GUEST POST // 6 Pro Tips to Increase Your Nonprofit Website's ROI
By Anne Stefanyk of Kanopi Studios
Your nonprofit’s website is a multifunctional tool that allows you to raise funds, share updates about your mission, promote upcoming events, recruit volunteers, and more. However, just as hammers and chainsaws need regular care and attention to keep them from rusting or losing their effectiveness, so does your website if you want it to continue generating meaningful results for your nonprofit.
Setting up and maintaining a high-quality nonprofit website requires time, energy, and money. So how do you ensure that you’re maximizing your website’s return on investment (ROI) and tapping into its fullest potential for fundraising and marketing?
In this guide, we’ll share six game-changing tips for improving your website’s ROI, from leveraging search engine optimization (SEO) to weaving eye-catching calls to action (CTAs) across your pages.
1. Plan a variety of compelling content.
A website is only as strong as its content. To encourage more engagement on your nonprofit’s pages, you’ll need to create a rich world of text, images, and videos for users to explore.
Spice up your nonprofit’s website and make a lasting impression by adding a variety of interesting content, such as:
Quotes from beneficiaries, donors, volunteers, and staff.
Photo galleries featuring program and event highlights.
Charts and infographics displaying statistics about your cause.
Blog posts on your latest updates and accomplishments.
Behind-the-scenes virtual tours or day-in-the-life videos.
Use this content to drum up more interest in your nonprofit’s mission and keep supporters continually invested in your work.
2. Implement SEO best practices.
Your nonprofit needs to consistently bring in new donors, volunteers, and advocates to secure its long-term success and sustainability. With a well-defined SEO strategy, you can increase your organization’s chances of appearing at the top of Google search results for keywords relevant to your mission.
Follow these SEO best practices to make it easier for internet users to discover and interact with your website content:
Choose relevant keywords for each page and incorporate them naturally throughout your content.
Link to other authoritative resources both on and off your website.
Keep your page titles between 50-60 characters.
Include a meta description for every page.
Compress and resize your images to reduce load times.
Google prioritizes website content that is trustworthy and demonstrates expertise, so aim to make your blog posts and informational pages as accurate and educational as possible. Doing so can boost your credibility in the eyes of donors, volunteers, and corporate sponsors.
3. Optimize the user experience.
By creating a pleasant and rewarding user experience on your website, you’ll increase the likelihood that visitors will stick around on your pages and return in the future. Kanopi’s WordPress for nonprofits guide recommends building user personas for different segments of your audience, with details like demographics and their main purpose for using your website, to better understand the people you’re trying to reach.
Use the following template to make your user personas, then design clear pathways on your website based on their needs and interests:
Furthermore, ensure your website follows the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) so all visitors can engage with and enjoy your content. Add alternative text to your images, include captions alongside your videos, and avoid the use of all caps to enhance readability. Since the majority (57%) of nonprofit website traffic comes from users on mobile devices, make your pages as mobile-friendly as possible by prioritizing simple navigation and avoiding pop-ups.
4. Incorporate clear calls to action.
Having a well-thought-out website that encourages visitors to explore your content is only the beginning. To increase your website’s ROI, you’ll need to pave the way for supporters to find what they’re looking for and complete the next steps you’d like them to take with your nonprofit.
Whether you’re hoping to secure more donations, event registrations, or petition signatures, include clear CTAs to create a smooth and productive website experience for all your visitors. Use these tips to inform your CTA strategy:
Make your CTA buttons stand out on the page. Add CTA buttons with high-contrast colors and enough white space around them to attract the immediate attention of users on the page.
Use specific, urgent language. Encourage visitors to take action by using concise, clear, and urgent language that directly spells out what you’d like for them to do.
Keep your CTAs consistent with your branding. Your CTAs should stick out, but not in a way that’s dissonant with the rest of your website’s style and colors. Consistent branding adds a sense of trust and credibility to your nonprofit.
For example, let’s say that a college is trying to strengthen its relationships with alumni and raise funds. It might add a CTA like “Give back today” that links to its donation page or “Connect at an upcoming event” that directs users to an event calendar, using bold colors and easy-to-read text to catch the eye.
5. Promote your website content.
As essential as it is, your nonprofit’s website is only one piece of the marketing and fundraising puzzle. Chances are, your online presence stretches farther—from email newsletters to social media pages. Put your existing efforts to good use by using these platforms to promote your website content.
However, it’s important not to stretch yourself too thin. According to Getting Attention’s digital marketing for nonprofits guide, you should consider the audience of each platform to choose the best ones to focus on.
For instance, if you’re hoping to drive more younger visitors to your website, you might share your content in Instagram posts. If you’re trying to appeal to older supporters, you might promote your website on Facebook or in a section of your email newsletter.
You can also use supporter data from your nonprofit’s constituent relationship management system (CRM) to determine which communication platforms appeal to your unique audience. For example, if many of your donors are also email subscribers who regularly open your messages, you could send email newsletters promoting your latest blog posts.
6. Review your website analytics.
There is no universal, single most effective strategy for increasing a website’s ROI. After all, no two nonprofits and their audiences are exactly alike. Because of this, it’s crucial to keep an eye on your website analytics to pinpoint areas where you’re doing well and areas where you should make improvements. Using analytics, you can determine what content gets the most interest from users, and conversely what pages and content are losing their interest.
Some basic metrics to consider include:
Number of new vs. returning visitors
Traffic sources
Time on site
Bounce rate
Collecting and analyzing data is a vital part of any nonprofit’s growth and success. To access further insights, send out surveys to your supporters to learn more about their specific experiences on your website.
A high-quality website can bring a significant influx of awareness and support to your nonprofit. If you need some more guidance on how to implement these tips, consider reaching out to a nonprofit web agency with in-depth experience working with charitable organizations like yours. They’ll work with you to understand your goals, build a content strategy, and make improvements to your website to boost your ROI.
With these tips and a thoughtful approach, you’ll be well on your way to strengthening your online presence, expanding your reach, and earning more overall revenue for your mission.
This guest post was written by Anne Stefanyk.
As Founder and CEO of Kanopi Studios, Anne helps create clarity around project needs, and turns client conversations into actionable outcomes. She enjoys helping clients identify their problems, and then empowering the Kanopi team to execute great solutions.
Anne is an advocate for open source and co-organizes the Bay Area Drupal Camp. When she’s not contributing to the community or running her thoughtful web agency, she enjoys yoga, meditation, treehouses, dharma, cycling, paddle boarding, kayaking, and hanging with her nephew.
