Much has been learned and discovered as we celebrate our 3rd year of serving the Black community and the organizations that support it.
The charitable sector has changed: the focus has moved away from traditional philanthropic deeds towards the M.U.S.H. sector (Museum, Universities, Schools, Hospitals) to more community based sectors. Why? The impact and effectiveness of community based organizations are more direct and easier to measure.
In late 2021, we’ve seen the “Donor Fatigue” starting to set in. Consequently it is important to stay relevant and adapt in the age of digital media where the narrative changes constantly amidst a constant flow of new information.
Here are 5 ways to expand your reach and remain visible to your supporters and potential donors:
1 – Keep your website up to date in terms of technology & content
Today, more people are browsing the internet on tablets or smartphones. To keep a visitor interested and ensure they have a pleasant experience and don’t click away due to loading time, lagging technology or lack of relevant information:
- Use a Responsive design. It’s an approach that allows design across various devices(mobile, desktop, tablet, etc.); it automatically scales content and elements to match the screen size in the orientation on which it is viewed; content loads quickly without any distortions on any platform.
- Regularly update the content of your website; be consistent across all online media, especially for upcoming events, programs or special announcements. Always provide more detailed information on your website.
2- Follow latest Social Media trends to increase engagement: Emotional Storytelling
One year in social media is like 10 years in the real world. Things change constantly and quickly.
Emotional Storytelling driven posts are one of the best new ways to capture the emotion, sentiment or feeling part of any circumstance or situation.
Social media is more than an advertising outlet. Social media storytelling is exactly that. It’s using text, photos, videos to create a compelling narrative and engage an audience with a great story, rather than simply offering facts about programs or events.
Try creating “snack size” 2 minute DIY videos, not to be mistaken for Instagram stories or Reels. It gives a more authentic personal touch. These posts resonate with people emotionally. Emotions are our biggest influencer in terms of what we watch, consume, purchase, engage or ultimately donate to.
3 – Embrace the virtual environment and tools
Due to current global social distancing guidelines, Zoom quickly became a household name in the virtual space. It’s important to leverage the immense potential that virtual tools and platforms can bring to organizations for meetings, volunteering, programs, info session, conferences, galas, seminars, and fundraising events.
There are no borders. Organizations can host events, training, activities, and hold meetings with individuals anywhere in the world.
Visibility increases because it allows an organization to remain active, stay connected with their followers and supporters and continue to offer programs without shutting down or worrying about logistics of people meeting in person.
Other benefits: Free for up to a maximum number of participants, Breakout spaces for networking, Live streaming, Polling, Q&A sessions and fireside chats, Virtual meetups, Virtual booths, Workshop facilitation.
Get familiar with some of the most popular ones for your upcoming events or programs:
- Virtual meeting platforms: Zoom, Microsoft Teams, GotoMeeting, WebEx, Google Workspace
- Virtual event/conference platform: AirMeet, HopIn, GoToWebinar, Mixily
4 – Improve communication with supporters: transparency and consistency
In today’s digital world, people don’t believe it until they see it. For a charitable organization asking for supporters to volunteer, participate and donate to their mission, trustworthiness and transparency are key. It’s important to show that you are actively currently working within the community by regularly showing what you are or have been recently working on.
The following are easy examples to stand out when communicating with supporters:
- Show dated pictures or videos of past events or activities
- Share testimonials (videos work best) of individuals involved with your organizations
- Regularly share quantifiable or measurable impact of your work in the community by sharing statistics
- Send monthly/quarterly Newsletters and upload Blogs that are relevant to your supporters to help them stay connected and engage with the community.
- Offer an easy method for your supporters to reach out by email address or via Contact Form on the website
5 – Choose to Get Listed, Featured and Promoted on Support Black Charities’ online platform
Take advantage of SBC’s brand messaging by getting listed on our online directory of Black organizations. Many black serving organizations do not have the keywords “Black”, “African”, “Caribbean”, “Afro” or “support” in their name and may not come up in the list of results on online search engines like Google or Bing. However, SBC’s branding and name allows it to be found more easily. On our website, a black organization can more easily be found with its name or within any of the 9 categories.
Our mission is to inspire compassion while increasing visibility of organizations serving the Black community. How? We built an online directory and we feature organizations, their programs or their executive/volunteer teams on Social Media to amplify their mission based on chosen service plan.
Every day highly targeted individuals, businesses, and organizations looking to make a difference within the Black community engage with our directory to find causes and programs that they can support.
Being listed on SBC’s directly and instantly increases an organization’s visibility and connection with the broader community.
Choose one of our enhanced service plans to help you with your marketing, give you added exposure, and promote your message to the community.
https://www.supportblackcharities.org/services/
These are emerging new strategies to give your awareness-building and outreach efforts a boost while increasing your online visibility.
If you’re planning to expand and diversify your network of supporters, develop relationships online, and engage your audience in new ways, get ahead of “Donor Fatigue” by adopting some of the new but simple ways to stand out in 2022.