In this post we uncover 9 key elements you need on your non-profit website website to attract more subscribers and increase donations.
1) Donate Buttons
The Donation button needs to be placed in a location that is easily visible on all devices including mobile on all pages. Ensure you consider placing the Donate button in the sidebar too so when visitors are reading your latest blog posts, that button is within easy reach. Ideally place it in the main header of the website particularly if you have a sticky header (that stays stuck to the top as you scroll down).
2) Blog
Google loves content as you know and those sites that publish regular content to their audience attract great traffic. By keeping your content fresh will mean people will keep coming back. If your audience knows you post regularly they’ll keep coming back regularly.
Now with the ease of mobile technology it’s so easy to record video, publish to YouTube and then share on your blog posts. People love video in 2020.
And of course each blog post should have a Call To Action at the bottom, which could be a sign up to a newsletter or make a donation. If you’re not offering the visitor a choice, they can’t choose one!
3) Newsletter
Email marketing is the #1 way to keep people engaged with your mission. It’s a lot cheaper and easier to reach people via email than any other means. Invite visitors to stay updated with your news by joining your newsletter. Then plan out your diary and ensure you keep sending them your news regularly. Don’t publish all the content in your email, just enough to whet their appetite and invite them to read the whole article on the blog post on your website. Remember that’s where we have the Donate buttons 🙂
4) Copywriting
Your Homepage needs to call out the following
– Explicit problem
– Explicit solution
– Direct impact
By doing this you’re giving your visitor immediate information so they align with your mission. Your copywriting needs to tell the story of what you do and why you do it, so they the visitor wants to help.
5) About Page
Visitors love to know the team involved behind the website. Look at your Google Analytics and you’ll find that your About Us page is one of the most popular pages on your website.
Potential supporters will vist this page to ensure they’re connecting with your mission and values. The Nielsen Norman Group found that an About Us page plays a critical role in building trust with online visitors — and we know that trust is what can lead to donations or subscriptions.
Make your About Us page friendly and personable as people will connect with your organisation more easily. If it’s boring, you’ll be running the risk of turning them away.
6) Compelling Imagery
Your website readers love highly visual content. If you can post images related to your cause and mission, it will allow your visitors to more easily connect with you. If you’re running an animal sanctuary grab your phone and take photos daily, post them on your Social profiles, but most importantly post them on your website.
Check out https://ChimpsNW.org for a brilliant example of how they’re using image content daily to connect with their audience.
7) Simple Navigation
Don’t confuse your visitors with complex navigation. Keep it simple and straightforward. Group related content together and think about your navigation from your visitors perspective. Keep any technical terminology out of the structure and ensure it makes sense to someone outside of your organisation.
Consider separating menus into two, one main menu and maybe a secondary menu. Or you may like to consider using a Mega Menu to get more sub menu links visible.
8) Calls to Action
By ensuring your Donate and Subscribe Call to Actions are in easily visible locations you’ll increase the opportunity for your visitors to take action. Make them info buttons, rather than just hyperlinks. Also make sure the Call To Actions are styled consistently so people will start to recognise the element on different pages.
If you can tie what the donation will help with, that will have an even greater impact to increasing the liklihood of a visitor making a donation.
9) Be Social
Your readers are your biggest advocates. You need to make it easy for them to share your content with their friends and family. If you’re running WordPress there are a number of social sharing plugins that will place the usual Facebook, Twitter, Google, LinkedIn buttons at the top, at the bottom and even floating at the side of the page. Having these on your website will certainly encourage visitors to share your content on their profiles – leading to their friends and followers seeing it too.
