Charities have a great message, but minimal funds. The dilemma has plagued non-profits for ages, but thanks to the power of social marketing, you can make your campaigns go further, even without a big budget. This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t make any sort of investment at all. Hiring a talented charity-focussed marketing agency can make a world of difference.
After all, you need every word to have impact. You need the visuals, the message, and even the location to all hit their mark every time. You don’t have the budget to try things out and learn as you go. You need your campaign to have a big impact, so you get maximum value out of every cent you spend.
The good news is that there are ways to make that investment go so much further:
Start With a Strong Campaign
Before you worry about any other marketing effort, you need to start with strong charity marketing campaigns. Work with a marketing agency to identify this focus and then create very strong content to bring it to life. You need a website that converts, you need visual assets that draw the eye, and you need a message that sticks in the mind. Once you have that, pay what you can to get the word out. If you have limited funds, stick to digital marketing. Once you have this campaign and content up, you can then expand your reach with the following steps.
Get in the News
Getting in the news is a great way to raise awareness and build up your charity’s authority all at once. There are many ways that you can do it. One, you can host an event that works to fundraise for your cause. If big enough, this event will naturally get news coverage (at least from local publications). You can also go direct to journalists with your specific issue. If you do this, make sure you have a very strong story angle, data to back up your information, and that you find the right journalist to take on your cause. For example, a journalist who writes about environmental issues will write about your environmental charity, whereas someone who writes about tech trends is not.
Get in Touch with Influencers
Do you want your charity to get out there and become viral? It is impossible, but you don’t want to sit around and hope it will happen. Charity challenges were a big deal a few years ago, but they’ve run their course. This means you need to do something different, and something more low-key. The answer? To get in touch with influencers. Don’t worry about the big personal brands; instead, focus on finding people who align with your values. For example, if you are a nature or animal-based charity, find smaller “influencers” with a decent audience that fill that niche, and see if they are willing to partner with you.
Brand ambassadors are very common today, and for good reason. Find your niche’s ambassadors, and remember to keep it as close to home as possible, so the people who need you, and those who can help the most, are the most exposed.
