content marketing for public, private and third sectors

Cross sector experts who understand your priorities

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Cross sector experts

Working across all sectors

The Content Marketing Team are content creation experts with genuine cross sector experience.

From supporting social media campaigns for a multinational FTSE 100 company to increasing supporter engagement for large registered charities, we are a team of experts who really do understand the challenges and competing priorities you face on a day to day basis.

Sector specific experience

The Content Marketing Team has particular sector-specific experience in the following areas:

Retail

Search engine optimised
PLP and PDP content
which gets retailers found online

Financial services

B2C social media content
to engage wider audiences online

Hospitality and leisure

B2B and B2C digital marketing for the hospitality, tourism and leisure industry

Property

Content strategy and creation
for the property and construction sector

Public and charity

SEO and content creation
to help third sector organisations
meet their charitable objectives

Health

B2B and B2C digital marketing
for the medical, healthcare & beauty sector

we would love to work with you

What can we do for you?

Our combination of skills, experience and a can-do attitude, together with a collaborative approach, means that our clients trust us time and time again to deliver their objectives, as an extension of their own team.

Wherever you are based and whatever sector you work in, we would love to work with you.

Get in touch

FAQs about content marketing for charities in the not for profit sector

What is content marketing for charities, and how is it different from fundraising?

The main focus of content marketing for charities is to generate engaging and informative content for the reader (using blog posts, stories, social media posts and videos or reels for example) with the aim of building up a relationship, raising awareness and encouraging action.

Content marketing is much more of a longer term strategy than fundraising, which generally has a more immediate call to action and is tasked with generating income.

Think of content marketing as building brand awareness, affinity and engagement. It’s the ‘Why’ behind your cause. Whereas fundraising is the ‘What’ i.e. the financial need.

How can a charity create content without a big budget or team?

Most charities can only dream of the Content and SEO budgets available in the private sector. And whilst they may not have access to large teams of specialists, it’s nevertheless important to have a clear plan, organisational backing and access to the right tools.

Want to know where to prioritise your spend? It’s important to keep on top of the latest developments in SEO and content marketing by following industry thought leaders as it’s a rapidly developing field. And if you don’t have time for that, then partner with an agency that keeps their finger on the pulse for you.

What types of content work best for nonprofits (blogs, videos, social media, email)?

The best type of content for not for profits is that which connects directly with your chosen demographic. Authenticity and emotion driven storytelling remain crucial as does considering your audience in the round: telling your story across multiple channels with short form, mobile first video, targeted email segmentation and credible blog content.

The best performing types of content for not for profits include:

Short form video which is mobile first. Think 30 second long content which shows the before and after impact as well as behind the scenes footage. Post across Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube shorts, according to your audience
Blog posts and website content to demonstrate expertise, build trust and improve your SEO
Email marketing to drive revenue, segmented to your audience type, with automation and targeted messaging, featuring impact stories, thank yous and fundraising appeals
Social media to build community, focussing on engagement rather than passive likes. Carefully consider your platform and choose user generated content where possible

How often should a charity publish content?

Consistency is the key here rather than frequency. Posting 2-3 times a week is better than a deluge of information followed by weeks of silence.

Consider producing targeted messaging rather than churning out a one size fits all ‘weekly newsletter’ with little to say.

Frequency of messaging depends on the channel. Social media should be a minimum of 3 to 5 times a week to keep your charity front of mind with your audience. Make sure your email marketing is targeted and creative. And invest in creating a long form blog post as anchor content which you can then repurpose into smaller posts across other platforms over several weeks.

How can content marketing help increase donations?

Content marketing is a longer term strategy which will help build trust in your organisation and raise awareness of your cause. By emotionally engaging your potential donors through meaningful content across multiple channels, you build search visibility or SEO, allowing you to foster relationships which turn support into donations.

Effective content should be paired with clearly accessible and direct call to action (CTAs) such as ‘Donate now to save a life’.

How do we measure the success or ROI of nonprofit content marketing?

In much the same way as ROI is calculated for marketing, nonprofit content marketing effectiveness can be considered using the formula: total revenue (for example donations, volunteer hours or grants) minus total costs (such as production, staff time and tools) divided by total costs x 100.

So if your campaign brings in £20,000 of revenue (including donations and an adjustment for non monetary benefits converted to a financial value) but the costs were £5,000 then the calculation would be:

ROI (£20,000-£5,000) / £5000 x 100 = 200%

Evidence of effectiveness is crucial and reliable metrics can be derived from tools such as Google Analytics (GA4) amongst others.

What platforms should charities focus on (website, social media, email, YouTube, etc.)?

It’s tempting to have a presence on every platform but charities should focus their resources to those platforms which are known to be frequented by their target audience. A highly performing website paired with effective email marketing and a consistent presence across one to two social media platforms is optimal.

Think of your website as your home base. Home to your best content and the hub of all your campaigns. Websites need to be well optimised for conversion, with good site speed, frictionless donation tools (think one click donation options such as Apple Pay or Google Pay) and a clear impact dashboard. Where do donations go and what difference do they make?

Email marketing is the engine driving donations and long term supporter relationships. Keep it segmented and personalised.

Social media drives impact, with short form video dominating, particularly across YouTube, TikTok and Instagram. Consider Facebook for community building whereas LinkedIn is ideal for B2B audiences as well as corporate partnerships, funders and policy makers.

How do we build an audience from scratch?

An ‘audience first’ strategy focusing on the basic tenets of E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness) will go a long way to establishing your cause as authentic.

Start by defining and segmenting your audience before crafting a simple but compelling message with a call to action. Then decide which online and offline channels you should use to target them more effectively. Measure and remeasure your successes, adjusting and adapting accordingly to increase your reach.

How can charities use storytelling effectively in their content?

Effective storytelling focuses on a human-centric narrative which highlights:

a problem
how that problem is resolved by the organisation
evidence of the resulting impact

Individual stories foster compassion and work better than broad statistics, whilst photos and videos can really help bring a story to life. Involving the Board, Trustees and Senior Team can show the whole organisation is behind the cause as well as drive engagement.

Be sure to treat the storyteller with compassion, highlighting their strength and resilience in overcoming adversity. And include a clear call to action (CTA) such as donating. Make it clear what the impact of say a £10 donation would be and place the donor at the heart of the change story, with ‘your donation helped change this’ rather than ‘our charity did that’.

What content encourages people to become long-term supporters, not just one-time donors?

Long term supporters are fostered by a focus on relationship building, honesty and transparency as well as clear evidence of impact.

Moving the dial from ‘please give us your money’ to ‘you are making a difference’ can do a lot to engage supporters, making them the hero of the piece.

Content which highlights the direct impact a donation has made will help to convert. Effective strategies include the use of first-hand beneficiary testimonials, behind the scenes content to make the organisation and its team more relatable as well as exclusive content for those long term supporters.

Personalise wherever possible (so if donors gave to wildfowl rather than wetlands then send them stories about migrating geese not peat bogs). Take time to extend handwritten thank yous rather than standardised, automated emails.

How do we balance awareness content with direct donation asks?

Donor fatigue is a real thing and it’s a balancing act to make sure that your content finds a level between awareness raising and asking for support. So what’s that balance? Think 80:20, with 80 per cent of your content working to inform, educate, inspire and engage the reader about your cause and just 20% asking for donations.

How can volunteers, beneficiaries, or supporters contribute content safely and ethically?

No matter who is generating the content, the principles of informed consent, confidentiality and dignity still remain key in the generation of safe and ethical content.

Think safeguarding first. It will always be important to get written consent as well as issue clear guidance about how content will be used, including where it will be used, for how long and who will be able to see it.

Ethical storytelling matters too. Beneficiaries should ideally be able to tell their story in their own words and avoid portrayal as just victims. Rather focus on their resilience and strength and look to extract their story rather than exaggerate it.

Honest portrayals will help build trust and confidence with supporters too, making the ask for donations significantly easier.

What role does SEO play in nonprofit content marketing?

Search engine optimisation – also known as SEO – is the practice of optimising your online content for search. Done well, it means your content will be found when users search for related queries. Why does this matter to charities? Search engines, as well as AI, need to understand your organisation’s charitable aims and objectives, your mission and vision.

Not only that, your online presence needs to be delivering when it comes to E-E-A-T. E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness) is the marker that your content is authentic which matters when it comes to building long term supporters and attracting donations and funding.

SEO in nonprofit content marketing is vital for:

Visibility and discoverability
Credibility and trust
Driving action and conversion
Maximising limited budgets
Informing future content strategy

What content works best for grant makers, corporate partners, or major donors?

Data driven results, high impact storytelling and a clear alignment with a partner’s goals make for the best content.

Data driven results should show investors that their support is making a tangible difference.

For grant makers, check you demonstrate compliance with guidelines, budgets and evaluation metrics. Corporate partners will want to see alignment with both brand and CSR (corporate social responsibility) goals whilst high value donors will appreciate exclusive engagement and a clear long term charitable vision.

How can charities repurpose content across multiple channels?

Content repurposing is using your existing content and presenting it in a different way for another channel or audience. For example, a travel company may have a blog post called “10 things to do in Devon” and then create a short-form video based on this for use on Instagram or TikTok.

Think of it as a kind of recycling.

Reusing content found in annual reviews and impact reports offers charities a unique opportunity to reach out to target groups about their vision, mission and most recent achievements.

Long form blog posts can be broken down into content for social media and tweaked to appeal to different audiences across, for example, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Work on ‘Evergreen’ content is always worth the effort as this is content which will not date.

Check back through older content on your website and look for opportunities to bring it up to date before repurposing it across other channels.

How do we maintain a consistent brand voice with multiple contributors?

When there is more than one person publishing content across any given channel (both online and offline), there is a real risk of them using a different brand tone of voice.

So what is tone of voice and why does it matter for your brand? Put simply, it’s your brand’s personality which you use to communicate to your audience. And it’s important to keep this consistent.

It’s therefore worth creating brand guideline documentation to make it clear how your charitable brand’s personality should be communicated – and give examples of how it should not. Detail advice regarding tone of voice and use of language as well as use of colours and logo.

Most importantly, make sure you offer training and retraining on these guidelines as well as auditing how effectively and consistently they are being applied.

For further help, you might like to read 5 steps to developing your brand tone of voice.

What are common mistakes charities make with content marketing?

Common content marketing mistakes which charities often fall into include:

Focusing on the organisation over the audience
Lacking a cohesive strategy
Failing to measure impact effectively

Avoid content which focuses just on the organisation, its needs and its wants. Consider instead how it provides value to its audience and understand what they are looking for. Take the audience from the ‘What’ you do to ‘How We’ content to move them closer to taking action. Avoid overstretching staff across too many platforms, especially if they do not reach your target audience.

Post less frequent but high quality engaging content over more frequent low quality content. Keep language suitable and accessible for all. And make good use of video to reinforce your messaging in accessible ways.

Great content is hidden without an SEO strategy. And great content can easily be repurposed across multiple platforms. Avoid vanity metrics such as number of followers and focus on engagement and conversion rates. Use social media to build a community rather than just broadcast your message.

How long does it take for content marketing to show results for a nonprofit?

Content marketing can show results in as little as 3 months but real sustained growth is a longer term strategy and can take 12 months to really bed in.

In the first three months of publishing improved content, you can expect an uplift in social media engagement and website impressions. But it’s going to take 3-6 months of consistent content creation to see improvements in organic search, ranking and engagement with your target audience.

After 6 months, expect to see a more sustained growth in traffic, leads, sign ups and brand visibility.

Don’t give up too soon. A focus on high quality, effectively targeted and authoritative content will reap rewards for a long time to come.

Can The Content Marketing Team help develop our not for profit content marketing strategy?

In a word, yes! We have worked closely with a number of charities, including YHA, WWT and RightsInfo. We also have over 30 year’s first hand experience of running not for profit organisations in our team so we know a fair bit about answering to multiple stakeholders and making budgets stretch!

So if you’re looking for a hand with your content marketing for your charity, then drop us a line.