Mistakes your nonprofit is making on social media
Social media has transformed how nonprofits share information with supporters and even reach new audiences. But, it can be dizzying to keep track of the new platforms that emerge and features that are suddenly added or removed from platforms you’ve used for years. Image sizes, text limits and algorithms might change, but ultimately the goals of social media should stay the same: connection and furthering your mission.
There are three main mistakes that organizations make that cause their content to get lost in the shuffle. If you address these three mistakes, you’ll set your social media up to be impactful, rooted in your community and it might even be more fun for you to manage.
Mistake #1: Trying to talk to everyone
At its best social media is all about creating connections. When you’re trying to talk to everyone, you inevitably talk to no one. To create authentic connections on social media, we need to view our content as conversation starters. When you speak generally to everyone, it doesn’t feel personal. You wouldn’t start a conversation by yelling across a room full of crowded people and the same goes for your approach to social media. As you create your content, keep your target audience in mind.
- What inspires your supporters?
- What encourages them to take action and buy a ticket to your next event?
- What would activate them to invite their friends to engage with your organization?
Your mission is too important to try to appeal to everyone!
One thing you can do today: Review one or more previous social media posts and post (or schedule) the content again, but this time focus on truly talking to your target audience. Think of the one person on the other side of the screen.
Mistake #2: Trying to be everywhere all the time without the proper support
Think of all the social media platforms that exist right now. A few that come to mind instantly are Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Reddit and the list goes on from there. Large corporations have entire teams just to manage and create content for each of these individual platforms. There is no way any nonprofit marketer can manage all of these platforms successfully. Niche down to the platforms that work for you (that you can actually maintain).
One thing you can do today: Make a list of each platform your nonprofit has an account with and determine if there are any of those that you struggle to keep up with. You don’t necessarily need to make any big changes, but pay attention to which platforms might no longer be serving your organization as you continue to create social content.
Mistake #3: Not inviting followers to connect outside of social media
Social media can be an incredibly powerful tool for your nonprofit, but it should be used in conjunction with your website and email marketing. Unlike the ever-changing algorithms of social media platforms, you have complete control over your website and email list. It is important to find opportunities to encourage followers to visit your website and join your email list. You can even do this on Instagram by including a link in your bio with a tool like Linktr.ee. By inviting people to engage with your organization in new ways, you also bring them closer to your mission.
One thing you can do today: Review your general information on each social media platform. In addition to using links in your posts, when it’s applicable, ensure people have access to key details about your organization by keeping your “About” information up to date. Ensure your website, contact information, location and hours of operation and any other key information is available and current.
