A nonprofit has a harder job than most businesses: it asks for time or money and has nothing to sell in return. What it can offer is evidence that the help is real, and a feed that treats supporters as partners and not as a source of funds.
People give to people
A named volunteer, a real outcome and a specific need move readers far more than a general statement of mission. Say what a particular donation or hour of time did, in plain words and with numbers you can defend.
Show what happened
- Report outcomes with detail: what changed, where and for whom.
- Tell volunteers’ and staff’s stories, with their consent.
- Be honest about costs and about what has not worked. It builds the kind of trust that gifts depend on.
Ask without guilt
If every post is a request, people stop reading. Keep most posts about the work and the people, and make the occasional ask clear: what you need, how much, by when, and what it will do. Then thank everyone, publicly and promptly.
Look after the people you help
- Get consent before sharing a story or a photograph, and respect a refusal without argument.
- Take particular care with children and with anyone in a vulnerable situation, and follow the rules and safeguarding policies that apply to you.
- Do not use someone’s hardship as a way of making donors feel bad. Show dignity, not pity.
Report back
Once or twice a year, publish a short summary: what came in, what it was spent on and what it achieved. It is the strongest post a nonprofit can make, and it sets up the next appeal.
Before you post a story about a person you help, ask yourself whether they would be happy for their own family to read it.