Nonprofit Engagement Strategy 101: Your Audience

Learn how to speak to your nonprofit audiences.
4 min read

 

October 21, 2021

Nonprofit Engagement Strategy 101: Your Audience

Learn how to speak to your nonprofit audiences.
4 min read

 

October 21, 2021

How do nonprofits and advocacy organizations successfully reach donors and grow their following? By building an effective engagement strategy built on a deep understanding of the people they’re trying to reach. A nonprofit engagement strategy will succeed or fail based on whether it speaks to the beliefs, feelings, and values of advocacy group members and nonprofit donors. But how do you learn to speak their language?

1. Identifying the Audience: Advocates and Potential Donors

The first step to engaging an audience is to choose the right audience. If you’re trying to get people to go vegan, barbeque-loving dads would be a long shot. Instead, focus your efforts on people who may already be interested in veganism, like vegetarians or pescatarians.

Don’t waste time trying to reach people who don’t share your values. Instead, reach out to people who care about your cause. These are the people who may very well become supporters and donors. They see a problem that needs fixing and they hope you can provide a solution. You’ll be much more successful speaking to folks who are already interested in what you have to say.

2. Audience Research: Be Where the Donors and Advocates Are

After you’ve identified your people, it’s time to really understand their values, desires, and challenges. A big misconception is that organizations need to buy expensive audience research reports. In reality, the best way to learn about your audience is to immerse yourself in their world. Find out where they are having conversations with each other, and listen to what they have to say.

There’s a wealth of information to discover about your people online. In fact, most advocates participate in social media platforms and online communities already. Here’s a checklist of questions to help you start your research:

  • What websites do donors and advocates visit? What are they looking for there?
  • What Reddit communities, Facebook groups, or other forums do they participate in?
  • Who are the advocacy thought leaders and influencers they follow on Instagram, LinkedIn, or Facebook?
  • What blogs do they follow? What publications do they read?
  • What YouTube channels do they subscribe to? What videos do they watch?
  • What keywords do they search for in Google? (Tip: Try using Google’s Keyword Planner!)

Start with one online community and immerse yourself there. Those conversations will lead you to other communities, influencers, and platforms of like-minded people.

As you “live” in their worlds, you will learn a lot. Make sure to pay attention to:

  • Words people use to describe the problem
  • Topics that stir up passionate responses
  • Hurdles or pain points that come up time and again in conversation

3. Conclusion

Make sure your organization’s messaging (especially social media) echos their language, stirs their passions, and speaks to solving their pain points.

From here, your job becomes a great deal easier. Donors and advocates care deeply about your causes, just as much as you do. They are your people, and they will most deeply identify with the passion and commitment you bring to your work. If you can speak directly to them, then your nonprofit engagement strategy is on the right track.

How do nonprofits and advocacy organizations successfully reach donors and grow their following? By building an effective engagement strategy built on a deep understanding of the people they’re trying to reach. A nonprofit engagement strategy will succeed or fail based on whether it speaks to the beliefs, feelings, and values of advocacy group members and nonprofit donors. But how do you learn to speak their language?

1. Identifying the Audience: Advocates and Potential Donors

The first step to engaging an audience is to choose the right audience. If you’re trying to get people to go vegan, barbeque-loving dads would be a long shot. Instead, focus your efforts on people who may already be interested in veganism, like vegetarians or pescatarians.

Don’t waste time trying to reach people who don’t share your values. Instead, reach out to people who care about your cause. These are the people who may very well become supporters and donors. They see a problem that needs fixing and they hope you can provide a solution. You’ll be much more successful speaking to folks who are already interested in what you have to say.

2. Audience Research: Be Where the Donors and Advocates Are

After you’ve identified your people, it’s time to really understand their values, desires, and challenges. A big misconception is that organizations need to buy expensive audience research reports. In reality, the best way to learn about your audience is to immerse yourself in their world. Find out where they are having conversations with each other, and listen to what they have to say.

There’s a wealth of information to discover about your people online. In fact, most advocates participate in social media platforms and online communities already. Here’s a checklist of questions to help you start your research:

  • What websites do donors and advocates visit? What are they looking for there?
  • What Reddit communities, Facebook groups, or other forums do they participate in?
  • Who are the advocacy thought leaders and influencers they follow on Instagram, LinkedIn, or Facebook?
  • What blogs do they follow? What publications do they read?
  • What YouTube channels do they subscribe to? What videos do they watch?
  • What keywords do they search for in Google? (Tip: Try using Google’s Keyword Planner!)

Start with one online community and immerse yourself there. Those conversations will lead you to other communities, influencers, and platforms of like-minded people.

As you “live” in their worlds, you will learn a lot. Make sure to pay attention to:

  • Words people use to describe the problem
  • Topics that stir up passionate responses
  • Hurdles or pain points that come up time and again in conversation

3. Conclusion

Make sure your organization’s messaging (especially social media) echos their language, stirs their passions, and speaks to solving their pain points.

From here, your job becomes a great deal easier. Donors and advocates care deeply about your causes, just as much as you do. They are your people, and they will most deeply identify with the passion and commitment you bring to your work. If you can speak directly to them, then your nonprofit engagement strategy is on the right track.