It’s an opportunity to learn and grow, and then do it all again. File under “a good problem to have.”
A plateau means you found something that works!
It would be amazing if what worked last year and the year before kept on working forever, but continued success requires ongoing learning and adjusting to change. A plateau is your signal to step back, assess, and adapt. It’s an opportunity to learn and grow, and then do it all again.
Step one: Take your foot off the gas & assess
First and foremost, do you have a marketing goal tied to tangible performance metrics that you are tracking consistently? If not, you’re going to get stuck spinning wheels with no reliable means of evaluating whether anything is working.
Otherwise, let’s keep going. It’s time to ask yourself the tough questions:
Is this actually a plateau?
Are results stalling out persistently, or is this a blip? Is it an order of magnitude difference, or a small fluctuation? Marketing needs time to breathe. Don’t make big strategic swings after only a few weeks of data, or small daily fluctuations in results. It’s just not long enough to know what’s working and what’s not working. Look to longer-term trends before shifting gears. On that note, if your results are so small that you’re looking at a fluctuation of 5 likes v. 50 likes on a post, we encourage you to still take that step to change up your strategy, as that content is not breaking through.
Are you in the right place to connect with your audience?
Before you dive deep into tinkering with new tactics, take some time to make sure you’re marketing in the right place to connect with the right people. It’s easy to get caught chasing an audience on the newest platform, or get complacent on an older one whose party ended long ago. Either scenario can leave you shouting into a void, and is a good reminder to keep the focus on building community in owned, instead of borrowed spaces.
Are you doing enough to build trust with your audience?
People are much more inclined to take action… if they trust you. Have you done enough to build a relationship before asking them to do something, like donate? Or are you coming in cold? Building and maintaining relationships is a year-round effort.
Are your marketing messages relatable, or even understandable?
Translating subject matter expertise into engaging communications is a very common non-profit challenge. If your messaging is technically correct but a real snooze, that’s a miss. Check out our guide to make your work more conversational without losing authority.
Step two: Explore, experiment & trust the process
Nonprofits tend to play it safe and look to each other for guidance. If it’s not working for you, it’s probably not working for them either. Dare to stand out.
What gets people to pay attention?
Capturing attention is the first, and potentially most significant, hurdle. If your emails, social posts, and events are consistently getting low engagement and turnout, it’s time to rethink not just the message but the messenger, and consider passing the mic. Are there any partners, local businesses, or content creators who can give your organization a boost? Trusting an ally to deliver your message not only builds credibility, but it can get you in front of valuable new audiences with pre-approved status.
What moves people to act, and more specifically, donate?
Every donor report in the last few years says the same thing: the number of individual donors is in decline. The economy is in the toilet, inflation is crippling, it’s kind of bleak. And yet, successful fundraisers are still happening.
At first glance, the following tactics could be easy to dismiss, but look harder and dig a little deeper; investigate why they’re proving effective.
- Donations are pouring into a friend-of-a-friend’s GoFundMe. Yes, the fact that it’s individual-to-individual changes the dynamic, but there’s a lot to learn from how regular people talk about needing support: the ask is personal, concrete, and time-bound. Experiment with messaging that is both highly human and specific about your organization’s fundraising needs.
- You attended an event that successfully raised money through an auction supported by local businesses. It may not always work out to have an in-person event, but consider ways to infuse your direct fundraising with a similar type of energy—and exchange of goods. Could you offer exclusive merch (NPR tote bags are iconic for a reason)? Or incentivize donations by linking them to entries to win an exclusive prize or experience? Won’t know until you try it.
- Maybe you’re seeing a particular nonprofit gain a surge of attention—and donations—in response to a very public attack on their cause (i.e. every Ballet company this past winter) or crisis. Even if there isn’t an active crisis impacting your organization’s work, there are ways to test the effectiveness of infusing your messaging with different levels of urgency. For example, “X families won’t have access to fresh food this month. We can cut that number in half, but only with your support.”
Ready to pull out of your stalled marketing?
Honestly, the hardest part is step one, stepping back to assess. Our work in the non-profit space has the tendency to always be urgent; it’s scary to take your foot off the gas. That’s where we come in. Let us provide the extra resources and fresh perspective you need to keep moving forward.
