Your nonprofit has likely jumped on board the social media train, and if you have not it’s time to do so! Social media is a great resource for fundraising, building brand awareness and communicating with your current and potential supporters.
The difficulty for many nonprofits is juggling all the different social media platforms available. In 2011, Practical Ecommerce wrote an article highlighting the top 74 social networks worldwide. In 2015, their list had risen to a whopping 91 major social networks! A study conducted by Pew Internet in 2013 found that 73 percent of the U.S. population uses at least one social site.
Strapping on the social media tool belt
If you’re ready to take on and improve your social media presence, it’s time to strap on your social media tool belt. We’ve got a handy list of all the social media publishing tools you’re going to want to have by your side.
For creating visuals: Canva
Social media has become highly visual, with images and videos taking over. Canva is the visual creator tool to have on hand. Design presentations, social media graphics and more with thousands of beautiful layouts, fonts, and images. Canva is primarily free to use, although there are options to upgrade your account that include additional features and templates. Their ready-made templates will help you create professional visuals with little to no design background!
For scheduling content: Sprout Social or Hootsuite
Sometimes it is hard to keep up with scheduling content on a regular basis. While it’s always best for social media to be done in real time, it’s not always realistic to be available at all times. That’s where Hootsuite or Sprout Social come in handy.
These sites are social media management systems that will help you keep track and manage your many social network channels. It enables brands to monitor what people are saying about their nonprofit and help them respond instantly. These sites allow you to view streams from multiple networks such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+ and post updates or reply directly.
To see who’s talking about you: Brand24
Brand24 delivers real-time information on what’s been said about your brand, as well as what is going on with competitors (if you have them). This tool allows insight to help you effectively respond to positive and negative comments across your social-media platforms, so you can stay engaged with your supporters, as well as effectively gauge any potential donation opportunities. Brand24 gives you instant access to mentions about your brand across the web, from social networks to influential publishers.
For developing content: Your own source lists
This tool is one you might already have on hand—a source list. When coming up with content to share on your blog, website and social media accounts, you may turn to certain articles, blogs, websites and organizations for updated news. Collect these sources in your own Word or Excel document, and include the source name, website URL, social media links and additional notes. To make your content even easier to share, you can also organize your sources in a news aggregator such as Feedly. Refer to this list when you are looking to create and publish great content on your social media accounts.
Social media is a great tool for any brand and nonprofit looking to engage and grow their community of supporters! Use the tools above to better manage your social media profiles and get the most out of them. Also, check out how you can be using social media to increase your online donations.
