When raising online funds, you should keep in mind that maintaining a blog is a vital part of your efforts. Here are nine ideas on writing a successful blog.
1) Read other blogs. In order to write meaningful blogs, you must understand the current issues in the non-profit sector. A feed aggregator is a useful tool which reads the blogs you specify and displays all the updated content in one browser screen. Bloglines (www.bloglines.com) and Google Reader are common aggregators.
2) Blog daily. A steady reader base is formed by consistent blogging. Mix articles about issues that affect your organization with personal stories about your charity, your opinions on current news, references to other blogs and organizations, and reports on conferences and trips your organization is working on.
3) Use tracking software. Discover how many people visited your blog and which articles were most interesting to them. Write more articles about popular blog posts. Feedburner (www.feedburner.com) is a good tracking device.
4) Connect with other bloggers. Ask frequent visitors to blog about your cause in their own blogs. Use blog directories such as Technorati (www.technorati.com) or Bloghub (www.bloghub.com) to find blogs that support your cause and send those bloggers a press release. You can also create a free charity badge with ChipIn (http://npo.chipin.com) or Network for Good (www.networkforgood.org). A charity badge is a small icon which briefly tells about your organization and includes a donation link. These badges are easily picked up by other bloggers by simply clicking on the “get this badge” link.
5) Encourage discussion. Write on thought-provoking subjects and encourage people to discuss these issues. Not only do these comments provide additional information, but they also create more interest in your cause.
6) Promote your RSS feed. An RSS feed sends automatic updates to your readers when your blog is updated. Make it visible and make it easy for readers to sign up to get your RSS feeds.
7) Encourage guest bloggers. Have a guest blogger write articles for your site in order to have a fresh perspective and voice. These guest bloggers will most likely be pleased to be asked and may well become valuable supporters of your organization.
8) Include other organizations. Mention other organizations that support your cause in your blog and comment on their blog postings. This will create a large network of organizations with similar goals.
9) Include an email address and tag terms. At the bottom of your blog, always add an “email this” line. Also, place tag terms (key words from your blog) at the bottom of your page so your blog will pop up when someone searches for those words.
Information taken from: Lance Trebesch and Taylor Robinson. “Six Unique Online Fundraising Techniques for Your Non-Profit – Blogs.” http://blog.pincgiving.com
--Ashley High is a Research Assistant at Christian Foundation Grants (www.christianfoundationgrants.com) which is subscription database of foundations that provide grants to faith based organizations. iDonate.com is a website (www.iDonate.com) that allows ministries to receive non cash gifts online