How important is mobile in your nonprofit's fundraising recruitment strategy?….very important.
Using the phone as a recruitment strategy for both fundraising efforts and enlisting volunteers has been a strategy for many years. In the past, the phone was used for cold calling and trying to set up potential sales meetings by moving prospects through an organization’s sales funnel. Although cold calling is still a strategy that many organizations are using, it has lost effectiveness over the past few years. A recent study by Sales for Life found that only 1% of cold calling results in a meeting with a prospect. Another study by HubSpot found that 74% of people chose an organization that was first to add value and insight to their lives before engaging in a sales conversation. The most effective form of mobile marketing has changed a lot with technology advancements, and consumer behavior trends. Is the telephone still a relevant volunteer and fundraising recruitment tool? For sure.
Adapting Your Nonprofit Mobile Recruitment Strategy to Change
Believe it or not, mobile marketing is even more important today than it was a few years ago. The strategy for how nonprofits use the telephone to reach their target market has changed though. Your target market expects a relationship with your organization before discussing the possibility of providing financial contributions or providing your nonprofit their time. Focusing your nonprofit's mobile strategy on engagement, thought leadership and storytelling is key to driving the high mobile success rate that your organization is looking for.
Now it’s time to get to the good stuff! How can your nonprofit leverage mobile marketing to attract, engage, and retain volunteers for your organization in 2017? Here are a few tips to keep in mind:
Optimize Your Nonprofit Website with Mobile Audience in Mind
Your organization’s website is arguably the most important digital asset that your nonprofit has. Your website creates brand awareness, drives traffic, and pushes visitors through your strategic sales funnel. If your nonprofit has not yet identified the purpose of your marketing website now may be a great time to check out this article recently published on Forbes. Once you have determined the purpose of your website, the site must appeal to your mobile audience. Why focus on a mobile audience? Over 80% of internet users own a smartphone, and 57% of users say they will not recommend a business with a poorly designed mobile site.
There are several ways that your nonprofit organization can optimize your marketing site for a mobile audience. Here are a few best practices:
- Include a search box on your site
- Limit the size of your navigation and its fluid
- Make your website responsive to all device types
- Focus on simplification
- Utilize your white space
- Limit the amount of text, and create a plan to get visitors quickly to your CTA
- Offer the option for visitors to see the entire site
Don’t Forget to Optimize Email for Mobile
Did you know that 34% of subscribers on average only read emails on their mobile devices? Also, 69% of mobile users will delete emails that are not optimized for mobile. This is a huge percentage of your target audience. This statistic emphasizes the need to optimize your email marketing efforts for mobile. Optimizing your organization’s email marketing efforts with a mobile audience in mind does not have to be challenging. Here are a few tips to get your nonprofit started:
- Keep email images to a minimum
- Make your email content consumable
- Make your email templates responsive
- Have a clear call to action
- Keep your subject line length short and sweet
Incorporate Social Media Properties that Targets a Mobile Audience
Utilizing social media for your volunteer and fundraising efforts is a no-brainer. Social media properties also put your organization front in center in front of a mobile audience. Most social media sites offer mobile apps that can connect your nonprofit organization with individuals who are searching for causes to support. I would recommend that every nonprofit at least create social profiles on the big four social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram). If you are looking to create even more opportunities, and you have the capacity for reputation management in your organization I would also focus on the following social media platforms:
Don’t Be Afraid to Pick Up the Phone at the Right Time
Today’s prospects expect that your nonprofit organization is going to establish a relationship with them before calling them directly. Once you have built a personal relationship with your target audience, don’t be afraid to pick up the phone and reach out to your contacts directly. Taking the time to enhance your relationship will have a positive effect on your campaign conversion rates, and tempt others to recommend your brand.
