3 Things Every Nonprofit Marketer Needs to Do Before 2020
Doesn’t this time of year always seems just a bit slower than usual? End-of-year giving campaigns are wrapping up, and the holidays take up much of the month. December is the perfect time to focus on your nonprofit marketing plan for the upcoming year. Here are three things every nonprofit marketer should do this month:
Reflect on This Year’s Marketing Activities
So how’d we do? Sometimes the year flies by so fast that you don’t take the time to assess how your marketing plan played out.
Make a list of all the marketing activities that were a success, and quantify them.
Let’s say you produced several policy guides, you increased engagement rates on social media, and you doubled your email list. Woohoo! Keep on to this list for your annual review with your boss. And more importantly, keep doing what’s working next year.
What didn’t work this year?
Have you ever heard Spanx owner Sara Blakey talk about her father giving her a high-five whenever she tried something and failed as a child? It’s one of my favorite stories.
It’s ok if a few campaigns or tactics fell flat. Take the time to think about the reason behind it. Maybe you didn’t quite have the resources and funding to execute your plan fully. Perhaps a tactic that worked a few years ago is just not resonating with your audience anymore.
When you understand what didn’t work, you will know what should not take up time next year.
Create Your 2020 Marketing Communications Strategy
On that note, time to make your 2020 marketing plan. Here are the elements of a successful nonprofit marketing strategy:
Trend Research
I always start this process by digging into projected digital media and marketing trends for the following year. As a start, check out M + R Benchmarks for recent nonprofit marketing data. The report closes with some powerful insight that I could not agree more with:
In this moment, it can be hard to tell what is solid, and what is a momentary flash. Facebook Fundraisers could become a difference-maker for nonprofits (or… not). Nonprofits may find ways to leverage mobile platforms in ever more powerful ways. And another election is right around the corner, ready to remake the landscape again.
Look at the data now, carefully. Recognize the trends that track to your own experience. Consider the metrics that diverge from your results. Scrutinize each true thing, until it reveals something you can use to grow your program and advance your cause.
That’s what we’re going to do. Dig up some facts, hold them up to the light. And then keep digging.
SMART Goals and Objectives
Once you understand trends on the horizon, marry them with your marketing goals (or better yet, your organization’s broader goals from the top). Make sure you are setting SMART goals and objectives: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound.
KPIs and Benchmarks
Have ambitions but reasonable KPIs and set benchmarks based on both industry standards and how you performed this year.
For example, let’s say your email open rates were an average of 15%, and the nonprofit average open rate for 2019 is 25.17%. Set 20% as an email open rate KPI, and focus on how you may increase open rates.
Once complete, get a meeting on your boss’ calendar for early January to go over your marketing strategy. That way, you’re ready to rock and roll right after the holiday.
Sharpen Your Marketing Skills
I always spend December downtime brushing up on crucial marketing skills. There are so many free webinars, trainings, and other resources for nonprofit marketers. Here are resources from some of my favorite nonprofit marketing gurus:
Julia Campbell| Marketing for the Modern Nonprofit
Happy planning this month. Come January, you’ll be able to jump-start your best nonprofit marketing year yet.