Inbound Marketing for Nonprofits: Using Content to Build Your Community

Author: Therese Grohman on 14 April 2011 | 0 Comments

Tags: Inbound Marketing, Content Marketing

Clean, safe drinking water for everyone on the planet -- that’s the goal of mycharity: water. The nonprofit has a clear, but extremely ambitious goal: to bring safe drinking water to people in developing nations. So how have they raised funds for their mission? They've used inbound marketing. Inbound marketing allows your organization to generate inbound leads by enabling potential donors to find you through search.

This year they launched a social media integrated platform to enable grassroots fundraising for anyone supporting the cause. Event coordinators used blogging, Facebook and Twitter to connect with audiences and enlist participants through updates, contests and video sharing. And the results were astonishing. They saw the best participation to date in terms of money raised from inbound hits on their site. The campaign started with a huge surge, with $7,822,494 raised to date.

This tells us it’s time to put more emphasis on inbound marketing.

A March study by Hubspot showed that inbound leads cost 62% less than outbound leads. Inbound marketing, which relies on organic search, allows you generate leads (aka potential donors) by helping them to find you. It’s your role to create quality, keyword-rich content on your website and blog, and then promote that content through social media or with inbound links. Then, the potential donors can come to you.

As social media channels continue to generate real customers, inbound lead generation budgets are growing nationwide. Of the companies using blogs, 57% reported that they acquired customers from leads generated directly from their blog and 85% rated their company blogs as “Useful,” “Important” or “Critical”. If you aren’t blogging, you’re putting your organization at a disadvantage. Remember, “leads” equal donations and a compelling case will motivate those leads to action. Your blog is one of the best places to show potential donors how your organization is making an impact. Tell real-life stories from people whose lives have been changed by your work, let your researchers share what’s happening in their labs or work with your advocacy team to use it as a forum to engage more advocates.

Don’t be left in the dark ages. Inbound marketing is a low-cost and highly efficient method of broadcasting your organization’s message and pulling together a community of volunteers and donors. Social media sites put your supporters in control, making them more engaged and connected with your cause than ever. They drive the conversations, spur ideas and encourage one another to get involved.

With these tools at your disposal, you’re empowered to connect with your audience. By creating compelling content you have the opportunity to reach potential donors and supporters and build community. Don’t let this opportunity pass you by.