Non-profit organizations have more in common with standard businesses than you might think. The success of either depends on a marketing team’s ability to raise awareness, connect with a target audience, and convince people to take action.
Otherwise, no one will know they’re out there or understand why they should choose one option over another.
Content marketing is a massive part of any successful digital-age marketing campaign. But content marketing for non-profits differs from other types in some critical ways. Here’s what you need to know to approach it successfully.
What Is Content Marketing for Non-Profits
A non-profit needs to get the word out about what it’s doing just as surely as businesses do if it’s going to attract the donors and volunteers it needs. The Ws Database term “content marketing for non-profits” refers to any and all efforts to leverage created content (like blog posts, videos, emails, and more) to reach a given non-profit organization’s target audience.
Content marketing for non-profits is essential because, without it, you’re counting on luck instead of strategy to get you where you need to be. That said, an effective marketing strategy for non-profits:
Ensures your content reaches a target audience and makes an impression instead of just sitting there unread
Helps your non-profit build an effective, appealing brand identity
Raises awareness of the services and benefits you offer
Ensures efficient and effective use of your resources
Moves your non-profit toward its long-term goals
Understand How Non-Profits Are Different
A company or business is focused on growth and turning a profit. However, a non-profit is looking for support, which can take many forms. Of course, monetary donations are part of the picture, but so are people who volunteer their time, advocacy, and labor to your cause.
That said, a piece of marketing content for a business only needs to inspire a person to make a purchase. However, a non-profit needs that same person to make a much larger commitment, and its approach to content creation and non-profit marketing needs to reflect that difference in goals.
Create a Powerful Mission Statement
Just as a business needs a strong brand voice and identity that features in all of its content marketing decisions, a non-profit requires a powerful mission statement. Your mission statement defines your non-profit’s purpose and needs to inspire your audience to become part of what you stand for.
Properly incorporating your mission statement and key messages into your content marketing strategy also:
- Ensures consistency as far as what’s being said in your content, across all of your social media content, and in person to volunteers or donors
- Simplifies the process of content creation IE Lists for non-profits
- Helps deliver the right information to individual segments of your target audience.
