No matter the purpose of your non-profit, you need to be able to get the word out about your activities, your goals, and your progress. Additionally, as you may serve a troubled portion of our society, the need right now is great. As you attempt to build a strong presence for the community you serve, make sure that your activities are getting a lot of attention from the wider world.
Social Media Management
Part of the trouble of managing social media for non-profits is that everyone who supports you and uses social media can be a part-time employee. Monitoring all of your posts for an event, a cause, or a fundraiser can be quite exhausting, and the troll monitoring challenges have taken on worrisome levels of scrutiny.
Strive to monitor
- who’s interested in events
- who’s shared fundraisers and with whom
- who’s contributed to the fundraiser they shared, and
- what your percentage of collections per share turned out to be
For example, a strong fundraiser from a particular volunteer can be an indicator that they’re a catalyst or an influencer for your organization, so your social media manager may want to promote or customize pieces that strongly connect with their demographic.
Transparency Promotion
There are many who don’t want to contribute to non-profits or what they consider to be charities if a significant portion is going for the salaries of those who administer the charity. In an effort to avoid this form of backlash, put a special effort in place to promote your volunteers.
If your volunteers help you to balance your monthly bank statement as a board treasurer, feature them in a website promo and find out why they belong to your organization. Stress that this board member is a professional in the community who is volunteering their time and expertise to support the organization.
Additionally, be ready to share the expertise and skills of those who are getting a salary. Most non-profit leaders may be getting paid for forty hours a week but working a lot more. If you’re hosting an online fundraiser and a manager in the organization is getting interviewed, let someone else mention the time they put in each week and for this event in particular, as well as the skills and training they bring to the organization.
Regular Contact Tools
Let your fans know where the organization is going to be, what differences they’re making in the community, and how to support these efforts. When you have an event, make sure you have someone collecting information from your attendees so you can send out email notifications, social media alerts, and text messages. In our mobile world, text messaging for nonprofits is a great way to reach the next generation of donors and volunteers.
Try to set up a buddy system when gathering volunteers. If your group is sponsoring a river cleanup and you put out the call for volunteers, try to connect established volunteers with new ones, or encourage your child to bring a buddy. Not every family has free time on the weekends to volunteer because they have to work, but your family can show a young person what the community is capable of.
Volunteer Management
Do your level best to stay on top of data as you work your way through your volunteer list. Get signatures and phone numbers as volunteers come in, and if possible, collect addresses. If you notice that someone hasn’t signed up recently as you review attendee reports, check for them on social media, or have your social media management Google a name to make sure all is OK.
Many of us plan to volunteer after our working days are done, but this community is hard to build after you’re 65. If at all possible, strive to build a volunteer army of age 60 or less so that your organization is the go-to when they’re ready to retire. Once the suit and tie get switched over to sneakers and jeans, you want that skilled volunteer working on your team!
A well-managed and staffed non-profit can be a catalyst for tremendous change. To best keep your non-profit in front of people, share your info across multiple platforms. Carefully review the comments you get back to make sure nobody is triggered. Track your volunteers, and use texting services to draw in the next generation.
