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Nonprofit Social Media: Learn from the Patriots

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patriots photo

On to Minnesota!

This week, a lot of sports fans are looking ahead to the Super Bowl. Personally, I’m thinking back to 2013. For three straight weeks during the regular season, the New England Patriots won a close game at the last minute.

It’s great to be able to do that.  Just like it’s great to be able to get today’s post up on Facebook, or tweet something brand new on Twitter, at the last minute.  But you don’t want to HAVE to do it.

Game plan your posts and tweets in advance

You can schedule Facebook posts using the little clock icon in the bottom left corner of the status box.  For Twitter, a tool like Hootsuite or Tweetdeck is a great way to call a series of plays–er, schedule a series of tweets–so they will just run by themselves.

By planning, you can make sure you won’t drop the ball and leave your fans wondering what you were thinking.  Instead, you can save time on the clock and use it for communication with others on the field.

When you’re not posting your messages at the last minute, you can huddle up with people you want on your team: customers, donors, colleagues.  Becoming known as a team player will help you win.

The Patriots have been able to win coming from behind–most notably, from behind 28-3 against Atlanta in the Super Bowl–but they’ve shortened the lifespans of every fan watching when they did it.  You can be more kind to yourself and your audience.  Get ahead of your game.

Fundraising Tuesday: In the Mood, with Social Media

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Giving to charity, word cloudOnce your appeal letter is in the mail, what can you do to help donors decide to give?

Reaching out directly through the phone or by email is a good idea… especially if you make your calls and emails warm and personal.

The Wrong Way to Use Social Media

For most organizations, asking directly for money through social media is not a good idea. Here’s why.

Picture yourself on Facebook. What are you doing there? You went online to catch up with your friends, and perhaps to see a meme that would amuse or outrage you.

You didn’t go to Facebook to do business. And that includes giving away money.

There are exceptions. If you’ve tried asking online before and it worked for you, congratulations! If you want to experiment with fundraising via social media, ask for donations for a specific cause, with an immediate impact. Think of it as crowdfunding.

In general, though, “making the ask” is the wrong way to use social media to back up your end-of-year appeal. There is a better way.

Put Your Donors in the Mood for Giving

in a giving moodA donation is an act of love…and like other acts of love, it goes better if you set the mood. Too bad you can’t offer your donors a glass of wine, a fireplace, and romantic music on social media!

But here is what you can do to make them feel like giving:

    1. Give their pleasure your full attention. Between now and December 31, post pieces that will make donors feel good about themselves when they give.
    2. Tell stories. Create good memories that you and your donors share. It will bring you closer.
    3. Share the love. Post stories–or even better, videos–of donors like them saying why they love giving to your organization and how it makes them feel.

It Takes Two to Tango

For the donor to feel the love, you have to be feeling it too. And that’s difficult in December. You’re watching the numbers on the end-of-year appeal and worrying about what happens if you don’t meet your fundraising goal. Performance anxiety is making you tense.

May I make a suggestion? Before you write for social media this month, slow it down. Breathe. Think about why you care so much: the good results your organization bring about that makes you want it to succeed.

Now, think about the donor.  She cares about those good results too. You’re together in this. That’s what brought you together in the first place.

You just have to speak the language of love with your donors, and watch them respond.

3 Ways Nonprofits Find Time to Do Social Media Well

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we can do itBy this time, nonprofits are getting the word: we can’t afford to put social media off any longer. And we have to do it well, if we’re going to connect with our supporters. There are just too many other things to look at on the web!

As a consultant on nonprofit communications, the biggest question I’ve heard from nonprofit leaders is:

“How do I find the time to do social media well when my staff and I are so busy already?” Share on X

It’s a fair question, but there are answers.

Do Social Media Well in the Time You Have

One: start small. Give yourselves at least six months to become really good at connecting with your supporters on just one of the social media you use.

Two: make sure you have a strategy, so the time you do put in produces the best results. (At the link you will find seven statements that make up a communications strategy.  Read them.  It will take one minute, and pay off forever.)

Three: get good outside help. You can make better use of volunteers if you have a strategy in place–and you still might want a consultant to guide your social media or to do the work for you.

Social media are not a cure-all, and they don’t replace your website, email, or the written word, but you can use them to build and strengthen relationships–and that leads to the six ways to succeed on social media. And yes, that includes making money.

It’s a good use of your time.

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