Your Nonprofit Marketing Plan: A Step-by-Step Roadmap for Nonprofits of Any Size

We may be ashamed to admit it, but most of us are online A LOT—scrolling social media, checking email, browsing websites, you name it. Your donors, volunteers, and broader community are right there, so you need to be ready to meet them where they are.

A nonprofit marketing plan can feel like a low priority when you’re focused on your mission, but the truth is that a marketing plan is no longer just a “nice to have” for nonprofits; it’s a must. It’s an engine that can power your mission and get you the support that you need to keep growing your impact. 

In this article, we’re going to dive into what nonprofit marketing is, why it’s important, and how to build a nonprofit marketing plan that’s the right fit for your organization.

Nonprofit Marketing 101

We hear the term “marketing” all the time, and we see it in action, too. Social media, ads, emails, billboards, TV commercials—marketing is truly everywhere. And we all know that your nonprofit isn’t the next Amazon or Verizon or AT&T—you’re not a huge company that has millions and millions to spend on marketing.

We’re not here to talk about those kinds of big-budget operations. We’re focused on how marketing can be a tool in your org’s toolkit to leverage your impact and amplify your mission.

What is Nonprofit Marketing?

Nonprofit marketing is incredibly important and can make a big impact on a wide range of goals:

• Increase awareness & build community: Marketing allows you to reach a wider audience and spread the word about your work without geographical boundaries. 
• Make a strong first impression: 94% of donors say that their first impression of a brand is based on its website’s design. 
• Communicate your mission: Marketing allows you to share compelling messages, exciting updates, and spread the word about the impact that you’re making.
• Inspire donations: Marketing provides new opportunities to ask for support. In fact, 32% of donors stated that they are most inspired to give via social media, followed closely by email (30%) and then a website (17%).
• Strengthen relationships: Marketing allows you to connect with people, even when you don’t see them regularly face-to-face. 48% of donors say that regular email communications are most likely to keep them engaged and inspire repeat donations, followed by social media communication (18%). 

The TL;DR is that nonprofit marketing is crucially important. And if you’re not tapping into your marketing potential, you’re likely missing out.

So when it comes to creating a nonprofit marketing plan, think of your plan as a tool for creating intentional, consistent connections with people, ranging from newbies to your work to your life-long supporters.

Your Nonprofit Marketing Plan Can’t Be One-Size-Fits-All

Unfortunately, the secret recipe to a successful marketing strategy isn’t just “copy” “paste” from organization to organization. There isn’t one “right” way to do it. 

Your strategy should be like your grandma’s special chocolate chip cookie recipe—custom-made with the ingredients (in this case, marketing strategies) that work best for you and perfected over time through trial and error. 

Key Marketing Channels

That said, there are some common shared ingredients (okay, enough of the cookie analogy) that most plans should include and utilize: 

• Website: A non-negotiable central hub for your work and a place that people can go to take action (e.g., donate, sign up to volunteer, get tickets to an event). 
• Email Marketing: The best channel for direct, segmented communication that can have a big return on investment. 
• Social Media: Your channel for fostering engagement, building community, and sharing authentic content about the work that you’re doing. 
• Direct Mail: A tried-and-true way to reach certain audiences and balance digital efforts.
• Media/Public Relations (PR): Your tactic for getting external coverage to raise awareness and credibility.
• Events: A powerful tool for fundraising and in-person engagement, which will almost always incorporate promotion and communications on other marketing channels.

If you’re looking to dive even deeper into your marketing efforts, you could look into tactics like: 

• Search Engine Optimization (SEO): A way to drive high volume, high-quality traffic to your website by making your website or web pages rank higher in search engines.
• Content Marketing & Storytelling: A channel to create, publish, and distribute content for online audiences that can help build credibility and raise awareness about your work.
• Google Ads: Your chance to get your work and message in front of people who are searching for nonprofits like yours. 

Setting Your Marketing Budget

Now let’s get to the elephant in the room… Budget. We all know that money is tight, and, luckily, you can make marketing work with whatever you have. Nonprofits of all sizes do marketing, and budgets vary greatly. 

The goal is to be strategic, not spend a fortune. You can focus on what is manageable for your team and budget for now and, if conditions change, reevaluate your approach in the future. 

A 7-Step Guide to Building Your Nonprofit Marketing Plan

1. Conduct A Marketing Audit

Start by going backward. Review any past marketing tactics that you’ve tried and review their performance: What campaigns actually worked? What completely flopped? What maybe didn’t go so well, but you could adjust and try again?

It can also be helpful to do an audit of your team’s capacity to support marketing efforts. What are your strengths, weaknesses, or areas of opportunity? Knowing where you currently stand will set you off on the right foot as you plan to move forward. 

2. Define Your Core Goals and Objectives

Start by looking at your organizational priorities (e.g., increase donor retention by 10%, increase total fundraising income by 15%, or engage 30 new volunteers). Then use the SMART framework to set marketing goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound and align directly to these high-level priorities. 

Say that your goal this year is to increase donor retention by 10%. Maybe you set a sub-goal to launch a new donor welcome email series by the end of Q2. 

Your goal is to engage 30 new volunteers? Try setting a goal to send a press release to local media about upcoming volunteer opportunities and then cross-promote those opportunities in a series of social media posts as well. 

3. Identify Your Audience

Your nonprofit’s network includes different segments of people—donors, volunteers, beneficiaries, business partners, the list goes on. 

You’ll do your best marketing and communication if you segment your audiences and identify exactly how you’ll best get your message to each of them.

Developing personas can be a helpful tool. You essentially create a fictional person who represents the human characteristics of a particular segment of your audience, and this character helps you envision communication strategies that will reach them best. 

4. Craft Your Core Message and Brand Story

Your core message and brand story are crucial in making you stand out. Why should someone choose to engage with and support your organization? 

You’ll want to create compelling, emotional stories that connect to your mission and clearly demonstrate how, when people support your work (donating, volunteering, advocating), it makes a big impact. 

You’ll also want to develop a brand voice and visual guidelines. A consistent, authentic voice will help you build trust with your community and help establish recognition. 

The way you talk about your organization and the visuals that you use to do so will be how people remember you. So make sure you have a solid foundation.

5. Choose Your Channels

As we’ve said before and we’ll say again: you don’t have to do it all. You know your community best, and you should make your nonprofit marketing plan accordingly. Pick channels based on your audience profiles, budget, and where you’ve seen success in the past.

You don’t want to throw your eggs all in one basket, either, so make sure that you prioritize an integrated campaign. Use multiple channels with consistent messaging, but you can play around with various channels to see exactly what works best. 

6. Create a Budget and Timeline

You know your budget best, so you’ll want to make a decision about what’s feasible for your organization. There are a lot of free marketing options out there, but to do your best work, you’ll want some budget to back it up. 

Generally, 5-15% of the operating budget is a common starting range for marketing costs. Though again, you can choose what strategically makes sense for you. 

Then you’ll want to create a simple marketing calendar. A calendar will ensure that you’re posting consistent, timely content and can help align your content with other organizational happenings. 

This step can also be a good opportunity to identify what team members are owning what parts of the plan and how much of their time should be spent towards marketing efforts.  

7. Launch, Track, and Measure 

Determine what data you’ll want to track and what your key performance indicators (KPIs) will be before you launch. For emails, you may want to look at open rates or click-through rates. 

For a website, you might want to track how it’s converting on key call-to-action buttons. On social media, you may want to track how many accounts you’re engaging with on your posts.

As you launch your plan, you’ll want to set an ongoing cadence to track your progress and be prepared to adjust your plan. Much like your grandma’s chocolate chip cookie recipe wasn’t perfected overnight, your marketing plan will also take many iterations and revisions. 

Plus, marketing is an ever-shifting world, so you’ll want to keep trying new things to see what may stick! 

Tips & Tricks for Your Nonprofit Marketing Plan’s Success

As we wrap up building a nonprofit marketing plan, let us leave you with a few final tidbits that will help you maximize your marketing. 

Consistency Builds Credibility

In both your cadence and content, you’ll want to prioritize consistency. Find a cadence that works best for you, but try to be consistent. Find a rhythm with how often you’re posting on socials, emailing monthly updates, posting blogs, or updating your website. You’ll also want to use consistent branding and messaging across all channels to build trust.

Mobile Optimization is a Must

A majority of traffic to nonprofit websites is from mobile devices. Make sure every touchpoint and marketing tool (especially your donation pages) are optimized for a mobile phone. 

Keep Relationships Central

Don’t just use your marketing channels as a one way street to share your information and make asks. Use your plan and channels to build strong, long-term donor relationships. Stewardship is key.

Don’t Glaze Over Gratitude

In a similar vein to the above, don’t just use your platforms to talk about your organization and the work that you are doing. Celebrate the people who help make it all possible, too. Find ways to use your marketing channels to acknowledge and appreciate your supporters for their time, resources, and help.

Does Your Plan Need a Tech Partner? 

Another key piece to a successful nonprofit marketing plan is to have the right tech tools to support your efforts. Neon One’s platform empowers you to handle your marketing and communications with ease, personalize your communication, and build lasting relationships. 

With features to support you with multiple marketing channels, it’s one system, all in sync, that reaches your supporters where they are. 

• Email: Create personalized email campaigns that engage your audience and inspire action. With built-in segmentation and automation, you can get your supporters the right messages at the right times. 
• Websites: Create a professional, high-impact, mobile-optimized nonprofit website with ease. No tech experience required!
• Texting: Connect with supporters in real-time using built-in text messaging and audience-building capabilities.
• Direct mail: Manage your physical mailings, from creation through tracking, alongside your digital campaigns, so you stay coordinated 

Curious to see how Neon One can help put your plan into action?