You have spent a significant time building a well-designed donation page and implementing best practices to help your page perform at its best. Now, you should make sure that donors can find your page and inspire them to make a contribution. Getting potential donors to your donation page can be difficult if you don t have the right strategies in place. Online giving isn t like online shopping; people don t browse around for nonprofits they want to support. With that said, promoting your donation page goes hand-in-hand with promoting your cause. If someone is passionate about what you do, they will be more inclined to visit your Below are five marketing strategies that will help promote your donation page: 1. Analyze and segment your donors 2. Share your nonprofit s story 3. Unify your website and donation page 4. Link to your donation page in appeals 5. Direct supporters to your page via social media 1. Analyze and segment your donors If you want to promote your donation page, you need to understand your donors and the kind of information they want to see. Understanding your donors will help you create a plan that details what, when, and where you should be promoting your online donation form. For instance, your frequent donors would probably be interested in scheduling automatic gifts, a feature you might have on your donation page, because they won t have to remember to contribute. 1 You could send them a targeted email campaign that emphasizes your recurring gift feature to highlight your On the other hand, newer donors may be interested in knowing how they can interact with your organization online. Providing them with more general information about your website and mentioning your donation page may encourage them to give. You can segment your donors based on a few different factors, including: 1. Their preferred giving channel Look at your donors past giving habits to see what methods they prefer to use. 2. How they heard about your nonprofit A common question on a donation form is How did you hear about our nonprofit?. Once you know how donors discovered your organization, you can start promoting your donation form on these channels. 3. Donation amount You can provide donors with information based on how much they contribute to your nonprofit.
Segmenting your donors allows you to provide the most useful information. That way, you can market different features of your online donation page to the donors who will truly benefit from your messaging. In summary, every donor has a different relationship with your nonprofit, which means they are all at different stages and know different things. Provide donors with new and valuable information about your donation page by dividing them into groups. If you want to bring supporters to your donation page, you need to explain why supporters should give and what their contributions will support. Telling your story and branding your donation page is great way to link your organization to your donation page and encourage supporters to give. Sharing your narrative makes your donors feel like they are a part of your mission. With good branding, you can put your cause front-and-center, which will allow donors to see the impact of their gifts. To brand your donation page, you can: Feature a high-quality image of the recipients of your aid to connect donors to your cause Incorporate your nonprofit s mission statement into your donation page, along with your logo and color scheme to create a cohesive look Show donors how their contributions will help by including stories on your confirmation page or donation receipt Educating donors is important because it shows what you have accomplished and lets people know where you are headed. When people understand what you do and how you have used funds in the past, they will feel more comfortable supporting your cause. Cole, Newton & Duran s Nonprofit Practice Our nonprofit team has years of experience providing assurance, accounting, and tax services to a variety of organizations. Clients receive up-to-date information on the latest accounting developments and industry regulations. Cole, Newton & Duran s team of nonprofit professionals are involved in every stage of our client s engagement to ensure they are receiving high quality, responsive service. Clients enjoy working with nonprofit experts who help achieve their objectives. Clients receive industry knowledge and solutions they need to not only reach, but to exceed their strategic goals. In summary, you need to focus on showing donors how their contributions will further your mission if you want to get them interested in supporting you financially. Provide them with that connection by sharing your story on your 2
3. Unify your website and donation page Many of the supporters who want to learn about your organization (and potentially make a donation!) will go to your website in search of more information. If you want to give users the best experience and direct them to your donation page, you need to make sure that your website and donation page work well together. To attract website visitors to your donation page, you should make your website s Donate Now button visible on your homepage; when donors don t have to search for a button, they are more likely to stick around and make a contribution. To make your button more eye-catching, you can: Place it at the top of your site, so it is the first thing visitors see Create a large button to direct your visitors attentions Design a button with large font and a color that contrasts with your website s primary colors (but still matches your brand) Not only should your donation button be displayed on your home page and your ways-to-give page, but it should also be placed in prominent locations on your blog and navigation. That way, donors will be able to spot it no matter what page they are visiting. In summary, placing an attention-grabbing Donate button throughout your website will increase the chances that supporters make it to your It may seem like common knowledge to link to your donation page when you ask for gifts via email, but you should mention your donation page in every appeal you make. Mentioning your donation page directs donors to the next step if they are interested in supporting your nonprofit. To attract website visitors to your donation page, you should make your website s Donate Now button visible on your homepage; when donors don t have to search for a button, they are more likely to stick around and make a contribution. To make your button more eye-catching, you can: Place it at the top of your site, so it is the first thing visitors see Create a large button to direct your visitors attentions Design a button with large font and a color that contrasts with your website s primary colors (but still matches your brand) With email, donors can click on the link and be taken right to your Even if you are sending out direct mail or asking for donations on the phone, you can still mention your online donation page as an avenue to give. 3
Unlike your other fundraising, online donation pages are a passive fundraising strategy. Donors won t know about your page unless you tell them. You have already made your pitch and explained why you are raising funds, and interested supporters are already looking for a way to give. It makes sense to share with them all the ways they can contribute. So what are you waiting for? Start including your donation page: In emails: Include a direct link to your donation page along with your other giving channels. In direct mail: Mention that donors can give by going to your website. Your main URL will be much easier to find, and if your Donate Now button is easy to locate, supporters will have no trouble reaching your On the phone: Let potential donors know about the option to give online by directing them to your website. In summary, letting potential donors know about the different ways to give when you ask for contributions is a great way to bring people to your 5. Direct supporters to your page via social media You are probably already using social media to promote and further your nonprofit s cause, and for a good reason! Social media is a great marketing tool that not only helps you reach existing supporters but also their friends and family members. Why not use it to inform supporters about your donation page? We could write a book multiple books, even with all the information about marketing on social media, but the key factor to understand when marketing your donation page is that donors want to know about your cause before they hear about your donation form. Use social media as a place to share your progress on current projects, your success stories, and your nonprofit s events. If you are not sure what channels to post on, research your donors habits to see where you should focus your attention. If you have a lot of donors connecting with you and sharing your content on Facebook, spend the majority of your efforts promoting your donation page there and vice versa if you find that donors are more engaged with you on Twitter. Start including your donation page: In emails: Include a direct link to your donation page along with your other giving channels. In direct mail: Mention that donors can give by going to your website. Your main URL will be much easier to find, and if your Donate Now button is easy to locate, supporters will have no trouble reaching your On the phone: Let potential donors know about the option to give online by directing them to your website. 4
To market your donation page, use the following rules to help you succeed. Link to your donation page While linking to your donation page in your posts and tweets may seem like the most obvious way to promote your page on social media, you would be surprised at how few organizations do it. You can also link your donation page in your bio so that it is in a fixed location on your profile. Post relevant and engaging content Social media marketing is a delicate balance between providing useful and meaningful information and asking for donations. Just linking to your donation page is not enough, and there are two reasons why: 1. If donors don t find any value in the things you post, they will stop paying attention to your content (or worse, stop following you altogether). 2. Donors want to feel like more than just wallets. Always asking your donors for money doesn t make them feel appreciated. Contact Us If you would like to discuss how Cole, Newton & Duran s nonprofit team of professionals can help your organization with accounting, tax, or consulting services, please feel free to give me a call. Pat Koepke, CPA Nonprofit Practice Leader 734.427.2030 pkoepke@cndcpa.com Make sure you are posting other content like sharing news and success stories as well as thanking donors for all the support they have already given. Accept donations on Facebook Pictures, videos, and stories are an important part of social media, and the content you post can inspire people to give. When someone decides to give to your nonprofit after reading a post, you can make it easier for them by accepting donations directly on Facebook. You can always use Facebook s donation feature, or some online donation software will let you integrate your existing donation form by adding a donation tab to your profile. That way, donors can easily give and return to browsing their newsfeed. In summary, you can promote your donation page on social media by sharing links to your page and accepting donations directly through Facebook. Just remember to post valuable content at the most optimal times to see the best results. The preceding is an article by Abby Jarvis, blogger, marketer, and communications coordinator for Qgiv, an online fundraising service provider. 33762 Schoolcraft Road Livonia, MI 48150 P: 734.427.2030 F: 734.427.3004 W: All rights reserved 5