5 things to review for an effective new year
As we come to the end of 2019, we like to reflect on the year that’s been and encourage our clients to do so as well. What’s worked really well? What didn’t? Are there any gaps you may need to fill? If so, how can you fill them effectively and efficiently?
To help you reflect and start planning for 2020, take a look at some of the common challenges and gaps we see from the organisations we work with.
1. Time to get strategic with your social channels
According to the latest Global NGO Technology Report, nearly all Australian NPOs use social media as a key tool for communication and fundraising, yet less than half have a written strategy.
If your organisation is active on social channels (it really should be!), you also need to have an actionable strategy to make sure you’re not just adding to the noise.
A social media strategy will get your entire team on the same page and help you:
- Focus only on the channels that are right for you: namely, where your supporters hang out. This means you won’t be wasting your time on the wrong platforms.
- Define how you will communicate and connect with your supporters across these channels
- Measure your efforts: your strategy will identify your goals and objectives to lead you to the right metrics to focus on.
The report also noted that only 25% of Australian NPOs have a system in place to track social media activities. Without measuring the results of your efforts, how do you know if what you’re doing is connecting with supporters? You could be missing out on new potential opportunities or improvements, or even worse, simply wasting your time.
2. Don’t forget your digital strategy
We’ve found through our conversations with our clients that more than half of NPOs don’t have a digital strategy.
As most Australian NPOs have a website and use social media and other digital channels regularly, this is quite concerning.
A digital strategy is what gives your organisation direction by:
- Uncovering key insights about your online supporters,
- Highlighting the resources and budget you’ll need to cover important digital activities,
- Helping you meet your online donors’ expectations
- Outlining the metrics to measure the effectiveness of your activities.
Crafting a digital strategy can seem daunting. So we’ve developed a simple guide to nonprofit digital strategy to take the pressure off. But if you need help with your strategy, you can always just give us a call.
3. Free US$120K to spend on ads
If you haven’t taken your piece of the Google Ad Grants pie, 2020 seems like a great time to roll up your sleeves and dig in.
Google’s Ad Grants program provides nonprofit organisations with US$10K in-kind advertising on Google. It works just like Google Ads, but with slightly limited features. It’s free money to spend on bringing supporters to your website.
While it can be tricky to set up, we highly recommend it, as it can really boost your digital efforts. If you have an in-house digital specialist, they can get it going and manage it for you. If you don’t have such a resource, chat to us about how we can help you take advantage and maximise the effectiveness of Google Ad Grants.
4. Online donations
Do you accept online donations? If you’re one of the 38% of Australian NPOs that still don’t, you should consider this as critical.
With 40% of Australians opting to donating online in 2019, you could be missing out on key opportunities to raise more funds. Your website is a key communication channel that should make it easy for your supporters to donate.
Setting up online donations for your website is a straightforward, easy and cost-effective way to raise funds. There are many simple out-of-the-box donation pages that provide a simple and personalised experience for your supporters. Ask us about a solution that works for you.
5. Website updates & SEO
Your website is the core of your digital presence and activities – it’s your foundation. The end of the year offers a great opportunity to review your website analytics to see what’s working, what can be improved and fix any issues that arise.
If you don’t have analytics set up, make this your number one priority for 2020. Better yet, set it up before the year’s end.
Some of the key areas you should look at are:
- Accessibility and responsiveness – is you site mobile-friendly, for instance?
- Load speed – does your homepage load in seconds?
- Security – are all your security settings up to date? Is it backed up regularly?
- Optimisation – is it optimised for search? Do you have a call to actions? Are they compelling and strategically placed?
- Design – is your site stuck in 2001? Might be time for an update
Wrapping Up
As you come out the other end of your Xmas campaigns, make sure you take the time to reflect on the year that’s been. It will help you fix some potential issues and can even give you some fresh ideas to start the New Year with.
