There’s no denying it. Social media is the fastest-growing phenomenon of the modern age. Since Facebook launched 15 years ago, in 2004, it has grown to over two billion users. Twitter and Instagram are close behind. Social media helps nonprofits:
· Build trust within your community
· Promote your events
· Expand your outreach and network
· Drive people to your website
· Add personality to your organization
· Provide real-time engagement with your followers
But how do you create your social media presence? Pay attention to these key components when establishing your nonprofit’s online.
Your Nonprofit’s Social Media Profile
Your profile is the first thing people see when they search for you on social media. Keep your name and profile picture consistent across platforms. That way, people who like you on Facebook can easily find you on Twitter or Instagram. Best practice for your profile image is to use your nonprofit’s logo.
· Set your location and add a website address
· Add company info or a brief bio
· Set your cover or header image. Update this image periodically to highlight events, programs, organizational news, or just for a change of pace
What to Post
Content is king. Post content that drives engagement and conversation, and builds trust in your organization. From your mission to programs and events, you have plenty of material to talk about at your disposal. Be personable, approachable, and fun. A picture is worth a thousand words. Posts with video or images have a stronger engagement level than text-only posts.
Shareable Content
· Fundraising campaigns (launches, status updates, fundraising events)
· Non-promotional (holiday party photos, office pot-lucks, candid staff shots, new staff member introductions, trivia, opinion polls, contests)
· Press and Announcements (grants and awards, organization mentioned in news, job postings)
· Events (community events, performances, panel discussions, town halls)
· Relevant external news (articles about your area of focus, blogs by experts in the field, community affairs)
· Let your content lead. Stay active, but don’t post just to post. Create a schedule that includes an item or two a day to stay in your followers’ newsfeeds
When to Post
· An easy-to-follow schedule is to post mid-morning, lunchtime, and late afternoon/early evening
· Stick to a routine and test it out over time to see what kind of response you receive
· Once you have a baseline, try out different times of day to see when you get the most engagement.
Insights & Analytics
Use your social media channel’s individual insights and analytics tools to track how posts are performing. You can learn so much about your audience through these insights. Through this data, you can:
· View overall likes, shares, retweets, and comments
· Learn how, where, and when people are interacting with your posts
· Measure retention over time
· View demographics of your followers
· Segment your audience to target posts
· View the reach and amount of engagement of individual posts
· Find influencers in your network
Use this data to your advantage. Create content that matches your followers’ interests, test out your social media schedule for best results, and target like-minded individuals to grow your network.
Courtesy of Network for Good - https://www.networkforgood.com/
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