Mar32013
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5 Ways to Get your Nonprofit Blog Posts Shared on Social Media: S.S.T.S. Series Part II

Shareable text with ocean and cloudsS.S.T.S. Share. Shareable. Talk. Search.  Those are the elements required for promoting your blog.  In Part I we talked about how to create a super sonic transport system to make your blog work for you. We began with how you share.  Now we’re going to talk about how to get other folks to share on your behalf.  You want to make your posts Shareable. This is what gives ‘wings’ to your super-sonic promotion strategy.

Share and share alike. We all know this old adage.  But if you’re given an apple and no knife to cut it into pieces, it’s difficult to share.  Similarly, if you share a blog post but offer no sharing tools, it’s not likely to be shared. People who read your posts have networks.  You want to tap into them!

It’s your job to make it easy for folks to spread the good word.

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Feb272013
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Where you’re Going Wrong with Donor Retention – Purely Practical SMIT for February

Here comes this month’s *SMIT (Single Most Important Thing I have to tell you): the odds are good that you’re searching for love in all the wrong places.

Do a little spring cleaning and get rid of your apathetic donors.  I don’t mean you should toss them out the window. I mean you should do something to overcome their apathy. It’s not their fault.  Chances are it’s yours. I know that may sound harsh.  But, gosh darn it, we betray our donors all the time. Instead, we should go to them and give them some love. It’s really not that hard to retain your donors; you simply must have a strategy.

Most of us don’t even see the mess we’re making.  Just like that pile of papers that’s sitting over in the corner waiting to be tended to, our eyes glaze over. We’re apt to virtually ignore the broad base of donors in the middle, as well as our donors who lapse.  We send them one or two perfunctory renewal appeals; then we’re done.  I’m not sure why.  Perhaps it’s because announcing a big upgrade and securing a new donor just seems a lot sexier than renewing folks.  But sustainable fundraising is not about sexy.

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Feb262013
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4 Reasons Your Blog Promotion Strategy Sucks, and How to Fix It – S.S.T.S. Series, Part I

Photo of SST Concorde NoseWe’ve talked CONTENT (C.P.A. Series).   We’ve talked ENGAGEMENT (R.C.A. Series).  Now we’ve got to talk PROMOTION (S.S.T.S Series).

 S.S.T.S.  That’s the four things. You need a super sonic transport system that will enable all your brand messaging – across multiple channels – to emanate from your blog.  Yes. We’ve talked about this before.  Your blog is your content hub.  It’s the essence of you and what you do.  But it’s not something that has meaning separate from the rest of your marketing communications efforts. It won’t get you anywhere if you don’t put the wheels in motion.  And since things are fast, fast, fast these days — let’s get you in motion super sonically!

You must promote your blog. (Tweet this). I’ve just engaged in a lengthy discussion with folks in the “Marketing Professionals” group on Linkedin about what’s more important: content, engagement or promotion.  Content seems to be winning. But I just can’t agree.  Not that I don’t’ think it’s super important.  Who cares about promoting dreck?  But all three must work together.  They’re three legs of a three-legged stool; unstable if any one leg is missing. Without promotion your super-de-duper content just sits there. Dead. In. The. Water. That’s just sad.

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