7 tips for your nonprofit organization's content marketing strategy

2. Content Marketing is on the rise for non-profit organziations!
· 92% of the nonprofit professionals...surveyed are using
content marketing
· 52% of those with a documented content strategy rate
themselves highly in terms of effectiveness

3. If you are a smaller organization, you may find it harder to assign a
specific person to manage your content marketing strategy, but as we
know from marketing trends, it is essential to put engaging and exciting
content out into the world in order to best reach your audience, serve your
community, and increase support.
Developing a strong content marketing strategy can be a better use of
your marketing budget and time! Here are some ways you can improve
your plan:

4. Know your audience
It is easy to want to talk to
EVERYONE if you have a small
marketing budget. However, you will
be more effective and impactful if you
stop trying to cast as wide of a net as
possible, and try to catch the fish that
really matter. Think about who they
are, their communication preferences
and where they are most present
online, and how you might serve
them, too!

5. Master your mission &
messaging
You probably provide a lot of
services. Acknowledging that,
narrowing down the services you
want to focus on for your content
marketing and creating purposeful
messaging will make your content
more engaging and successful.

6. Storytelling
Superstars
Once you know your mission and
messaging, it’s time to really lean into
telling the STORY of your
organization. Knowing the stories of
the many people you have served will
tune your voice to the people you are
trying to reach.

7. Teamwork makes the
dream work!
Utilize the many talents and
personalities on your staff! Creating
engaging content is more fun and
achievable when multiple people
contribute to the effort. Unless you
have a content marketing manager,
the creation of content is likely added
to the responsibilities of someone else
on staff, too. Avoiding running out of
ideas and keep them fresh by having
brainstorming sessions, making the
creation of content a fun staff
moment, and other ways of engaging
more staff members.

8. A picture is worth
1,000 words
Consider designating a photographer at
your next event. Maybe you have “good
enough” pictures to use for your social
media, newsletters, and other collateral.
If you have the funds to hire a
professional photographer, give it a shot
and see how the essence of your
organizations can be captured in a new
way! Your audience will be able to feel
what your organization embodies
through powerful imagery. If a
professional is out of your budget, at the
very least make sure that someone is
assigned to taking photos to share with
the world.

9. Make use of helpful
marketing tools
There are many free options out there,
but investing in the right tools can make
a world of difference. Whether it’s a
better email marketing platform, a
content creation program, content
scheduler, and more, spending money
will help save you time and funds in the
long run.
Check out MailChimp, Constant Contact,
Canva (business/premium upgrade),
Adobe Suite, Hootsuite, Sprout

10. Partners
You aren’t in this alone! Partner with
businesses in your community,
people who have felt the impact of
your services, and many more, to
share the story of your organization.

11. Example: charity:water
“We think about brand in ways very few
nonprofits do. There are brands of toothpaste
peddled with more sophistication than all of
the world’s most pressing causes. We want
people to love our brand. But we don’t have a
traditional marketing budget – we don’t do
direct mail. We invest heavily in content and
spread that through word-of-mouth marketing
and great partnerships.”
Paul Young, charity:water
https://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2015/02/charity-water-nonprofit-cont
ent-phenom/

12. Example: Ikea x Home for Hope
https://www.businessinsider.com/ikea-pet-adoption-2014-7#:~:text=Ikea%20Has%20Found%20A%20Brilliant%
20Way%20To%20Help%20Homeless%20Animals%20Get%20Adopted&text=Ikea%20has%20found%20a%20bril
liant%20way%20to%20help%20shelter%20animals,bunk%20beds%20of%20its%20showrooms.

13. Reference List
● https://contentmarketinginstitute.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Nonprofit_Research_2014_CMI.pdf
● https://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2015/02/charity-water-nonprofit-content-phenom/
● https://www.businessinsider.com/ikea-pet-adoption-2014-7#:~:text=Ikea%20Has%20Found%20A%20Brilliant%20W
ay%20To%20Help%20Homeless%20Animals%20Get%20Adopted&text=Ikea%20has%20found%20a%20brilliant%2
0way%20to%20help%20shelter%20animals,bunk%20beds%20of%20its%20showrooms.