Substance and Style

    Category: Uncategorized

    • Ten Tips For Your Nonprofit’s Website 

      Start with your goal. This is true for any website, and for any piece of marketing. You have to know what you want your website to do before you can figure out how to do it. For most organizations, the overarching goal will be to bring in revenue; everything else will support that goal. Keep…

    • Market Research Surveys for Nonprofits

      Like for profit businesses, nonprofits need to periodically conduct market research. Unfortunately, they usually don’t have the same budget for it. Here’s how you can create a simple survey that will help you learn what you need to know and adjust your processes accordingly.  Know your goal before you start. Everything you do should be…

    • Five First Steps to Developing Your Marketing and Communications Strategy

      Know your target market and audience. It probably goes without say, but you should put as much of your early efforts as possible into researching your customers. You should know about your market as a whole (size, growth, and demographics) and you should know about individual behaviors, wants, and needs. What makes life better for…

    • Branding 101

      Having a consistent brand is one of the most important things you can do to market your business or nonprofit successfully. If what you do and what you represent is not clear, you will either not be remembered or be remembered for the wrong reasons. Branding is not just about having a good logo (though…

    • Fundraising Event Costs 

      Most nonprofit organizations rely on income from fundraising events to some extent. When planning fundraisers, it’s important to have a realistic idea of what the costs will be. Many other funding sources (grant making foundations, for example) will ask for the expense per dollar raised for your fundraising activities, and they will judge your financial…

    • Effective Advocacy 101

      The last few years have been exhausting for everyone. In the US, things seem to become more volatile by the minute. In the nonprofit world, as well as in the general public, there is widespread burnout. We know it’s the worst time to give up, but it’s hard to keep going when we keep getting…

    • Create Lead Magnets that Actually Convert

      Ostensibly, the purpose of lead magnets is to get people to give you their contact information in exchange for something of value. However, this is only a first step. Your real goal is to get them to become your customer or client. If you want your lead magnet to accomplish this, try the following: Make…

    • Avoid These Common Digital Copywriting Mistakes 

      Not having a clear call to action (CTA). You should have a specific goal in mind as you write any copy, and every part of the text should support that goal. You have to know what you want the reader to do, and it should be obvious to them. Don’t leave them confused about how…

    • Five Steps to Better Landing Pages

      Have a clear goal going in. Know your desired result (a sale, a sign up, a post share, etc.) before you even start designing the page. Once you know your goal, you can use the entire page to guide your customers through the process. Design for maximum impact. While what you’re saying is important, you…

    • Find Sponsors for Your Fundraising Event

      While there are many possible revenue streams for fundraising events, most rely on sponsorships for the biggest chunk of change. Here are some tips for maximizing your sponsorship dollars: Have a good handle on the event’s tone before approaching sponsors. While sponsors do it for the cause, they also do it for the marketing and…