Connecting with your audience on social media starts with writing posts that are engaging and connect. They also encourage engagement and interaction. This blog post gives you tips and ways to think about the posts you create.

1. Know Your Voice and Tone Establishing a consistent voice and tone is like defining your nonprofit’s personality. Are you formal or friendly? Serious or lighthearted? Your choice will depend on your target audience and the nature of your cause. A conversational and approachable tone often works well for nonprofits seeking to build genuine relationships. Social media isn’t a super formal place. If you want people to feel comfortable engaging then ensure your tone is conversational.

2. Craft Compelling Headlines In the fast-scrolling world of social media, your headlines must grab attention instantly. Craft headlines that are concise, intriguing, and relevant to your content. Consider using action words, posing questions, or teasing a benefit to entice readers to click through. If you have a longer post, remember that the first sentence is what you’ll see when you’re scrolling. That initial sentence will be what encourages people to read more or click to expand your post.

3. Embrace Visual Storytelling Pair your written content with eye-catching visuals. A powerful image or video can convey emotions, tell a story, and stop users mid-scroll. Whether it’s an impactful photo from your latest project or a short video showcasing your team’s dedication, visuals enhance the effectiveness of your message. Personal photos are best, but if you can’t, stock photos are just fine.

4. Keep It Concise Brevity is key on social media platforms where character limits often apply. Get to the heart of your message quickly. If your content requires more explanation, consider writing a blog post, article, or landing page for interested users to explore further. People will read longer posts if the content is good and it’s formatted well. Posts should be as long as they need to be to get the point across, concisely!

5. Tell Stories that Connect Stories have an incredible ability to resonate with people. Share anecdotes about the individuals your nonprofit has helped or the challenges you’ve overcome. Personal narratives foster empathy and make your cause relatable. People remember stories about the individuals you serve vs the community at large or stats. 

6. Inspire Action Every piece of content should have a clear call to action (CTA). Whether it’s donating, signing a petition, attending an event, or sharing your post, guide your audience on what to do next. Use action-oriented language to encourage engagement. Make it super easy for them to know what to do.

7. Utilize User-Generated Content Encourage your supporters to create content related to your cause. Sharing user-generated content not only showcases your community but also boosts engagement and authenticity. Reposting a supporter’s testimonial or photo can be incredibly impactful.

8. Educate and Inform Use your social media platform as an educational hub. Share informative posts, statistics, and insights related to your cause. Becoming a reliable source of information positions your nonprofit as an authority in your field.

9. Infuse Positivity and Hope Amidst the noise of social media, positivity stands out. Share stories of success, progress, and positive change. By doing so, you create a sense of hope and optimism that resonates with your audience.

10. A/B Testing and Adaptation Experiment with different content formats, styles, and posting times. Use A/B testing to compare the performance of different approaches. Regularly review your analytics to understand what content resonates the most and adapt your strategy accordingly.

11. Emojis and Hashtags Strategically incorporate emojis and hashtags to enhance your content’s visibility and emotional appeal. Emojis can add a touch of personality, while relevant hashtags make your posts discoverable by a broader audience.

12. Stay Authentic and Transparent Authenticity builds trust. Be transparent about your nonprofit’s goals, challenges, and progress. Share behind-the-scenes glimpses to humanize your organization and showcase the real faces behind your work.

In a world where attention spans are short and competition for engagement is fierce, the ability to create compelling social media content is a game-changer for small to medium-sized nonprofits. By mastering the art of concise yet impactful writing, these organizations can effectively share their mission, build a dedicated community, and drive meaningful change.

Being social on social media is the name of the game. It is a great place to come together, have conversations, learn about new things, and build relationships. In order to do that, you need to engage and contribute to the conversation. Have you heard the term, “post and ghost”? It refers to posting something on social mediaand then being frustrated when people don’t take immediate action. Action on social media could be a like or a comment, or if you’re really lucky, a direct message. To make the most of these interactions it’s up to you to engage and guide the conversation. This post will give you ideas for how to take the conversations to the next level and truly be social on social media.

What to do with “reactions” on social media.

Reactions on social media include likes, loves, laughter, etc. They are the easiest way for people to share that they are interested in the post, like your organization or care about what you’re talking about. They are the easiest actions for someone to take, as easy as double tapping on your phone. Even though the engagement is easy that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t follow up with people that engage.

It’s important that you take into consideration the personal relationships you have with people so that the interaction is authentic. For example, you wouldn’t want to blanket message everyone that likes your post the same thing. Each person might have a different type of relationship with you so your follow up should be unique as well. You’ll also want to consider the type of post. Is it sharing general information? Are you asking for feedback? Is it promotional in nature? Are you looking for something specific? This will guide the way you follow up.

From here you take it to the direct messages. Taking into consideration the elements above, craft a direct message that makes sense for the post and the relationship with the person. Here’s an example.

Let’s say the post has an adorable photo of an adoptable pet and says:

Did you know that approximately 85 million families are pet owners? Are you part of that group?

If so, let’s see those photos 👇🏼👇🏼👇🏼
If not, let’s chat! Our team is here to help you find the right fit for your household and lifestyle.

We currently have 20 pets looking for loving homes, each with their own personalities, ready to bring joy to the right home.

Now you’ll probably get a lot of reactions because, let’s face it, people love cute animal photos. Your DMs could look something like:

Hey Jamie,

Thank you for liking our post! Do you have furbabies in your household?

Sami

-or-

Hey Jamie,

So glad you liked the content in our pet adoption post. Have you ever adopted a pet before?

Sami

-or-

Hey Jamie,

Can you believe how many families have adopted pets! Do you have any questions about pet adoption?

Sami

Couple of things to take note of. Make sure they’re signed by someone in your organization. The messages are short and not pitchy. They haven’t take a specific action or left you any information about what their level of interest is. The goal is to get them into a conversation where you can learn more about them, not to get them to adopt a pet right away.

Turning comments into conversations

Comments are fantastic. It means that someone has enjoyed the content enough to take that extra step to leave you a comment. Yes, some of them are spam, or negative, or don’t really make sense, but that doesn’t mean you don’t respond and engage in a way that makes sense. There are a couple of reasons for this.

1. It helps with the algorithim. Social media platforms love content with lots of comments. It signals to them that people really enjoy the content you’re sharing, and will share it with more people. The more you respond, and the more back and forth, the more it signals that this is content people care about.
2. It’s always a learning experience. Commenting and responding gives you an opportunity to furthur educate. Don’t take things personally or get frustrated with peoples comments. Even a negative comment is an opportunity.

The easiest way to start conversations in this case is responding to comments! While that may seem obvious, many organizations forget to do this. Some comments are easier to respond to than others. Let’s go back to the example above.

If someone posts a photo of their cute furbaby that’s an easy response. You can comment on their pet, ask the name, breed, about their personality, where they got them, etc. The harder comments are things like, “yes,” or “cute.” These are still opportunities for conversation. Ask them questions about the types of pets they like, how many they have in their home, etc. It’s on you to drive the conversation. Don’t just like their comment and move on.

You never know when a conversation can turn into something bigger!

 At some point you might feel like the conversation would be better to go into direct messages or email. At that point, ask them if you can send them a DM with additional information. You never want to ask for their email or phone number in the comments. Use your best judgement on when the timing is right to take it into a DM.

Going straight to the DMs.

DMs are a tricky thing. They are quickly abused and while they are a great way to connect, you still have to build trust. The best is when the DMs come to you, but still there is a bit of editing. Remember to be authentic and real. DMs are a great place to share links to additional resources, share contact information and build a connection. The goal is always to get people out of the DMs and into other avenues like your email list, email in general, phone calls, etc.

Resist the urge to make an ask in the DMs unless they initiate that conversation.

DMs are a great way to connect with people. Also, it’s about meeting people where they’re at. Some prefer to connect on social media. Ask them how they prefer to stay connected with you. Meeting them where they’re at helps you get more out of the conversation because it’s where they feel comfortable.

Managing your time.

This might feel overwhelming with regards to managing your time. Just because you want to stay on top of comments and messages it doesn’t mean you have to be on social media all the time. Set two times on your calendar each day to respond and get back to people. Blocking off 15-20 minutes each time should be more than enough to go through your social platforms and respond. When you stick to a regular schedule, things don’t get out of control and you can get through things more quickly.

Conclusion

Don’t let the hard work you put into creating your social media content go to waste but not maximizing on the engagement they’re giving. Each engagement is an opportunity to talk with new people and stay connected to your regulars. 

Being on social media is somewhat of a love hate situation. You know you need to be there but it takes a lot of time and effort for seemingly little results. Part of being on social media is playing to the strengths of the individual platform and not blanket posting the same thing everywhere. There are two reasons for this! 1) By utilizing the platform the way it’s intended you’ll get better reach. 2) You’ll be engaging with your audience in the way they want to use the platform, making deeper connections.

This post focuses mostly on Instagram, specifically Instagram stories. This is how most people engage with the platform and a great way show you personality and impact.

Why You Should Care About Instagram Stories

Instagram Stories is a feature that allows users to share photos, videos, and other content that disappears after 24 hours. Despite their fleeting nature, Stories are a powerful tool for nonprofits. Here’s why:

1. Real-time Engagement: Viewers know they go away in 24 hours so they are more likely to engage immediately. It’s also great for people to feel like they’re following along with things you’re doing in real-time. You can share timely updates, event highlights, and behind-the-scenes glimpses in a way that feels authentic and in-the-moment.
2. Interactive Features: There is a direct way you can encourage engagement on your Stories such as donations, polls, Q&A stickers, and quizzes. These features provide a unique opportunity to gather feedback, answer questions, and involve your audience in decision-making. The best thing is they automatically lead conversations into your DMs.
3. Adding links: It’s easier than ever to link posts to your website. Post links on your stories to blog posts, donation pages, etc. Keep it in alignment with the goal of the post so when people click through they see relevant content.

Strategies for Nonprofits to Make the Most of Instagram Stories:

Create content categories for your stories just like you would for posts in your news feed or other social platforms. That way you can ensure you have regular content you can share mixed in with real-time content. Don’t feel like your stories must be posted in real-time. Some content might need to be but most can be planned out.

1. Behind-the-Scenes Sneak Peeks: Show the human side of your nonprofit by sharing behind-the-scenes glimpses of your team in action, event setup, or day-in-the-life of your work. This gives your audience a sense of involvement and connection. These can be recorded in advance and shared as needed.
2. Story Highlights: Don’t let your amazing Stories disappear after 24 hours. Use Story Highlights to curate and categorize your best content so that new followers can catch up on your nonprofit’s journey. Some examples might be; impact stories, event highlights, testimonials.
3. Event Coverage: Whether it’s a fundraising gala, a volunteer event, or a community workshop, use Stories to provide real-time coverage. Show your followers what’s happening and how their support is making a difference. Think about this from beginning to end. Picking up silent auction items, thanking sponsors, table design ideas, these are ways you can shout out people that are involved and also have people engage with event and generate buzz.
4. Educational Snippets: Break down complex issues related to your nonprofit’s mission into bite-sized, informative Stories. Use graphics, animations, or short videos to simplify concepts and raise awareness. People aren’t as involved in the work you do as you are. Get back to basics and keep it simple.
5. Volunteer and Beneficiary Spotlights: Feature the people who make your nonprofit’s work possible. Share stories of dedicated volunteers, success stories of beneficiaries, and the impact your organization has had on their lives. Even better, pull them into the videos with you. Do quick Q&As that you can use multiple times.
6. Announcements and Updates: Use Stories to share important announcements, upcoming events, and milestones. The urgency of the 24-hour timeframe can encourage followers to take action quickly. These could be exciting grant announcements, enrollment into your services, tickets sales, have fun with it.

Stories can be a combination of direct-to-camera conversations, pre-recorded videos with voice overs, or graphic elements. Create them specifically in Instagram so you can add the stickers and other elements to increase engagement.

Driving Website Traffic through Instagram Stories:

Getting people to your website is a great way to grab more of their attention. They will be able to dive deeper with your organization instead of getting lost in the next person’s Story. Again, it’s important that any links you add are related to the content you’re sharing. There are several ways you can drive people to your website.

1. Add the Link sticker: This is the most obvious way. You can add the sticker and choose the URL and the text displayed.
2. Ask a Question: Adding this sticker to your Story can allow you to engage with viewers. You’ll be able to see the answers and can follow up with them directly in your DMs. If you ask questions relevant to your blog post or long form copy you can easily follow up on their response as well as DM the link to learn more
3. Track Performance: Instagram Insights lets you track the performance of your Stories. Monitor the number, link clicks, and overall engagement to refine your strategy.

Conclusion

Instagram Stories offer a dynamic and engaging way for nonprofits to connect with their audience and direct them to their website. By leveraging real-time engagement, interactive features, and links, nonprofits can share their mission, stories, and impact in a way that resonates with their supporters. So, start crafting compelling Stories and watch as your nonprofit’s online presence flourishes!