Insights and New Information from Specialists

As a digital advertising and marketing skilled, I’ve tried a number of methods over time. And one factor I’ve discovered is that advertising and marketing nonprofits requires a specialised strategy.

In contrast to companies, nonprofits don’t promote services or products. As a substitute, they need individuals to assist a noble trigger.

Their advertising and marketing funds can be often restricted, however social networks come to the rescue. They’re free, run 24/7, and have a world viewers already current.

On this information, I’ll clarify the best way to use social media for nonprofits and share a few of greatest practices when creating content material on every platform.

Learn how to Leverage Social Media for Nonprofits

Based on HubSpot’s 2024 Social Tendencies Report, 82% of entrepreneurs discovered that social media advertising and marketing was efficient for his or her manufacturers.

Specialists who’ve labored with charitable organizations additionally vouch for social media as an efficient advertising and marketing technique for nonprofits.

Will Yang, head of progress and advertising and marketing at Instrumentl, says, “It allows direct interplay with the viewers, permitting nonprofits to foster private connections with their supporters — a necessary facet of fundraising and advocacy work.”

We’ve established that advocating to your trigger on social media works. However does that imply advertising and marketing on all of the social media channels is one of the best transfer? Not a lot.

Whereas it’s nice to have a diversified nonprofit social media technique, specializing in too many platforms without delay makes use of up a number of time and sources.

So, as a substitute, I counsel choosing two to 4 platforms that work greatest for my trigger and sticking to them till you attain your social media targets.

My favorites are Fb, Instagram, TikTok, and X. Since every platform has its distinctive options and consumer preferences, you must comply with totally different methods to maximise my content material’s affect.

1. Fb

I’ve been utilizing Fb ever since I received my first smartphone.

However although it’s one of many oldest social networks, it nonetheless stays the most well-liked amongst manufacturers. HubSpot’s analysis discovered that 65% of B2C manufacturers use Fb as one among their high advertising and marketing channels in 2024.

And that is true for nonprofits as nicely. The 2023 Nonprofit Tech for Good report states that 96% of nonprofits have a Fb Web page.

Take into account No Child Hungry, a charity group that goals to finish childhood starvation within the U.S. The nonprofit has gained over 318,000 followers by repeatedly posting about its campaigns and actions on its Fb Web page.

Numbers apart, I choose Fb because of its simplicity and flexibility. I’ve had success selling all varieties of content material, from texts and movies to infographics and polls. Let’s have a look at some methods I comply with.

Learn how to use Fb for nonprofits:

• Livestreaming. In comparison with pre-recorded movies, livestreams give organizations greater engagement charges. You possibly can present real-time updates about your nonprofit’s actions by livestreaming them. On the identical time, viewers could make donations via the livestream itself.
• Utilizing the donation button. Throughout a fundraising marketing campaign for unsheltered individuals, one skilled created a devoted Fb Web page with a donation button. This made it simpler for supporters to make donations as soon as they visited the web page.
• Becoming a member of Fb teams. Teams permit nonprofits to achieve a world viewers that shares the identical ardour. You possibly can put up on totally different Fb teams to ask for donations or volunteers. It’s also possible to handle your individual group, the place you’ll be able to share updates with supporters.

2. Instagram

With 50% of B2B and 53% of B2C manufacturers lively on Instagram, it presently ranks because the third hottest social media platform amongst companies. The truth is, 23% of manufacturers obtain the very best engagement on this platform.

Nonetheless, Instagram solely promotes visible content material codecs like photographs and movies. This could pose a problem in the event you choose writing about your model. Nonetheless, Instagram can unleash creativity.

Utilizing varied reel templates, memes, and different social media developments for nonprofits, you’ll be able to flip critical charity info into enjoyable content material your viewers will love.

Hilarity for Charity’s Instagram put up not too long ago grabbed my consideration whereas scrolling via my newsfeed.

I like how they used a preferred reel template to create a playful environment whereas educating the plenty about Alzheimer’s illness.

The group spreads consciousness concerning the situation utilizing its personal mascot, trending audio, and an attention grabbing message.

Learn how to use Instagram for nonprofits:

• Partnering with influencers. Influencer advertising and marketing is one of many key methods to extend viewers interplay, and Instagram is a superb place to seek out public figures who’re keen about charitable causes. You possibly can ask influencers to create reels showcasing their assist to your trigger.
• Cross-sharing. If I make a put up on Fb, I can share it on Instagram with one click on. So, even in the event you’re low on time, you’ll be able to rapidly run a marketing campaign on two social media platforms without delay.
• Utilizing Instagram Tales. You should utilize Instagram Tales to construct curiosity amongst your followers and get them to go to your profile. Tales sometimes embody sneak peeks into your newest campaigns, shoutouts to supporters, and a few behind-the-scenes photographs of volunteers working.

3. TikTok

With 39% of B2C manufacturers utilizing TikTok, this video-based platform is a stable selection for social media advertising and marketing. It helps charities not simply via fundraising but additionally by rolling out new options.

For instance, in 2023, TikTok donated $250,000 to the Uncommon Affect Fund whereas introducing options like sleep reminders and screen-time limits to assist psychological well being.

TikTok’s demographics largely consist of individuals under the age of 34. This implies I can simply attain Gen-Zers and youthful millennials on the app.

Different nonprofits additionally use TikTok for progress and elevated attain. American Most cancers Society, as an example, has constructed an excellent presence on TikTok and has gained over 26,500 followers.

Xavier English, co-founder of Supermix, shares the following tips: “For those who’re making an attempt to achieve a extremely huge viewers of individuals in a youthful age bracket for a trigger that has mass attraction, you’re in all probability extra more likely to discover them on TikTok, which has a youthful consumer base.”

Learn how to use TikTok for nonprofits:

• Creating video content material. I repeatedly create movies about area actions, fundraising campaigns, and occasion planning. This reveals supporters how I’m spending their donations.
• Utilizing Donation Stickers. I additionally be sure so as to add Donation Stickers to all my movies. This manner, followers can instantly make donations with out spending time trying to find a hyperlink.
• Importing brief movies. TikTok permits video uploads of as much as three minutes. Nonetheless, I add shorter movies which might be lower than 30 seconds as a result of these get probably the most engagement.

4. X (Previously Twitter)

Fashionable companies are shifting their focus to video-based platforms, which explains why solely 31% of B2C manufacturers view X as a high social media platform. Nonetheless, I nonetheless contemplate X a fantastic nonprofit advertising and marketing channel.

However it’s not simply me. Different nonprofits have had nice outcomes on this platform. Take into account Oceana Worldwide, an NGO devoted to saving and restoring the oceans. It has amassed greater than 496,000 followers on X.

X has a large superstar presence, which suggests you’ll be able to seize the eye of celebs who is perhaps considering working to your trigger.

Creating content material on the platform can be straightforward, because it permits customers so as to add brief captions to pictures and movies.

Nonetheless, what’s tiring about X is that I have to put up each day. In any other case, engagement charges rapidly die down, and it turns into troublesome to extend your attain as soon as extra.

Learn how to use X for nonprofits:

• Organizing content material into threads. X posts (previously tweets) have a restrict of 280 characters. However I’ve discovered that threads are an effective way to get across the restrict. Not solely do they permit me to share extra info, however they persuade the X algorithm that my posts are partaking.
• Posting throughout prime time. The trick is to put up at a time when customers are most lively. That’s once I get the very best engagement. In my expertise, 12-3 PM is one of the best time to put up on X.
• Utilizing actionable CTAs. One other method I improve my engagement on X is by utilizing calls-to-action like “Share in the event you assist this trigger” or “100k likes, and we’ll manage free well being checks this month.” This encourages individuals to work together with my posts via likes, reposts, and feedback, growing my attain.
• Creating branded hashtags. Utilizing standard hashtags may also help you attain a big viewers. It’s also possible to create your individual hashtags and encourage followers to make use of them of their posts.

Equally, a whole bunch of different nonprofits have efficiently created social media campaigns on platforms like Reddit, Threads, and LinkedIn. The platform you select is dependent upon your objective and the demographics you wish to goal.

Meagan Jackman, president and CMO of The Harkey Group, offers steerage that can assist you select the best platform:

“If a nonprofit wants company donations, the workforce ought to flip to LinkedIn. If there’s a youth nonprofit trying to converse to folks, they need to leverage Fb. If the message is informational, YouTube is a superb medium.”

The final word objective is to be the place your target market can discover you.

Assist Your Trigger By way of Social Media for Nonprofits

You’ve in all probability confronted a fair proportion of struggles when advertising and marketing your nonprofit organizations. Nonetheless, constructing a robust social media presence on Fb, X, TikTok, and Instagram made it simpler to achieve a world viewers that shares your ardour.

By following greatest practices and social media developments for nonprofits, you’ll be able to leverage your social media accounts to create model consciousness and interact together with your target market.

Editor’s notice: This put up was initially revealed in June 2022 and has been up to date for comprehensiveness.