The Best Thing You Can Do TODAY
Ways to acquire and retain donors using social media
In Part 1 of this article we discussed four out of nine tricks to boost your social media traffic and build relationships with your target audiences. They included (1) optimizing your profile; (2) joining different networks; (3) crafting catchy, relevant titles, and (4) creating engaging content. Now it’s time to reveal the rest.
Before I do, it’s worth noting that there’s one dominant strategy underlying all my recommendations: Develop and rock a blog. All of these tricks will work without one, but a blog is the absolute best way to deliver content to your social networks. So make it the hub of your marketing communications strategy. Honest-to-goodness it will make your life easier! If you have numerous excuses holding you back from blogging, read this article to get over them [and see below for some help with implementation]. Got it? Okay. Let’s move on to tricks five through nine.
5. Post Regularly
Social media is supposed to be social, right? If you see a friend once every six months you probably won’t have the deepest of relationships with them. So you need to create a schedule and stick with it. That doesn’t mean you should be a robot. Be human. Shake things up now and them. Post a mix of articles, videos, photos and fun stuff. And don’t be afraid to repurpose content you’ve already created. If you simply edit it a little bit no one will notice, and it’s a good way to assure you keep your posts coming. And, remember, if you’re growing your fan base there will no doubt be a lot of folks who weren’t around the last time you published it.
6. Post links to your blog posts and repurpose across social channels
Just putting a post up on your blog is only half the job. You’ve got to promote it! Think of your blog as the hub of your content; then use it as leverage for exposure via other social channels. In other words, repurpose, repurpose, repurpose . Put a link to your post on all your social channels. Better yet, write a short intro – maybe ask a question — that intrigues folks and makes them want to click on your link and learn more. Take a look at How to Promote Your Content With Social Media on Social Media Examiner. It includes a detailed “how-to” for sharing content on Facebook, Twitter, G+ and LinkedIn. And note that sharing is different on different platforms.
7. Engage!
This one sounds like a no-brainer, but are you really doing it? Remember, it’s “social” media! Retweet other people’s posts. Comment on their blog posts. Join their Linkedin discussions. This will drive more leads – folks in their networks – to you. This generally means finding the right ratio between sharing your own content and sharing links to other content.. So you have to take some time to sleuth out relevant content and share it. When you do, your constituents will be grateful to you for sending them a “gift” of content that’s useful, interesting, entertaining or otherwise meaningful. You never want to be all about you.
8. Get folks to talk about you
Talking is what builds your reputation and develops relationships with those who share the values your organization enacts. Talking is central to your blog – and entire social media – strategy. Add social sharing buttons to your blog to make it easy for others to share your posts and drive more traffic to your website.
9. Create and join groups and communities
This is one of my favorite tips, and too few nonprofits do this well. Joining existing groups and beginning or contributing to discussions is a great way to establish your thought leadership. And groups and communities on social networks can be great sources of traffic. Linkedin is my personal favorite, though Google+ is gaining popularity. Some organizations swear by Facebook groups, and you can start your own groups on Twitter as well. Make sure you join groups that are active – meaning people are engaging constantly. When you start a discussion, make sure you monitor comments and respond to folks who contribute.
Get each volume individually, or all 4 at a “Bundle Bargain!”
A great blog is one of the best investments you can make in acquiring and retaining more donors.
Learn how with my 4-volume Nonprofit Blogging Playbook. Get as many Guides as you want or need (if you buy all four, I offer a “Bundle Bargain” discount). Each guide will teach you something different: (1) Blog Fundamentals; (2) Content that Compels people to read and share it; (3) How to Use your Content to Engage folks, and (4) How to Promote your Blog so it Builds Momentum and drives more potential supporters to your website. I stand by all my Clairification products. If you’re not happy, there’s a no questions asked full refund policy. The only way to lose is by doing nothing. Don’t be a loser!
