Nonprofit Marketing Guide

SEPTEMBER 24, 2020

Flickr Creative Commons photo. When I advise nonprofits on how to build effective media relations strategies on a modest budget, I preach the importance of being focused. Instead of casting a wide net, nonprofits are often better served by identifying a handful of journalists who are influential in reaching their highest-value audiences – then working to build relationships with those journalists.

Values 336

Values Nonprofits 336

Ann Green

JULY 28, 2020

I feel like the theme of most of my posts over the last several months is this is more important than ever. This could be a tough fundraising season, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do a campaign this fall. Something that should help is having a thank you plan. Thanking donors often takes a back seat to fundraising when you should spend equal time doing both.

Food 315

Food Communication Fundraising Fundraising 315

Selfish Giving

FEBRUARY 26, 2020

I had an interesting conversation with a corporate client the other day about the best way for her company to pick a nonprofit partner. I have to admit my first response was: "It can be kind of complicated." It's complicated because there are a lot of variables that go into picking a nonprofit partner. As I talked to her, I started drawing circles and writing things on them.

Associations 246

Associations Medical Law Production 246

Nonprofit Tech for Good

DECEMBER 3, 2020

This is the sixth post in a blog and webinar series called 101 Digital Marketing Best Practices for Nonprofits , written and presented by Heather Mansfield. Please sign up for Nonprofit Tech for Good’s email newsletter to be alerted of new posts. Thank you! Related Webinar: Social Media Best Practices for Nonprofits. With 2.7 billion monthly active users , Facebook is the largest social network in the world.

Nonprofits 145

Nonprofits Advertising Non-Profits Fundraising 145

Speaker: Duke Heninger, Partner and Fractional CFO at Ampleo & Creator of CFO System

Are you ready to elevate your accounting processes for 2025? 🚀 Join us for an exclusive webinar led by Duke Heninger, a seasoned fractional CFO and CPA passionate about transforming back-office operations for finance teams. This session will cover critical best practices and process improvements tailored specifically for accounting professionals.

Finance

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

MAY 14, 2020

During our Communications Director Mentoring Program group call this week, we discussed ways to get program staff to take and share better photos. Here are several ideas from the group that I thought you could use too! If you do a lot of tabling, instead of having staff take photos of the table (SO. BORING.), create a photo frame with a hashtag or phrase on it that people who walk by can hold and pose with to show support for your organization.

Communication 335

Communication Nonprofits 335

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

JUNE 4, 2020

In days following the murder of George Floyd. I had no words. This is unusual for me as a journalist, speaker, leadership team member of an advocacy-based nonprofit, and downright talkative person. . Image: Unsplash by munshots. My nonprofit wanted to put out a statement. Freelance news stories [demanding a Black perspective] awaited. And then there was the white cashier who decided I “looked tired.

Children 334

Children Law Collaborations Philanthropy 334

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

OCTOBER 15, 2020

Tony Martignetti. Today Tony Martignetti joins us to talk about marketing your bequests program. ~ Kristina. Guest Post by Tony Martignetti. Many nonprofit communicators shy away from spending much time marketing Planned Giving at their organizations. But here’s the thing: your donors won’t think to include your organization in their wills unless you ask them.

Marketing 315

Marketing Marketing Advertising Communication 315

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

AUGUST 6, 2020

Many nonprofits focus on creating engaging content that gets people to like, comment, share or click. And that’s great! But with a bit more thinking and planning upfront, those same content marketing campaigns could be even more strategic — producing even more impressive results. Consider trying one of these approaches. Improve Conversion on Your Highest Ranking Web Pages for Organic Search.

Management 304

Management Marketing Marketing Nonprofits 304

Ann Green

MARCH 3, 2020

In a recent Grow Repor t , fundraising expert Pamela Grow wrote about a time she had just started a new development job and the donors hadn’t been thanked for over eight months (yikes!). When she expressed concern about this to an outside consultant, the consultant replied, “In my experience, donors are lucky to get a postcard.”. Really? What nonprofit organizations should be saying is, “We’re lucky to have our donors.

Retention 300

Retention Communication Fundraising Fundraising 300

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

SEPTEMBER 14, 2020

Show of hands – Who is busy? I obviously can’t see you, but I bet you at least mentally raised your hand, didn’t you? Of course you are busy. We all are even if we haven’t left our house in a week. Being too busy was a thing way before 2020 happened ( Kivi wrote a whole book about it ) and it will be a thing next year and the year after that.

Energy 294

Energy Management 294

Speaker: Radhika Samant and Todd Wuestenberg

Employee recognition has often been deemed a "feel-good" initiative, tied closely to rewards. While we understand its importance, we tend to associate recognition with intangible outcomes like engagement and sentiment, rather than direct impacts on retention and high performance. In today’s workplace, the true ROI of recognition lies in its ability to regenerate tangible, business-driven results.

Retention

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

OCTOBER 26, 2020

Every other year or so around Halloween I revisit a blog post about what scares you to help us all face what’s holding us back. (Here are the 2016 and 2018 posts.). But 2020 just seems like some never-ending horror movie, and there is no sign things will get better especially in the US with COVID-19 cases surging and the most contentious election in our lifetimes.

Children 293

Children Management 293

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

NOVEMBER 23, 2020

Every year around this time, I share some tips on dealing with the extra stress that happens during the holidays. You can read those here: Less Stress This Year-End Season? Yes, Please! How to Take Care of Yourself This Season. But this year has the potential to be the most stressful yet – or does it? With travel restrictions and physical distancing measures in place, you may have more time to take of yourself since you aren’t hopping between Christmas parties, family gatherings, and

Health 289

Health Management 289

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

OCTOBER 5, 2020

Tricia Maddrey Baker. Here is the latest submission for our Day in the Life of a Nonprofit Communicator. Tricia Maddrey Baker is still working at home. Let’s see how she is adapting. Tricia’s Bio: When our second child was born, I had no idea that dealing with his special needs would lead me to a career, although not as you might expect.

Communication 289

Communication Children Nonprofits Associations 289

Ann Green

SEPTEMBER 29, 2020

Many people donate online now. There’s a good reason for this. It’s usually fast and easy, or at least it should be. You may be opting for an online only year-end campaign this fall, although I do recommend mailing an appeal letter if you can. One issue with online donations is the poor thank yous that come after your donor has given you a gift. I like to think of what happens after someone donates online as a thank you experience, which consists of a thank you landing page, thank you email, and

Associations 287

Associations Fundraising Fundraising Nonprofits 287

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Management

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

DECEMBER 28, 2020

Happy Holidays! Toward the end of every year, we spread some good cheer with some free stuff for our awesome readers like you! We have some new freebies for you, but let’s kick of the week with something tried and true… The 2021 Nonprofit Communications Trends Report. The 2021 Nonprofit Communications Trends Report is compiled from the answers of over 500 nonprofit professionals who took the 2021 Nonprofit Communications Trends Survey in November and December of 2020.

Communication 286

Communication Nonprofits Marketing Marketing 286

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

DECEMBER 14, 2020

We need new submissions for our Day in the Life of a Nonprofit Communicator blog series. If you have ever read a Day in the Life post and thought “Yay! I am not alone” or nodded along knowingly when someone said they had to eat lunch at their desk – it’s your turn to share! From the moment your alarm goes off til you shut your computer off, we want to know how you spend your day.

Communication 286

Communication Nonprofits 286

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

AUGUST 26, 2020

No matter where you are in the process of creating more effective communications and marketing for your nonprofit, you can always do more. But that means it is very easy to get overwhelmed! Here’s how we suggest you level up your permission-based marketing, list building, and segmentation. Figure out where you are first, then look at the next level to find what you should be working on.

Public and Nonprofit Management 286

Public and Nonprofit Management Marketing Marketing Activism 286

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

DECEMBER 18, 2020

I am having a heck of a day so let’s just get straight to the most helpful articles, posts, tips, and more from around the world of nonprofit marketing and fundraising, shall we? This week we have how to schedule Instagram posts, mental health tips, year-end fundraising advice, and more. It’s time for Mixed Links… Linqia has The Marketing Calendar for 2021 [Infographic].

Communication 283

Communication Health Nonprofits Marketing 283

Speaker: Joe Sharpe and James Carlson

Payroll optimization can be one of the most time-consuming and complex factors of small business management. Yet, organizations that crack the code on streamlining employee compensation often discover innovative avenues for growth. With the right strategies in place, outsourcing and streamlining payroll processes can result in substantial time and resource savings.

Foundations

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

SEPTEMBER 22, 2020

A nonprofit brand and style guide is right up there with an editorial calendar as a top tool for nonprofit communications pros. Here are some of the core elements you might include in yours: Brand Guidelines (colors, fonts, logo use, etc.) Style Guide (word choices that convey voice and tone, preferred ways to say things, grammar/punctuation choices, formatting guidelines, etc.

Nonprofits 283

Nonprofits Communication Marketing Marketing 283

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

AUGUST 17, 2020

Last week I talked about how our constant desire to better ourselves can become a bad thing when we tie our self-worth to that self-improvement. For more on how we can make sure we aren’t feeling too much like a failure, check out “The Power of Low-Stakes Productivity.” (This week’s Smarter Living newsletter feature). In that article, Leah Fessler encourages us to focus on our little wins every day as opposed to only feeling good when we complete a major task. …smal

Production 281

Production Health 281

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

JANUARY 21, 2020

I was recently contacted by Julianne Buck, executive director of the Community Foundation of Grundy County about the Monthly Nonprofit Writing Prompts I send. She shared a great idea I knew you would want to hear about – especially those of you who deal with board members who aren’t the best at promoting your cause. Let’s hear more from Julianne herself.

Nonprofit governance and management 282

Nonprofit governance and management Public and Nonprofit Management Foundations Governance 282

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

DECEMBER 9, 2020

Were you ready for 2020? I know I wasn’t! Who knows what 2021 will bring us? It could be another horror show or the best year ever. Either way you will need some help cutting through the noise so you can focus on what really works. We are always here for you as your one-stop nonprofit communications professional development shop. We have amassed not only a great catalogue of nonprofit communications training you can access 24/7, but we also have a generous community of fellow nonprofit com

Communication 277

Communication Marketing Marketing Nonprofits 277

Speaker: Tim Sarrantonio, Director of Corporate Brand

Is your organization ready to build a recurring giving program that not only sustains but also propels your mission forward? 🚀 In this new webinar with industry visionary Tim Sarrantonio, we’ll guide you through the critical steps to establishing and scaling a successful recurring giving program. Whether you’re starting fresh or enhancing an existing program, this session will provide the strategies you need to deepen donor relationships and secure long-term support!

Nonprofits

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

OCTOBER 1, 2020

What? I felt like I had to include an actual recipe with that title. Here’s what’s happening this month at Nonprofit Marketing Guide…. Online Training: October 6: The Seven Styles of Nonprofit Writing MASTER CLASS with Kivi Leroux Miller. [THREE-HOUR WORKSHOP] Learn how to master the seven distinct types of copywriting during this BRAND NEW interactive and engaging training opportunity.

Communication 277

Communication Management Marketing Marketing 277

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

OCTOBER 21, 2020

CALM not BUSY is the framework we created to help you understand how to manage your nonprofit’s communications work for maximum effectiveness. You should work on being more Collaborative, Agile, Logical, and Methodical (CALM) and less Bogus, Unrealistic, Sidestepping, and Yoked (BUSY). I just finished teaching the CALM not BUSY approach via a three-hour workshop over Zoom and created a new one-pager that I thought you might find helpful too.

Collaborations 277

Collaborations Management Communication Nonprofits 277

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

MARCH 24, 2020

Nonprofit communicators are full of anxiety right now about messaging, from what to say, to how often, and where to say it. Let’s get two common questions out the way. Should we stop messaging if our work has nothing to do with coronavirus? No, you should keep talking about what you know best and what your supporters still care about too, even if it’s not necessarily top of mind right now.

Communication 278

Communication Marketing Marketing Fundraising 278

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

OCTOBER 7, 2020

As Kristina and I were planning out our fall training schedule and editorial calendar, we moved everything important off of the week of November 2 – 6, 2020. I firmly believe that the entire United States (which is where 75% of our clientele lives) will be engrossed in the Presidential and Congressional elections and very little else. We are planning our webinar series on managing your editorial calendar for the following week (November 10 and 12) and even that has me nervous.

Management 274

Management Communication Nonprofits 274

Speaker: Radhika Samant and Adri Glover

The world of work has fundamentally changed. The series of waves that the pandemic began have rippled through the Great Resignation, quiet quitting, the Great Regret, and other eloquent phrases that boil down to the same thing: people aren’t engaged at work or enabled to perform at their best. The truth is that engagement and enablement is more important than ever, but how we do it is the critical differentiator for many organizations.

Activism

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

APRIL 9, 2020

Some of you are being asked to do communications work for the first time. Others have been at it a while but feel like you’re drowning in requests and details. No matter what you are working on, there are a few really simple elements to this nonprofit communications work that you can always use to ground yourself and to create a strong foundation for your work.

Nonprofits 275

Nonprofits Foundations Communication Marketing 275

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

SEPTEMBER 29, 2020

Need some ideas for social media updates, blog posts, newsletter articles, or other content for October? Today’s post will help. These ideas come from our Monthly Nonprofit Writing Prompts email newsletter*. If you would like these ideas sent to your inbox a month in advance, sign up for our Monthly Nonprofit Writing Prompts. I send this email newsletter the first week of every month with prompts for the following month.

Health 273

Health Poverty Food Culture 273

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

AUGUST 3, 2020

Jennifer Cobb at home. Here is our latest submission for our Day in the Life of a Nonprofit Communicator – Quarantine Edition. Let’s see how Jennifer Cobb is adapting. Jennifer’s Bio: Jennifer Cobb is a storyteller at heart and a dedicated disciple of “donor love.” She currently serves as the Executive Director of Donor Relations for University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS), where she leads a multi-faceted team focused on providing individualized, inspiring and intentional

Communication 273

Communication Medical Nonprofits Universities 273

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

APRIL 8, 2020

In other news, water is wet. Back in March, IZEA Worldwide, Inc released a special report that examined how people thought they would use social media over the next few months or so if they were under a lockdown order. They found: 66% of social media users believe their social media usage habit will increase in the event they are confined to their home due to the Coronavirus. 64% expect their usage of YouTube to increase, only 2% expect a decrease. 63% expect their usage of Facebook to increase

Marketing 273

Marketing Marketing Nonprofits 273

Speaker: Igli Laci, Strategic Finance Leader

In today’s competitive market, pricing is more than just a number — it’s the cornerstone of profitability. The right pricing strategy ensures that you capture the true value of your offering, paving the way for sustainable growth and long-term success. Join Igli Laci, Strategic Finance Leader, in this exclusive session where he will explore how a well-crafted pricing approach balances customer perception with business objectives, creating a powerful tool for securing both competitive advantage a

Finance