Good Content Keeps ’em Coming Back
It is easy to get caught up in increasing website traffic and forget that you need quality content to keep them there – and get them to return. This recent Forbes article reminds us of common mistakes nonprofits make in developing content. First, stop copying your print materials. What works in a flyer isn’t right for online. If volunteers help maintain your website and social media, be sure to train them on style and content. Finally, good writing is important. Just because someone is an expert on a topic, does not mean they can write well about it. Don’t be afraid to get out your red pen (or activate Word’s track changes).
Making a Game out of Fundraising
Bored with the same old silent auctions, 5Ks and Facebook fundraisers? The brave new frontier of digital fundraising is in gaming. According to this article in Nonprofit Quarterly, game company Activision Blizzard donated nearly $13 million to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF) through their online game, Overwatch. Blizzard, which makes World of Warcraft, sold limited edition avatar skins as well as merchandise like t-shirts for players. Another game company recruited champion players to livestream their gameplay, donating tips from viewers to a charitable cause.
Poor, Misunderstood SEO
If you don’t really understand what SEO is, you aren’t alone (even outside the nonprofit marketing world). A recent survey found that businesses ranked search engine optimization (SEO) as the “least popular digital marketing channel.” Only 44% of respondents named SEO as part of their online marketing strategy (social media, website and email were the three most popular.) The researchers expressed surprise over this finding, attributing the lack of popularity to a misunderstanding of SEO and the fact that results from SEO efforts often take some time to show.
However, nonprofits might also pay special attention to SEO. Google added the “donate” button to their “Knowledge Graph cards” (Google-speak for the box that appears on the right sidebar of some searches) of US-based nonprofits at the end of last year. Why wouldn’t you want your organization at the top of the search results when giving is made that easy?
And in other links…
Facebook recently added a recurring donations capability for nonprofits, giving you another channel for automated giving that you might want to highlight for your supporters.
Facebook birthday fundraisers turned one this week, according to CNBC.com. The platform raised $300 million for causes since its launch. Two of the most notable fundraisers were Steph Curry and Madonna, who raised nearly $300,000 between them.
Advice of the Month
Alexa, Where Can I Donate?
Finally, nonprofits should pay special attention to voice search SEO since ComScore predicted that 50% of all searches will be via voice queries on phones and home devices by 2020. This article from Wordstream has practical tips to optimize your voice search results. My favorite tip is to look in Google Search Console (the ability to filter by voice searches is allegedly coming soon). Then, make sure your web copy answers top questions in an engaging, concise way.
Cool Visualization of the Month
Why Flying is the Worst
I just wrapped up a bunch of summer travel, so this Washington Post visualization of a crowded airplane really resonated with me. It’s a funny piece that explains why we all dread flying. But it’s also a perfect illustration of how you can use data to effectively make a point — it doesn’t require a background in data science. (A shout out to Avinash Kaushik’s newsletter for bringing this to my attention.)