How to Best Leverage Twitter for Your Nonprofit Organization

Morgan Klaif, the member services administrator at JCC MetroWest, shares how to best leverage Twitter for your nonprofit organization.

Nonprofit Organization Goal

Improving the quality of life for others at a community, local, state, national or global level is the general goal of a nonprofit organization. A solution for a need is requested and organizations provide a service to fulfill that solution. An organization might ask “how do we know what those needs are?” Conversations can tell you that need.

Twitter Statistics and Why It’s Beneficial for Your Nonprofit Organization

Twitter, one of the major social media platforms, is based on conversations. It can help your nonprofit organization engage with your current community, find new audiences, drive awareness to your platforms and raise awareness for the services you offer. If you are not currently using Twitter as a marketing space, here are a few statistics to show you why you need to start:

• Twitter currently has 396.5 million active users.
• 206 million people access Twitter daily.
• Twitter is most popular among users aged 25-34.
• On average, Twitter users spend 158.2 minutes browsing tweets.

What Can Twitter Offer Your Nonprofit Organization

Twitter is meant to humanize your organization’s brand. With a 280-character limit, your tweets will consist of short, to the point messaging and images which sets the tone to show your community how your organization is making a difference. It strengthens your relationship with your current community and followers, attracts new supporters and generates growth to allow you expand on services offered.

Let’s look at some ways Twitter can support your brand:

1. You can showcase the results of your organization’s and your communities’ hard work. Post some photos of your activities. Share some of your communities’ achievements. This will allow people to see for themselves the difference your organization is making which attracts more people who want to help.
2. You can work directly with influencers who have a particular care for the services your organization offers. They have the power to expand your reach and encourage involvement.
3. You can keep your community updated and informed about your cause. Links to facts and figures, news articles, blog posts and videos can act as a news source and add value by educating them.
4. You can show your organization’s personality. Although you are using Twitter for a serious reason and providing people with useful information, it’s OK to be lighthearted and have fun. Showing your organization’s personality will help keep your community engaged.
5. You can find potential volunteers and track conversations with the use of hashtags. They are used to increase awareness and promote your campaigns and events.
6. You can converse with your community. Conversations on the Twitter platform allows your organization to get to know your community which can result in future involvement.
7. You can thank your community. Your community is volunteering, donating, raising awareness and raising money because they care about your cause. Thanking them on Twitter and making them feel valued is crucial and leads them to stay and bring more people to help.

How to Best Leverage Twitter for Your Nonprofit Organization

While the statistics and benefits show that there’s absolutely a case to market to this massively engaged platform, it also shows there’s a lot of noise on the platform, making it seemingly difficult to get seen. So, the question becomes “how are you supposed to make an impact on Twitter?”

Let’s look at a few ways to best leverage Twitter for your nonprofit organization:

Have a CTA (Call to Action)

Most of your posts on Twitter should include a form of call to action. You want your community to become engaged with you, so by asking them to do something will promote that engagement. These call to actions should inspire urgency. If your organization is promoting a fundraising event, for example, using a phrase like “click on this link to donate” will result in more support than “we hope you take the time to donate.”

Add a Picture

While most conversations are considered verbal, a picture can help tell a story. Tweets that include a strong image are a great way to catch people’s eye and build brand awareness.

Ask a Question

What’s a better way to have a conversation with someone than asking them a question? None. Twitter is all about conversation and asking a concise and compelling question will increase engagement.

State a Fact

Your community wants to be informed and know what’s going on. A fact will allow your community to see the urgency and importance of your cause.

Start a Thread

A workaround for the 280-character limit is to start a thread. You can post several tweets in a row on the same topic. These can provide updates on your activities.

Leverage Partnerships

Many other nonprofit organizations and businesses are open to social media collaborations. It’s a way to nurture corporate social responsibility, and it can benefit you by increasing your reach. Make sure to communicate with your partner and negotiate any terms ahead of time.

Bonus: Get Creative with Engagement

Twitter has several tools you can use to boost engagement. Try different features like polls, gifs and emojis to catch the attention of your community.