When making decisions, who do you trust to give you the best, unbiased advice? Can you really rely on the information contained in a paid ad, or endorsements made by celebrities, politicians, various pundits and other talking heads?

If you are like most of us, when you need a recommendation you turn to people that know you well and that you can count on, your friends and family. Word of mouth marketing is one of the oldest and most effective ways to build your NFP’s brand because it harnesses the power of your connections to get the word out about your organisation and the work that you are doing in your community.

What is Word of Mouth Marketing?

Word of mouth occurs as the natural result of someone sharing an interaction they have had with your nonprofit. For example, a volunteer might make and share a post about how their work with your NFP is helping to solve a critical issue in society. A donor might tweet about how good they feel after contributing to your latest fundraiser. An advocate might share a photo on Instagram that illustrates the impact made by your NFP’s work.

Each of these individuals has connections that will see their post, and, go on to share it with their own contacts, and the news continues to spread. Since the messaging spreads organically, a word of mouth campaign is a great, low-cost way to generate some buzz about your nonprofit and increase interest in your work.

The following ideas can help you use word of mouth marketing to your NFP’s best advantage.

Create Shareworthy Events

If you want to get your supporters talking about your NFP’s work more, you first need to give them something to talk about! Find creative ways to interest and excite your members about your nonprofit and its work. Make your events exciting and newsworthy. For example, you could host a raffle for a special prize to be drawn and awarded during your next in-person event. You might assign a prize for the best costume at your next fundraiser. Have participants take a photo of their outfit and post it on your NFP’s Facebook page. Ask them to share their entries and invite their friends to like and share them as well to encourage greater social sharing of the event. The photo with the most likes and shares wins the prize!

Exceed Your Members Expectations

If you want your members to recommend you to others, you must build trust with them. This means excelling at what you do by providing exceptional service at a great value for your members.

Search for ways to go above and beyond the standard “call of duty” when deciding on what benefits you will offer your members. Always be honest in your dealings and be as transparent as possible in your NFP’s decision-making process and financial statements.

Express Your Gratitude

Nonprofits need dedication and support from every segment to be successful, but regardless of how someone contributes to your NFP, each one of us likes to know that our time and effort is appreciated. When we feel that an organisation values us and respects us, it increases the likelihood that we will enjoy our interactions with them and recommend others to become involved in supporting it. A handwritten note, a photo essay or compilation video that shows the impact made by volunteers, donors and other supporters are great ways to show your appreciation.

Whether someone is a paid staff member, a volunteer, a donor, or other supporter, each has the power to become a valuable advocate for your cause. Therefore, make sure you show gratitude to all your stakeholders and sponsors.

Offer Incentives for Referrals

Another way to increase recommendations is to offer perks and rewards to others who refer new members to you. You could, for example, provide a small discount on the cost of the annual membership fee for new sign-ups. You might even recruit third parties to offer discounts or some free swag to folks who send new members your way.

Recruit Social Media Volunteers

Another way to increase the reach of your social media messages is to create a team of social media volunteers to share your NFP’s posts on their own social media channels. As they share your posts with their connections, if they are interesting, entertaining, or helpful posts it’s likely that at least some of your volunteers’ connections will reshare them, increasing the reach of your messaging. This approach works best when you have a special event or fundraiser that you want to promote for a limited time.

Test Your Messaging

Don’t forget to test your messaging when you make posts and use analytics to discover which types of content resonate the most with your followers. Once you know what kinds of posts your audience enjoys, do more of it!

Don’t Forget to Ask

Finally, don’t forget to ask your supporters to share your NFP’s posts on their own social media pages and to recommend your organisation when they talk with others in person. While this seems like an obvious suggestion, a surprising number of NFPs and other organisations forget to take this simple step on a regular basis!