With more than 1.5 million nonprofit organizations in the United States, each vying for donor attention, making your organization stand out is imperative. But how do you stand out with a small budget?
Show your donors where money is being spent. Take it further than your annual report graphics and break down your donations by what they actually cover. $1.92 feeds one homeless person one meal. That is a tangible figure that a donor can relate to. Your donor will know that they don’t need to make a hundred or thousand dollar donation to make a difference.
Communicate with donors. Keep donors informed of what is happening at your organization. Staff changes, remodels, client progress and success stories. Use newsletters, your website and social media to tell your story. Including pictures is a great way to connect. People give to people.
Connect with the media. You never know when one of your stories might grab the interest of your local media. If you publish the story in your newsletter, go ahead and put it in press release form and send it out!
Maximize your social media tools. Tools like Instagram, Facebook and Twitter will allow you to tell your story with photos and grab donor attention with headlines and links. These free tools are vastly underutilized by nonprofits and should be a priority for your organization. Maintaining social media is a great volunteer assignment! One more volunteer to take photos and your organization will come to life online.
A little creativity can go a long way in making your organization stand out and engaging your donors.
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