COVID-19 had a serious impact on nonprofits and how they continue doing good. As a result, most nonprofits had to cancel their fundraising events. Philanthropy reports that 44 % of nonprofits have no plans to mitigate losses from cancelled fundraising events.
According to an informal five-question survey conducted by the Nonprofit Alliance, three-quarters of nonprofits say they have adjusted messaging in their fundraising appeals to acknowledge the coronavirus pandemic.
Marketing a nonprofit
Marketing a nonprofit organisation is similar to marketing a for-a-profit organisation. The key difference between the two is funding. Also, since both types of organisations have different motives, their marketing campaigns tend to be different as well.
In a nonprofit marketing campaign, the goal is to gain the attention of prospective contributors and donors. Another factor to consider when marketing a nonprofit is cost efficiency. Most nonprofits don’t have large enough budgets compared to a for-profit company.
Nonprofit organisations probably will have more difficulties promoting themselves than ever before, especially since the outbreak of the coronavirus and a weaker economy. To market a nonprofit efficiently, you will need two things: a great deal of passion for the cause, and a lot of patience.
In a survey by Kivi Leroux Miller, president of Nonprofit Guide, he asked nonprofit founders the following question: “What are your biggest challenges?” The answers were:
- Lack of time to design effective campaigns;
- Lack of budget to cover marketing costs;
- Inability to measure the effectiveness of campaigns;
- Lack of a clear digital strategy;
- A challenge in producing engaging content;
- Difficulty integrating communications channels.
Some marketing tips:
1. Sharable content
Create and share content that highlights your fundraising appeals on social media, as well as on your website. Remember, the best way of attracting a donor’s attention is using emotionally-charged messaging. Research has shown that just like purchases, a decision to donate is based on emotions, not logic. In essence, people donate to causes they connect with emotionally.
2. Host a virtual event
What is a virtual event? A virtual event is an online-only event with attendees that connect remotely from wherever they are. The event can be live-streamed, or one that people participate and engage with on their own time.
Come up with a unique concept then invite virtual attendees. Online events are easy to execute, because they aren’t as logistically complex as physical events. Since virtual events don’t have a specific location you can invite even more attendees otherwise may not have been able to attend in person.
3. Use Google Analytics
In comparison to for-profit organisations, nonprofit marketing aims to convert potential donors into donors. The aim is to establish how the potential donors spend their time and on which sites before landing on the charity site. Google Analytics does not only help you to track the moves of potential donors but also the performance of charity campaigns.
The following KPIs are used by marketers to track performance:
- Donations per month;
- Content subscriptions per month;
- Number of new users per month
4. Run email campaigns
Email is one of the most powerful communication tools that nonprofits use to engage with potential givers. It’s an efficient way to send a newsletter for fundraising campaigns.
However, like any other communication tool, email is associated with its own challenges. For instance, it is impossible to reach every subscriber’s inbox. There will always be email addresses that are no longer in use. So how can you avoid sending campaigns to inactive email addresses? Regular cleaning up and maintenance of the database is key.
- Host a virtual auction
Have a great communications strategy that drives traffic to your campaign page and keeps supporters engaged throughout the event. And if you have several auction items, use Facebook Live to livestream your live auction.
6 Optimise your landing page
A landing page is the first door that potential donors use to enter your website. It was created for the purpose of enticing new users to stay on your site for longer. The challenge faced by most digital marketers is optimising this page effectively. According to Instapage, social proof can boost the conversion rate of any page. Stories of people who have been impacted by your work will send a powerful message to new users.
You can also use landing pages to inform potential donors of how you intend to use their donations. Even better, you can use a video to show how previous donations were spent.
- Organise a virtual food drive
This can specifically help provide nutritious meals to communities affected by the COVID-19.
Building vs Measuring awareness for the cause
Typically, building awareness is a challenge experienced by small and medium-sized charity organisations. However, most nonprofit marketers still experience a challenge in measuring awareness.
You can measure awareness by conducting a survey where existing donors are asked to rate the nonprofit’s work. The following people should participate in the survey:
- Those engaged with your cause;
- First time donors;
- Repeat donors;
- Advocates for your cause.
By monitoring online activity, social media is also a great place to see how aware people are.
Getting people to donate
Getting people to donate is a common challenge to all nonprofit organisations. Most big nonprofit have a marketing department dedicated to this daunting task. There are times when campaigns are expected to deliver great results within a short period of time, like when there are floods and earthquakes, even now as scientists are busy researching a cure for the coronavirus.
