Instagram Strategies Every Nonprofit Organization Should Implement
Instagram stands as a beacon of visual storytelling and community engagement. While this social media channel may seem like a tool primarily reserved for brands, it also holds remarkable potential for nonprofit organizations to make their mark and drive meaningful change.
When you use Instagram for nonprofits, you can do many things. Around 30% of nonprofits use Instagram to raise money and awareness. The platform can help you promote your causes, interact with audiences, and build awareness. Plus, nonprofit marketing on social media platforms can help you bring potential donors as well as drive more volunteers.
But, posting photos and wishing for the best cannot guarantee success on Instagram. In this blog post, we'll look at these essential Instagram tips for nonprofits tips for the best results.
1. Craft a compelling profile
The first thing potential followers see when they visit your organization's Instagram page is your profile. This is the digital representation of your nonprofit. For that reason, you should exert some time and effort in making it interesting and reflective of the goals and values of your organization.
Ultimately, a well-written profile helps you build a strong brand identity that appeals to your target audience. To ensure a good profile, you need to optimize the following components:
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Profile picture: Your Instagram account's profile photo serves as the platform's visual anchor and is crucial for establishing your brand. Select a logo or image that accurately conveys the identity and mission of your organization.
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Bio: Your Instagram bio offers you the opportunity to introduce your nonprofit and explain its goals and principles. You only have around 30 words, so writing a strong bio is crucial. When describing your nonprofit's mission and the influence it hopes to have on the world, use concise and powerful language.
- Link: Use this space effectively because Instagram only allows one clickable link in your bio. You can use this link to route users to different locations based on the objectives of your nonprofit. While some nonprofits decide to link to the home page of their website, others designate a landing page that acts as a central location for several resources, campaigns, and calls to action.
As part of your Instagram for nonprofits strategy, leverage your profile as something more than just a static visual display. Your organization’s profile is an opportunity to engage with your audience on a deeper level and highlight the amazing work you do.
2. Leverage Meaningful Content
Instagram is all about quick-paced and visually-focused content. Creating high-quality and relevant images and video content is essential for grabbing your audience's attention and creating true engagement. Besides, if you consistently create excellent content, you can gain more Instagram followers as well. You’ll get the people who love the content you post to click on that Follow button once and for all.
As a nonprofit, your objective should be to engage your audience emotionally. This is one way you can get people to become advocates themselves, or, at the very least, share the content you post.
To engage your audience, here are some tips you should follow:
Post-Impactful Photos and Videos: On Instagram, eye-catching images and videos are everything. To highlight the heart and spirit of your organization, use high-resolution photos and expertly produced videos. Share your achievements, such as touching success tales that demonstrate the beneficial impact your nonprofit has on people's lives.
As part of your content strategy, you can leverage Instagram Stories.
Instagram Stories refer to that short and captivating content that vanishes after 24 hours. This type of content can come in the form of images or videos.
Instagram Stories can help in social media branding. Instagram categorizes your Stories through Highlights, effectively ensuring a curated collection of your greatest and most important content. This is the perfect place to emphasize your values as a nonprofit. By showcasing your accomplishments, noteworthy occasions, fundraising events, and volunteer opportunities, you tell your audience what you stand for.
You can also utilize these interactive elements in your Stories:
- Polls: an effective way to get opinions on potential campaign ideas or solicit suggestions for your nonprofit's priorities.
- Quizzes are entertaining and enlightening. Quizzes put your audience’s understanding of your cause to the test.
- Question stickers: This can open a line of direct communication with your audience, allowing people to ask questions, make suggestions, or write their own stories about your nonprofit.
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Pop-out links: These links are very attention-grabbing, which is fantastic if you want your audience to commit to an action.
When you use these features, you make your Instagram Stories look more appealing.
Check out the Instagram Story by Greenpeace above, and you’ll know what I mean.
Instagram Reels are another type of Instagram content you can leverage. These are videos that can be up to 90 seconds long. Unlike Stories which are discoverable by only your followers, Reels can be seen by anyone on the platform (they don’t have to be your followers).
Include Behind-the-Scenes Content: Give your followers an inside look into your company's every day activities by taking them behind the scenes. Behind-the-scenes storytelling is a fantastic way to communicate experiences, struggles, and victories that have shaped your organization's journey.
Utilize User-Generated Content: Allow your audience to participate in the narrative of your nonprofit as well. You can do this by encouraging Instagram’s active users to produce and distribute original content that is pertinent to your cause. User-generated material not only diversifies your content stream but also helps your viewers feel connected and important.
Incorporate Calls to Action (CTA): While a great narrative is important, don't forget to include calls to action that are both clear and compelling. A well-designed CTA urges your audience to take significant actions that support your cause. Your CTA could encourage followers to donate, join a fundraising campaign, sign up for volunteer opportunities, or simply share your content.
Use Hashtags: Relevant hashtags are effective tools for widening the reach of your written and visual content. They are more than just trendy symbols. Find trendy and popular hashtags and incorporate them into your content. See the example below:
As a final tip, make sure you plan the content you’ll post on Instagram. Like our example above, leverage compelling storytelling in your content as well.
3. Engage with Your Community
Fostering a vibrant and active network for organizations on Instagram is crucial from a strategic standpoint. Gaining the trust and loyalty of your audience can result in enduring support for your cause. It can, therefore, increase the effectiveness of your organization.
To engage communities effectively, you need to take a proactive and sincere stance that goes beyond simple posting. Meaningful interactions are the foundation of engagement. So, take the time to reply to comments made on your postings. Engaging with comments promotes inclusivity and makes your audience feel valued.
Additionally, respond quickly to any issues or queries brought up in direct messages. A timely and helpful response doesn’t only show your dedication to your cause. It also shows your approachability as a nonprofit.
Leverage influencer marketing to expand your community for engagement. Just find the right influencers who support your cause and share the ideals of your organization. The more famous the better, but micro-influencers will make a difference, too. These influencers can also engage with their followers on your behalf.
Once you’ve chosen your influencers, reach out to them using your business email with your pitch. Just go straight to the point with your pitch. Influencers are busy people and are more likely to ignore emails that beat around the bush.
In Closing
If you master these three crucial Instagram strategies, you can ensure your nonprofit’s social media presence. You can also expect a significant and long-lasting impact on your organization's target audience.
The cornerstones of a successful Instagram for nonprofits strategy are an interesting profile, meaningful content, and community engagement. Your audience will ultimately identify with your honesty and passion for your cause, which will encourage them to support your organization.
So go forth and change the world, one Instagram post at a time!
Author: Harry Flynn
Harry Flynn leads the digital marketing team at Twicsy, a site providing services to Instagram users. He enjoys traveling and relaxing with friends in his spare time.
