Online Marketing Options and Your Not-for-Profit

In its purest form, technology can be used to anyone’s benefit, and utilizing technology to find new ways to improve your not-for-profit organization has never been more accessible. Between the new metaverse, TikTok, and other social media platforms, there are endless ways to reach a new audience that can drastically improve your economic standing and get your message out into the world. Creating this magic online is not the easiest for everyone, however, so here are some easy ways to reach your community and tap into a whole new demographic.

Believe it or not, TikTok has become the most influential trend in the world, with over 50 million users on TikTok daily. Many large corporations have already tapped into the TikTok community and have garnered massive followers, likes, and most importantly, income. The best part about utilizing TikTok – it’s free! All it takes is a little time, creativity, and fun. It has become the most utilized platform for young adults and teenagers hoping to discover fresh and inspiring narratives and where they can look up to their role models, many of whom belong to a generation that is less interested in helping out large corporations but are more interested in ethics and being able to spread positivity and help those around them. Creating a page with heartwarming or funny videos will draw the attention of those young adults and teenagers to your page when they otherwise would have never heard of your organization. For newcomers, it is very easy to create a video in-line with the most recent trending topic, post it, and your video will appear on a users’ “For You” page because they had seen videos similar to that. As a TikTok user, I personally have seen many smaller mom and pop shops have their videos on TikTok go viral (over 100,000 likes and follows) just because they followed a trend, put their own small twist on it, and posted it. Those impressions create a massive flow of traffic to your TikTok page, and eventually to your website.

Continuing with the TikTok (and social media trend) there are many Influencers that have hundreds of thousands or even millions of followers on their pages, mostly consisting of Gen Zers that enjoy their content. These Influencers, aptly named, are incredibly influential to the younger generation and can have a major impact and effect on their spending habits, as many of these Influencers can be sponsored by companies to advertise their products. And with their millions of views, more often than not, this tactic works. As mentioned above, however, many in the younger generation can be easily moved by a great cause or mission. That’s why there is no harm in attempting to partner with an Influencer, as a simple message to them might be able to coordinate a partnership with them, in order to get your message and mission out on social media. it is vital, however, to do your due diligence and make sure that the Influencer you choose to reach out to is high in character and is removed from any controversy. The people listen to these Influencers and will more likely than not be able to hear your message from them when otherwise they might not have been able to, and get you to your own page or your website.

Speaking of that website… it is incredibly important that your website is user-friendly to those who visit your page. There is nothing more frustrating than visiting a site and having a difficult time navigating ancient software that seems like it hasn’t been updated in a while. In today’s day and age, especially the younger generation, most of their purchases and activity occur online and remotely. So if you are a not-for-profit that relies on public donations, having a website that is easy to use and donate to, can do wonders for your organization.

When utilizing all available resources, an organization could be reaching a whole new demographic that otherwise may not yet have seen your mission and message. Putting the organization out there on social media, cleaning up your website, and creating an online presence is more attractive to younger generations.

Author: Kyle Missry | [email protected]