Innovation & data-driven digital marketing.

All organizations and business sectors can benefit from the visibility of a successful digital marketing plan. However, the strategies used to promote the mission of a national nonprofit will differ from a traditional company. Rather than selling consumers a product or service, nonprofit content marketing aims to show audiences why a particular cause is worth investing in.

Small Digital Marketing Initiatives Yield Impactful Results

Since small but passionate teams run many nonprofits, you don’t have to jump the same corporate hurdles that larger enterprises do. Instead, you can make agile pivots and capitalize on incremental strategies to build awareness. But as effective as this is, 70 percent of nonprofits don’t invest in content marketing, a recent survey from Tapp Network and TechSoup found.

That’s a missed opportunity, as online nonprofit donations have increased by 42 percent over the last few years. Digital platforms such as email, social media, or website blogs make it easy to connect with audiences and compel them to join the cause.

To get it right, here are our top three strategies to build out a successful nonprofit content marketing plan:

1. Understand the Target Audience You Want to Reach

Within nonprofit marketing, you need to reach volunteers, donors, constituents, and other activists. Understanding who they are and how to communicate with them is crucial. Creating an audience persona lets you connect with them—learn what unifies them as a target audience and how it relates to your work. Ask the following questions:

  • What demographics do they represent?
  • What are their goals, values, or concerns?
  • What needs can you help resolve for them?
  • What interactions do they have with nonprofits?

2. Hone Your Message and Align It with Your Mission

All companies have a mission statement, and nonprofits are no different. Your mission statement becomes even more critical when running a nonprofit, as supporters want to know what you do. As you craft content for your marketing materials, ensure it highlights your organization’s history. Utilize these best practices to guarantee a compelling message: 

  • Prioritize consistency and alignment: the same overarching mission and core values should exist across all digital marketing platforms.
  • Be transparent in all communications: maintain the audience’s trust with an honest, authentic message, then live it out with intentional, ethical actions.
  • Make it concise and straightforward to absorb: don’t overcomplicate your message—keep it brief and tell the audience exactly what to do with a clear CTA.
  • Consider each audience segment: adapt the message to who you’re speaking with, from donors to volunteers. 

3. Produce Quality Content to Reinforce this Message

Once you’ve honed in on what you want to put in front of audiences, it’s time to build out a nonprofit content marketing plan to circulate the message. Create different content on your digital channels, from videos to blog articles, interactive charts, image posts, and audio clips. To optimize your content for SEO and rank higher in search results, here are four essential tips:

  • Conduct thorough keyword research: determine which keywords or phrases your target audiences use in their search queries, then use those keywords in the content you produce. Incorporate them in titles, subheads, copy, and meta tags.
  • Focus on timely and relevant topics: center all nonprofit content marketing materials around issues that pertain to the audience’s values and your organizational mission. For instance, if your nonprofit operates in the mental health space, create a piece of content about exciting new research on how to heal trauma.   
  • Ensure the content reads credible: establish your content as a valuable resource and your organization as a trusted expert in the field. Include measurable data and link to other authoritative organizations. 
  • Maintain a mobile-responsive format: structure content for easy viewing on a mobile device. Mobile friendliness is the main factor in determining content ranking.

Take Your Nonprofit Content Marketing Plan to the Next Level 

Digital marketing is a valuable tool for nonprofit organizations to explore. If you haven’t created a nonprofit content marketing plan, now is the time to start. This will raise awareness for your mission and attract more supporters to the cause. These simple, effective strategies will propel you to the next level of growth. For extra help, reach out to our experts at 10x digital to learn how to create a scalable plan that works for your team.