2 tips for expanding nonprofit outreach

August 18, 2014

2 tips for expanding nonprofit outreach

Nonprofits scrambling to find new, genuinely interesting ways to engage with current and potential donors may feel overwhelmed with the myriad of different channels and options available. From direct marketing, social media and email campaigns, to multi-channel efforts that attempt to attract contributors and generate awareness, picking the most useful approach may seem like a difficult and time consuming process. Here are two less-common but exciting ideas that nonprofits can use to kick start outreach:

  1. Follow and friend on social media: This "friending" and "liking" component of social media outreach is often overlooked when it comes to crafting an overall outreach strategy. Time spent focused solely on content, optimal posting times and other essential tasks strands this community-building effort as an afterthought. The good news for charitable organizations is that it doesn't take much time or effort to start following, liking, and friending their contributors that return the same to an organization's own social media profiles. This approach was highlighted by Marketing Profs as an easy way to boost engagement, increase conversations and create a deeper connection with the key people that help support a nonprofit.
  2. Consider an online auction: If in-person auctions are a popular as nonprofit events and fundraisers, consider further engaging the contributor base with a similar activity they can enjoy online. Having an online auction as a fundraiser offers much of the excitement of one conducted in person, but the process requires less dedicated time, involvement and effort by staff and volunteers. Nonprofit fundraising software site Okanjo pointed out that some resources will be needed as far as educating participants, but this interesting approach has the potential to pay off in spades.

Content presented by First Nonprofit Group, the leading provider of state unemployment insurance solutions for 501(c)(3) nonprofit employers.

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