As volunteer and audiences change, non-profits must change their approach to attract and retain new audiences.
Many existing non-profits are facing a crisis. As their core audience and volunteer base ages, new audiences may not be backfilling at a rate that makes the organization's mission sustainable in the long run.
It's a perennial question, but one that even more museums, libraries and destinations are facing. How can we attract GenX and Millennial audiences, while not alienating our older patrons?
In this blog post, we'll talk about a few of the tools that will help set your organization up for success and help you think about how to target communications effectively on the right platforms to the right audiences. In this blog post, we are specifically addressing web presence, as it is the first point of entry for almost all audiences, but certainly newer and younger potential patrons.
YOUR WEBSITE MATTERS
First and foremost, your website is the equivalent of what used to be a brochure at the Visitor's Bureau. While a brochure can still matter, your website is your number one communication tool. This is how you bring the experience of your mission to life - critical for younger audiences, who seek experiences over material items, but effective across all generations.
A modern, effective website employs the following elements:
It's Mobile Friendly
It's Visually Appealing:
It Meets your Viewers Needs:
A COMMON PITFALL
One of the most common errors non-profits make is to cram all the business needs into the front page or top navigation of a menu. Departments feel they must compete for "air time" and to meet this demand, marketing department often feel they must add more and more to the website to satisfy the demand. This results in too many slider images, a top heavy navigation that is confusing, and too much mission and not enough enticement on the home page.
To be clear, the modern viewer isn't there to read your mission, vision and values statement, view your Board of Directors or any of your documentation. They are visiting because they have heard about a program, they are looking for an experience, or they are curious about your offerings. Keep the motivation central to the main elements of the site and keep non-marketing elements where they belong, at a sub-menu level. (And develop a thick skin, because there will be internal complaints.)
A great site - for a non-profit OR a for-profit business, keeps the viewers needs and desires in mind, while balancing it with the business goals. A site that comes off as either pushy, salesy or does not give the consumer what they want easily is the same thing as an aggressive salesperson trying to sell you something you don't want or need.
NOW WHAT?
Take a hard look at your website. Ask your audience to do the same. Does it meet their needs and their goals? Is it your best possible first impression to the new visitor? This is also a good time to take a look at your Google Analytics and gain insight to your visitors real motives, as well as develop benchmarks for increased viewership.
Need help assessing your site? Contact us and we'll help you build a plan to attract new audiences by highlighting the great work you do in your community.