As a nonprofit organization, sometimes you have to make the best use of a limited budget. However, nonprofits can qualify for free nonprofit marketing tools. In this blog, we have put together a list of some digital marketing tools nonprofits can take advantage of.
Content Creation Tools:
One of the best ways to drive awareness is to have an active social media presence. Social media relies heavily on having content that relates to your audience and is engaging. Building awareness and nurturing customer relationships through social media requires stock images and videos (and sometimes “out of the box” thinking).
Canva
Canva, one of the most popular content creation tools out there, offers pre-sized design templates for everything from social media posts to ad campaigns and even for print media as well. This tool also allows users to upload their own brand kits (including logos) and apply them to their designs.
Nonprofits can apply for a free Canva premium account.
Unsplash and Pexels
While Canva has its own stock photo media bank, if you are looking for more unique or inclusive options, both Unsplash and Pexels are great options. They are constantly uploading new photos and you can save photos for future use. If you have a particular aesthetic you are trying to achieve, find a photographer you like and shoot them a message. Many of the photographers on these platforms are available for freelance work as well. Unsplash only provides photos, whereas Pexels supplies photos and videos for use. Additionally, both hosting sites are very easy to navigate and compatible with Canva.
GIFs on Giphy
GIFs are a silent, one-minute story that are a great ice-breaker or conversation starter. Giphy is a platform of free GIFs that anyone can use. However, the reason Giphy is great for nonprofits is because it also allows nonprofits to make their own GIF by stringing original videos or photos together. Giphy also has the option to add a URL to direct viewers straight to any website (or donation page).
Email Marketing Tools:
Email marketing is important for nonprofit organizations to keep in touch with subscribers, ask for donations and encourage engagement. Unlike social media, email marketing acts as a placeholder in the audience’s mailbox, so it is easier to refer back to at a later time. It can be used more as a nonprofit marketing tool to strengthen current customer relations or gain donations and volunteers.
Mailchimp
Mailchimp offers a free basic plan to organizations with less than 2,000 contacts. With Mailchimp, you can integrate email marketing and SMS campaigns. It provides email templates, reporting on email campaigns, A/B testing and basic analytics.
If you need more than what the basic plan has to offer, they offer a 15% discount to verified nonprofits.
Benchmark Email
Benchmark allows nonprofits to send up to 14,000 emails a month to 2,000 contacts for free. After that, there is a 25% discount for nonprofits for all their package deals. Benchmark lets you import an existing contact list and group them (i.e. volunteers or donors), allowing organizations to send group-specific emails. Benchmark syncs with Google Analytics and your email marketing data can be easily accessed there.
Website Data Collection:
Hot Jar
Hot Jar is a software that helps you understand how website users behave on your site, what they need, and how they feel. This program uses heatmaps, recordings, feedback and surveys. This allows you to see the elements users are drawn to and what’s getting ignored. It allows you to analyze behavior pre- and post-launch, and also compare desktop, tablet and mobile data. See where your audience spends the most time, and what they interact with on your site.
There is a free option for starting out, but Hot Jar offers a free business-level account to qualified nonprofit accounts. Check out the program specifications for eligibility requirements.
Google for Nonprofits:
As a nonprofit organization, advertising dollars can be hard to come by. Google offers several benefits to nonprofit organizations, including the Youtube for Nonprofits program and the Google Ad Grant Program.
Youtube for Nonprofits
The YouTube for Nonprofits Program was created to help organizations get their message out, inform people about their cause and connect with people passionate about change. With this program, organizations have access to the Creator Academy, Social Impact page, early access to Creator Spaces, Link Anywhere cards, and Campaign Matching.
Google Ad Grant Program
In 2003, Google created an ad grant program designed to help nonprofits grow awareness. This grant program provides up to $10,000 of ads per month to qualifying nonprofits. Here at Digitable, we pride ourselves on knowing the grant’s ‘in’s and out’s’ and we would love to show you the potential of this grant for your organization. Please feel free to fill out our free Google Grant consultations form. Or download our guide to Google Grants.
Digital marketing is essential to nonprofit organizations simply because nonprofits rely heavily on donations and brand awareness. Without awareness, growth of the organization and the efforts of the nonprofit would be drastically reduced. Therefore, using the free nonprofit marketing tools above is a great, budget-friendly way to kick start a very engaging digital marketing presence.