Creating Content Aligned with your Nonprofit’s mission

Here are my top 5 tips for creating content aligned with your nonprofit’s mission.

1 - Set monthly/quarterly goals and regular check-ins. 

Setting content marketing goals for a specific duration (e.g. monthly or quarterly) helps you stay focused and strategic with your content ideas and decisions.

Goals can be metrics-based — “I want to hit 100 followers” — or focus more on specific promotions and features — “I want to promote X program more frequently.”

No matter what direction your nonprofit wants to go with content, set realistic timelines and regular check-ins to monitor your progress. That’s the only way to see how your strategy is performing, and where you might need to make adjustments.

2 - Look to “atypical” sources for exciting, engaging content ideas. 

A common barrier I see with nonprofits is the feeling that they don’t have “enough” content to post regularly and intentionally. 

The truth is that nonprofits have access to a huge amount of content… you just have to look at “atypical” sources to find it! 

Presentations, annual reports, grant applications, “frequently asked questions” lists, and email newsletters might not seem like great sources for content ideation… 

But they’re packed with stats, plans, goals, testimonials, and other information easily translatable to engaging, exciting social media and video content. Give it a try!

3 - Focus on storytelling to build relationships and connections. 

Data and diagrams have a time and a place in your content strategy — your audience should have access to the “real” data behind your goals and results. 

But, if you want to foster genuine, authentic relationships and connections with your audience, you’ll want to share stories alongside the stats. 

Staff, visitors, volunteers, and board members all have memorable experiences with your nonprofit that they’d probably love to share… and it’d make a great short-form video for your social media channels, too! People love to share stories — all you have to do is ask! 

4 - Take time to remind your audience who you are and what you do. 

When you’re closely involved in a non-profit organization as a staff or board member, it’s easy to fall into an “Obvious” trap — “It’s obvious what we do, who we help, and what programs we have. People should just know!” 

In reality, your audience members don’t spend as much time on your website or social channels as you do. And they’ll never know the ins and outs of your institution at the level you do.

Regularly reminding your existing followers (and informing your new followers) about your nonprofit is good practice to make sure your audience is aligned. And, at the end of the day, if you want your audience to know what you do and why it matters… you need to tell them! 

5 - Focus on the channels where your audience is (instead of doing it all).

With “New and Hot” platforms popping up seemingly every day, it’s easy to feel pressured to join because that’s what “everyone else” is doing. But, before you go ahead and create 15 new social media profiles, you need to ask yourself a few questions: 

• Where does my organization get the most engagement?

• How do people reach out for information and questions?

• What type of content is easiest for me to create and share? 

If you answered “TikTok” to all of those questions, that’s great! Go ahead and start creating on that channel. But, if you answered something like LinkedIn or Facebook, and TikTok never generates anything meaningful for your nonprofit… then you don’t have to be there. 

Meeting your audience on the channels they’re already spending time on makes it easier for them to connect with you, and easier for you to create content that truly resonates.