5 Tips for Nonprofit Fundraising
We all know that money is a sensitive subject. Nobody really likes to ask others for money, and nobody likes to be asked for money. For nonprofit organizations, however, asking for money is a crucial component of their business strategy. While asking for donations may be a stressful process, there are ways that nonprofits can effectively reach their fundraising goals.
Here are five helpful tips that will get your organization a step closer to reaching its fundraising goals:
Tip # 1: Make sure your strategy is documented
Would you just hop into your vehicle and drive down the road trying to reach a destination that you don’t know how to get to? Maybe this happens to you all the time. But what’s the one thing that you are likely to have? A GPS (or a roadmap) that guides you in the right direction. The same holds true for a fundraising strategy. You know the amount of money that you need to raise, but getting there may be a struggle. In order to stay on track, create a strategy that has a clear step-by-step process and document it in a place where everyone in the organization can see it.
Tip # 2: Make sure your website is user friendly
If you are asking for money, people are going to want to see that you’re a legitimate organization. To try to figure this out, they will most likely Google you. If you don’t have a website, it’s very important that you create one. Once you have done so, can the people searching for you actually find you? Make sure that you have optimized your website using keywords that will attract the search engines. This will ensure you can be found.
Furthermore, you need to make sure your website is user friendly. You don’t want people clicking onto your page and feeling either overwhelmed with everything or disappointed by the lack of information, causing them to leave the site. Creating a website that is easy to navigate will result in people spending more time on it. While on your website, visitors will learn more about the organization itself so they can feel confident later on if they choose to make a donation.
Tip # 3: Use Social Media and Blog
In the past few years, social media usage has been on the rise not only for individual users but for companies and organizations as well. Many people believe that having social media accounts on platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn are essential for businesses today. So do you have social media accounts for your nonprofit organization? If not, create them! All you need is an active email address and some free time to set up your accounts properly. Once your social media accounts have been created, you can use them to get more followers and keep them up-to-date with fundraising goals and other important information.
Keep in mind that your social media is only as valuable as the quality of the content you post. So if you have been using social media in the past, but don’t think you are getting results, reevaluate your current social media strategy and figure out what needs to improve. For example, are you posting a lot of text? Try using images with shorter captions that convey the same message. Are you posting just once a week? Try scheduling more frequent posts.
And don’t forget to blog! Blogging creates a whole new way to draw in your target audience and guide them toward your website. By blogging consistently, you will be able to create a library of information that can be accessed by your audience. Blogging also proves that you can be trusted because the public will be able to see the more “human” side of the organization. Your blog posts can also be posted as links on your social media platforms to help increase the number of views.
Tip # 4: Use a call-to-action (CTA) to grab attention
Having a great website, publishing articles, sending newsletters, blogging, posting on social media…these things are all very helpful when it comes to directing individuals toward your mission. But are you really getting them involved? A call to action is “an image or line of text that prompts your visitors, leads, and customers to take action.” By including a call-to-action on each of your posts, you are driving your visitors toward information that will encourage them to help your organization. Say you are writing a blog post about a new fundraising project that the organization has launched. At the end of the blog, you can insert a CTA link that guides the reader to a page that allows them to make a donation.
Tip # 5: Make sure you are investing properly by analyzing your data
We’d all like to think that we are investing our time and money effectively. But are we? By making use of tools and software that help to analyze your data, you can look at the numbers to ensure investments are being made properly. You can also use these numbers to help improve your processes and strategies in the future.
Numbers can be daunting for many. To help decrease stress, there are numerous programs that can be used, such as Google Analytics. Furthermore, if the task of adequately creating a marketing strategy for your nonprofit organization seems to be too much, look into hiring a professional. Don’t underestimate the importance of getting started on the right foot.