12 Ways To Make 2017 Your Nonprofit’s Best Year Yet

New Year’s Resolutions are usually about personal goals, but what if this year you resolved instead to advance the cause of your nonprofit? First, we would applaud your selfless, inspired choice. Second, we would offer up 12 great ways Facebook can help you succeed.

1. Make giving easy with Donate call-to-action buttons. Calls to action help drive people to take actions that are important to your nonprofit – like subscribing or donating. A simple and effective way to raise funds is to add a donate button to your Page header. You can either collect donations directly on Facebook or send people to a website of your choice to donate. Learn more.

2. Inspire supporters to create fundraisers for your cause. In 2016, Facebook launched Fundraisers. This powerful tool enables people to engage their communities and raise money for the causes they care about (Yours!). The tool has proven to be enormously popular, with $6.9 million raised via Facebook this past #GivingTuesday alone. Why? Friends like to help friends achieve their goals. Fundraisers allow your supporters to do just that, by sharing their personal stories, telling their friends about their favorite causes, and rallying support around a specific fundraising goal. Learn more.

3. Thank (and retain) donors in an engaging way. Sending thank-you messages to your donors is a best practice. Sending a video thank-you is an even better practice. There’s a reason why 74 percent of social media marketers use visual assets in their social media marketing plans. It works! Video allows supporters to visualize your organization’s impact. Thank-you videos aren’t just more likely to be watched, they’re more likely to be shared. Your video can be produced without breaking the bank, and it can be short. It should be short. You’re busy enough as it is! Get started or learn best practices.

4. Optimize your online content like never before. Optimizing your Page will allow it to have the greatest impact. The key is to ensure your content is relevant and that it engages on a human level. Ways to do this is include: using Facebook to celebrate achievements and milestones; posting engaging behind-the-scenes photos, and showcasing where your organization’s fundraising dollars go. You can also acknowledge donors and volunteers by highlighting, tagging, and thanking them for their support. Learn more.

5. Engage supporters using an immersive new format – Facebook Live! Facebook Live brings people together through video in real time. This dynamic new medium has taken off, growing four-fold since just last May. Nonprofits use Facebook Live for field reporting, to host Q&A’s, mini-telethons and more. We’ll continue to improve the Facebook Live experience, so you can put it to work for you. There are several things to consider before you Go Live. Learn more here.

6. Engage your followers by delivering best-in-class support. How can you show your donors, volunteers and followers that you are grateful for their support? Answer every Facebook Post on your Page! This simple step truly is one of the most effective ways you can demonstrate to the members of your community that you care what they think. Get more ideas here.

7. Discover new ways Facebook can help make your vision a reality. Did you know Facebook offers a global training and certification program? It’s called Blueprint and, while it may be geared toward the business community now, it offers a wealth of information your organization can use to further its objectives. From online learning to live events to certification opportunities, Blueprint will give your organization the tools it needs to grow. Learn more.

8. Galvanize your organization. Turn ideas into action. Looking for a better way to communicate inside your organization? Workplace by Facebook is free for nonprofits and uses familiar features like News Feed, Groups, and Messages to foster greater collaboration and productivity. Nonprofits like Save the Children rely on this user-friendly, ad-free platform to help them turn ideas into action and get more done. Learn more.

9. Build awareness and grow your supporter base. Facebook ads give your organization direct access to people who are committed to helping it achieve its goals. You choose the objective and the audience, and Facebook delivers ads in a way that’s optimized to drive results. More nonprofits are adding targeted advertising to their overall marketing mix. You can run ads on Facebook on any budget, starting as low as $5 dollars! Want to optimize your ROI? Incorporate the Donate button to make it easy for supporters to contribute! Learn more.

10. Communicate efficiently with supporters. Did you know that over 1 billion people across the world are using Messenger? And more organizations are using this to communicate with supporters. Why? Messenger allows you to reach people instantly, expressively, and even face-to-face. Add in useful tools such as group calling, there’s no better way to engage with your constituents. Learn here.

11. Promote live, in-person events in a dynamic way. Facebook brings people together in the real world with their friends like no other social media channel. This makes it the ideal platform for planning and promoting events. Email is fine, but it’s not as efficient. (You risk leaving somebody out.) Texting is convenient, but the format’s built-in limitations can hamper clean communication. Whether you’re getting the word out about a public event or sending invites to a private one, Facebook Events makes organizing easy. Learn more.

12. Cultivate synergies between like-minded people. Facebook Groups allow you to optimize communication by connecting people with similar passions and goals. You can use Groups to share exclusive updates, photos or events and collaborate. It’s the perfect way to foster constructive exchanges between your supporters, coordinate activities with, or provide exclusive content to, the right groups of people. Learn more.

Conclusion The New Year is in full swing and your organization’s fundraising needs won’t wait. If you are resolved to make 2017 your best year yet, we encourage you to take advantage of the 12 tools, tips, and techniques outlined in this article. Leveraging the Facebook platform is a simple, proven way to improve your organization’s fundraising performance and achieve its overall goals. And that’s great news for everybody!