Spring is in the air – hopefully coming soon to Boston – and it’s time to put a fresh coat of paint on those dusty social media accounts!
So much has changed in the digital landscape in just the past few months, all of which makes tightening up and improving your nonprofit social media profiles even more important.
Even if you post regularly, keep up with the trends, and get lots of engagement (good for you!), you may still want to take a close look at those profiles.
Photos, videos, info, URLs, calls-to-action, About sections, bios, hashtags, and more – I’m sure they can all use a little sprucing up!
Here are my tips on doing a spring cleaning for your nonprofit social media accounts, focusing on
LinkedIn, and
YouTube.
Change the cover photo. When was the last time you updated the Cover photo on your Page? The Cover photo is the first impression a potential supporter has when they visit your Page, and it better catch the eye. You can easily make an attractive Cover using free graphic design tool Canva – go to http://www.canva.com/nonprofits to sign up for a free premium account.
Add a video to the Cover. Why not really increase the visibility and attractiveness of your Page by adding a Cover video? Here are some examples of vibrant FacebookCover videos to inspire you.
Update Pinned Post. Make sure your Pinned Post is the first thing that you want people to see when they hit your Page. First impressions are everything!
Rearrange tabs. Is it time to rearrange the tabs on the right hand side of your Page? Maybe you want to list Fundraisers first, or Posts, or Videos. Decide what you want to feature as you only have 2 seconds to grab someone’s attention when they click on your Page!
Change the call-to-action button. Have you had the Donate button up there forever, and no one seems to be responding? It may be time to try something different, like the Learn More or Sign Up button.
Register for Facebook payments. Are you registered with Facebook so that you can take advantage of their full suite of free fundraising tools? It’s never too late. Sign up and get started at https://donations.fb.com/.
Look at the About section. Is all of the information correct? Pro tip: Change the URL to go to an introductory video about your organization, or your Success Stories page of your website. Change it up from the basic Home page – the more targeted the better.
Check out Messenger. Nonprofits of all sizes are using Messenger to communicate with supporters. Here are some ways to start a chat bot program at your nonprofit.
Update your bio. Check links, key words, hashtags – make sure everything is up to date and makes you easy to find.
Change the Pinned Tweet. Is the Pinned Tweet from months or even years ago? It may leave a bad first impression if it’s the first tweet people see when they land on your account.
Create Cover art. Many Twitter accounts have pixelated or non-existent Cover art. Use Canva to create a beautiful Cover photo for your Twitter account.
Use Twitter lists. Twitter lists help control the fire house of information that is the Twitter main feed. Consider creating lists of donors, corporate sponsors, volunteers, thought leaders, and community partners.
Evaluate your timeline. The Twitter feed is no longer chronological – they use an algorithm much like Facebook to determine what they think you will most want to see. If you want to tinker with your settings and go back to chronological, read this New York Times article.
Clean out inactive people. Use ManageFlitter to see who is not following you back and find people that you are following who have been inactive.
Change link in bio. Your link in bio is the only place where you can put a clickable link to an outside website (unless you use ads or put them in Stories), so use it wisely. Get creative and send people to a more targeted location online, like a video or a sign up page, rather than the main home page of your website.
Add Instagram Story highlights. You should create Instagram Story art, using Adobe Spark, and put your best foot forward in your highlights section, directly under your bio.
TWLOHA uses Instagram Story highlights to showcase words of encouragement and upcoming events. Example:
Clean house. Your Instagram feed function like an art museum – carefully curated, aesthetically pleasing, and the best of what you have to offer. You can always delete old Instagram photos that don’t fit with your aesthetic or didn’t get a lot of engagement.
Add hashtags to older posts. To get more engagement on older posts that you think need more exposure, go back into the captions and add a few more hashtags, tag relevant accounts, and add a location.
For more intermediate and advanced ways to use Instagram to increase visibility for your nonprofit, join me on an upcoming webinar – Instagram for Beginners or Instagram 201.
Update your headline. Your headline is the most important part of your profile, as it is the first glimpse people see when they receive a connection request from you or get a suggestion from within LinkedIn. Tips on writing a great headline are here.
Rework your summary. Your summary should be personable, friendly, and convey who you are and the benefits of what you do. Focus on the impact of what you do, not the features of your work.
Leave some Groups. Go through your list of Groups and make sure that you are still interested in participating. Leave Groups that no longer fit with your interests, or that are inactive.
Clean up your inbox. I take some time each month and go through my LinkedIn inbox to make sure that no messages have fallen through the cracks, and to delete or archive all the old connection requests.
YouTube
Check keywords. YouTube is the #2 search engine in the world. If your nonprofit is posting video anywhere across the web, you need to add them to YouTube. Make sure that the keywords are featured prominently in the video description and title.
Write great titles. Titles are essential for search, and vital to get more followers. Boring, non-descriptive titles will not get as many views and comments.
Add calls-to-action. In the caption of the video, be sure to add a call-to-action with a hyperlink : Sign up for our newsletter to stay in touch, make a donation, read our blog, etc.
How do you conduct digital spring cleaning for your nonprofit? Any tips for us? Leave your thoughts in the comments, or over in the nonprofit social media Facebook community!
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Comments 2
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