Catching people’s attention is not that easy nowadays, even if it is for a good cause. People are bombarded, on a daily basis, with so much incoming information, both online and offline, which makes it harder for businesses to stand out.
As an NGO, providing support to a humanitarian crisis, it is even more important to ensure that YOUR nonprofit stands out. It is important to ensure that YOUR cause is getting the attention it deserves. Most importantly, you want to reach as many people as possible in order to, in return, help as many in need as possible.
That is why we have put together a guide with a few tips on how you, as an NGO, can maximize your donations by optimizing your online presence.
Your guide to boost traffic and online donations
Your digital marketing strategy as an NGO should focus on utilizing all your options to reach and attain donors, as well as providing an easy, quick, and seamless donation experience.
Optimize your nonprofit website
Optimizing your online user experience is especially important when it comes to potential donors completing their donations once they have entered your website. You do not want to lose leads due to a lack of information or a slow, messy-looking website. Thus, do not test your donors’ patience with long lagging time, or waste their time looking for information on how or where to donate. People are usually busy going about their day with work, family, and personal problems, which is why it is essential that your website is accommodative to their needs. Accordingly, make sure that you are clear about what you want people to do when they are on your page, with prominent and effective calls to action that would prompt visitors to act.
Once you have made sure that your website is SEO optimized in terms of speed, content, and design, you will have a bigger chance to stand out and rank higher on search engines, gaining more online visibility.
“But how do I implement correct SEO optimization?” you might ask. Do not worry, we will get into more detail in the next steps, just keep on reading.
Tip: Your meta descriptions should contain your individual landing pages' most important keywords.
Tip: You should include the most important keyword in the title of your landing page.
Create content with donors’ search terms in mind
The type of content you provide plays a big role in driving organic traffic to your nonprofit website. If done right, you will make it easier for people to find you online. In order to create content that resonates with your donors, you need to know your target audience not only demographically, but in terms of their online behavior that could lead them to you. Basically, what is meant by online behavior is their search history. With that being said, we are obviously not suggesting actually spying on potential donors’ individual search history. You can rather utilize different tools available online for you to do research on the intent behind people’s search terms; What search terms are they using related to the crisis that your NGO is supporting? What kind of information are they seeking? Do they want to know more about the events of the crisis or are they already looking for ways to donate?
The answers to these questions, which you can induce from people’s search terms, would help you understand where your potential donors are in their donation journey. Accordingly, you will be able to provide content that potential donors are actually seeking. A huge tip is to incorporate these keywords that people are using in your content so that your page would appear in the forefront when people search with similar keywords.
You can do a keyword analysis either by investing in an all-in-one SEO tool, from which there are many options to choose, or you can start your SEO journey, using free tools already at your disposal. Google Keyword Planner is a great cost-free tool that provides data on search volume, related keywords, and topic ideas. A similar tool is Ubersuggest, where you also get data on competitor rankings. Finally, you can make use of the ‘People Also Ask’ tool on searchresponse.io to see the questions people are asking related to your NGO cause.
Tip: Use storytelling to convey your message. As an NGO, it is essential that you connect with your audience and create emotional relevance to your mission and cause. Incorporate stories about your missions, volunteers and most importantly the ones affected by the crisis.Offer your donors multiple donation options
As already mentioned, it is important that you make the donation process as quick and easy as possible. One way to achieve that is by providing your donors multiple donation methods that they can choose from, based on their preferences. For instance, your NGO can offer SMS donations, quick donations through your website, and an opportunity to choose between one-time or recurring donations.
At Rainbow Riders, we offer a variety of software solutions, designed specifically for NGOs. Our solutions are created with the purpose of enabling NGOs to not only gather but also manage donations. If you are interested in adding SMS donations to your donation methods, check out NGO SMS, our solution for fast and easy SMS donation. We can also help you with managing your donations through PayGate, our digital fundraising, and donation management platform, which you can customize to your needs with multiple features and add-ons.
Tip: Offering a variety of payment methods would also reduce the occurrence of any inconvenience or trouble donors might face when they make payment.