For decades, nonprofits have typically had donations come directly from the community within which they work. Local giving has been the backbone of this industry, actively pushing more interest due to the close-to-home nature of the causes. Yet, as we’ve moved further into the digital age, the visibility and awareness that technology has brought to the nonprofit sector have rapidly started to change this.
As of present, 31% of donors across the world give to causes that are outside of their home country. Technology, social media, and geographic-independent marketing have allowed nonprofits to radically increase their awareness. In this article, we’ll turn to the top three strategies that are facilitating this change in nonprofit visibility.
Social media is one of the most powerful tools that nonprofits have at their disposal. Instead of being bound only to the geographical area of operation, social media allows nonprofits to broaden their horizons and reach larger audiences.
In fact, in the modern day, as many as 31% of all new donors are found directly through social media. This is a figure that’s continually increasing, placing more emphasis on these social channels as this industry grows. If your nonprofit isn’t already taking advantage of social media and online media marketing, then you’re missing out on over a third of potential donors.
Social media is also a broad market that you can enter into, being composed of many distinct platforms. While some major sites like Twitter and Facebook come to mind, there are several platforms that you can take into account. By creating profiles across many different sites, you can holistically increase your visibility within this market.
Technology for nonprofits breaks down geographic barriers, pushing organizations to expand on a global scale. Over time, as people come into contact with your nonprofit across many different channels, you’ll be able to boost awareness and bring new donors to your cause.
All nonprofits are actively working towards a certain cause. Whether that be a human, ecological, scientific, or literary pursuit, your organization is attempting to generate visibility and financial contributions. Despite two nonprofits potentially working in distinct micro-industries, this common charitable pursuit brings everyone together.
Instead of working in a vacuum, making collaboration with other nonprofits a core part of your offering can help bring further awareness to every party involved. There are a number of ways to prioritize collaboration:
When reaching out to new potential clients, partners, or other nonprofits, always place stress on how you can help their organization. While you work in a charitable sector, not everyone will have the same drive and goals as you. That’s why it’s important to start with what you can do for them, before demonstrating what your nonprofit will get out of this collaboration.
Although technology has become a driving force for the adoption and continued donation to nonprofits, there is more to this industry than just within the digital space. In-person events are still a fantastic way of getting to know your donors, creating meaningful connections, and meeting high-profile potential future contributors.
Beyond just hosting your own in-person events, another way of making use of this strategy to boost awareness around your nonprofit is to go to events within your geographical area. Most of the time, upper members of a nonprofit will be spread out across a geographical territory. With this general structure, you’ll have lots of opportunities to attend events across different cities.
Reaching out to your city officials will provide an easy way of gaining information about galas, donation events, and other nonprofit events that are occurring soon. From there, you’re able to attend these events, and potentially find new volunteers or donors for your own nonprofit.
Remember to be respectful during these events, you don’t want to hijack someone else’s event. However, you still have the opportunity to socialize with other attendees, find out about their interests, and potentially forge connections that will be useful at a future date.
If you are the event host, then make the most of the time you have in person with each respective member of your nonprofit. You’ll be able to use this time to strengthen your relationships with donors, build rapport, and find out more about any future goals or ideas that people have for your organization.
After the pandemic years, we’re all a little too used to Zoom meetings. Allow your in-person events to break this habit. Face-to-face conversations are much more effective when attempting to raise awareness and create additional support for your nonprofit.
While technological developments and expansions have been the driving force of nonprofit uptake, they’re not the only factor that’s in play. As a nonprofit creates social bonds with other groups, increases the number of in-person events they attend, and makes an active effort to connect with its donors, its visibility starts to increase.
Yet, online marketing and digital strategies are, without a doubt, the most effective way of expanding the awareness of a nonprofit. As we adjust to working within this digital age, seeing this digital marketing sphere as a site of opportunities is the way toward success.
