Managing your online presence can sometimes be overwhelming. With Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, Snapchat and countless other social networks filled with organizations sharing content, how does your nonprofit stay on top of people’s minds (and newsfeeds)? The answer is creativity. As our “plugged-in” culture progresses, creative content marketing has become a necessity. By keeping your content creative you can lead to more engagement, which means more shares and more conversations. For many, this can seem like a daunting task, creative content on a consistent basis? Yeah, right. Well, that is right. We’re here to tell you that whether or not you’re a professional “creative,” you can still create shareable content for your social media. Here’s how:
Reach out. Don’t go it alone! Your nonprofit is filled with interesting people, so use your social media to highlight this fact by finding content either directly from them (repost a staff member’s funny tweet) or through being inspired by them (post a quote you heard in the office). It doesn’t stop there, great content can be found by talking to the people your nonprofit helps, or by highlighting a special project you accomplished once a week. You could even ask your followers and supporters to submit their own content, simultaneously making them feel more involved with your nonprofit and creating content for you!
Repurpose. You’ll never run out of ideas again! Why? Because you already have tons of content waiting to be created, or should I say, repurposed. Find old blog posts, an item from your website or themes from past newsletters. These can all be easily adjusted into social content that is directly related to your nonprofit, and may even be familiar to some of your supporters, which reinforces the message. Maybe you can bring up an old statistic and compare how it has changed over time, or maybe you can highlight a different aspect of content you have shared in the past. Either way, find what works best for your nonprofit and don’t be afraid to use a variation of a past concept. You might be familiar with the content, but for many supporters, this could be the first time they see it.
React. Social media is the only place where you can talk to millions of people at once, in real time. Consider sending some live tweets during a big television event (think superbowl or an award show) or starting a conversation about current events with your followers. This is a great way to get people involved and give your pages a variety of relevant content. Whether the topic is directly related to your nonprofit or not, simply being a part of the conversation will boost your thought leadership, and you might even find a creative way to tie the conversation back into your mission.
Remember, you don’t have to be a “creative” to make creative social content, you just have to be in tune with what’s going on in the world. If you want your content to be shared and enjoyed by your supporters, reach out for help creating the content, repurpose your old content and react to content or information shared by others. It’s all about the conversation, so just keep talking!
To learn even more about content marketing stay tuned for our series “Big Ideas for 2015 from Charity Dynamics.”