1. Your target audience is using social media every day - yes, yours!
If I asked you to describe the typical Social Media user, what would your response be? Likely a tech-savvy teenager or 20-something with an iPhone, a laptop and a tablet by their side at all times.
But here's the real breakdown: 65% of all adults, 90% of young adults and 35% of adults 65 years and older are on social media. Odds are, your constituents, donors and volunteers can be found on the top platforms. (Pew Research Center)
2. Social media is an easy gateway to active support for donors and volunteers.
64% of Americans say they are more inclined to support social and environmental issues in a variety of ways - including volunteering, donating and sharing information - after first ‘liking’ or ‘following’ an organization online. (2014 Cone Communications Digital Activism Study)
3. You can deliver your message directly to interested individuals with targeted campaigns.
Platforms like Facebook and Instagram allow you to deliver ads to an audience defined by location, age, gender, financial status, political affiliation, interest in social issues, and even past charitable donations.
4. 90% of decision makers don’t respond to cold outreach.
You can use LinkedIn and Twitter to form connections with community influencers and corporate donors before you make the big ask. (Harvard Business Review, 2012, “Tweet Me, Friend Me, Make Me Buy. Decision makers are C-level”)
5. Twitter and YouTube allow in-app donations.
Eliminate the middle man - and avoid losing a donor before they hit the collections page. Now, he or she can make their donation without ever leaving their favorite platform.
6. No other medium comes close for effective event promotion.
With Facebook events syncing to our smartphone calendars and applications like Periscope and Snapchat making live-streaming the hottest trend, you won't get the same exposure for your fundraising event through any other medium.
7. It's an easy, effective way to collaborate with media outlets, government agencies and corporations.
Team up with community partners for a social media campaign, and put your cause right in front of their existing audiences.
8. Social media gives you an unprecedented opportunity to connect with your audiences on a personal level.
These days, everyone is looking for an intimate connection with the brands they support. Social media helps you stay in touch with your audience by answering questions, sharing news and issuing targeted calls to action.
9. Social media is the easiest way to create and share your stories.
There's a reason storytelling is the biggest trend in marketing – when information is presented to us in a story format, it instantly improves our ability to remember the message. Your organization has stories to share, and social media is the perfect platform for bringing donors behind the scenes.
