you promote your nonprofit, you’re taking a critical step toward helping your community. Because every time you get someone invested in your mission, you’ll be able to do just a little bit more. Best of luck!