Don’t you love it when your nonprofit’s supporters are passionate about your mission? They’re donating, attending events, reading your newsletters, and talking to their friends about how important it is that something changes in favor of the issues you all care about.
But how much can one nonprofit do?
Wanting to change a policy is one of the most impactful ways you can move the needle of your mission. And harnessing and amplifying your donors’ voices can be an excellent strategy.
Enter nonprofit advocacy. Your nonprofit is fighting for something, and you are going to use your supporters to advocate for change. Sounds simple, right?
Theoretically, it’s easy. But practically speaking, it takes effort (to educate and empower your advocates) and opportunity (easy ways they can get involved).
Connecting your supporters to elected officials, corporations, and news outlets to educate the public and create a rise in public support for your mission (no matter how noble your mission is) isn't as easy as it sounds. You need technology to develop and manage an organized campaign to bring awareness and have your advocates' messages heard.
At CharityEngine, we’ve worked with clients to launch action alert campaigns since 2008. Over the years, the solutions and tools we offer have evolved based on best practices and innovation within the nonprofit technology space. While we can’t promise a seismic shift in the policy you’re focused on, we can offer your supporters easy ways to let their voice(s) be heard and to help amplify those voices through technology.
Ready? We’re going to:
After reading this article, you’ll have a solid outline of how to get your own advocacy campaign started.
It’s using the voice and power of your nonprofit’s organized efforts to effect change that furthers your mission. Advocacy is a grassroots, person-to-person collection of support that targets decision-makers and uses tools to lobby on behalf of your platform.
Have you ever circulated a survey or a petition? Then you’ve used advocacy tools to your benefit. It’s all about gathering like-minded people—donors and supporters!—and using your collective voice to send an effective and strategic message to a group.
Advocacy works. Public policy is a powerful framework that can change the world, in ways large and small, for the greater good. There are many examples of groups that, while you may disagree with their mission, have effectively promoted change in their favor. This is proof of the power of a collective voice.
What does advocacy look like? Here are a few examples.
My mother repeatedly called and wrote letters to our local officials to complain about people speeding through our neighborhood. Her repeated efforts helped to force the issue so that eventually speed bumps were installed...that’s advocacy.
It was easy for my mom to find our mayor, but how do your advocates know who the right decision-makers are? A lot of people know some politicians, but quite frequently, people don’t know who their representatives are or how to contact them.
So, how does a nonprofit get its supporters in front of the right people, in an organized effort, to catch the attention of those who can make decisions?
It’s no surprise that technology is the most efficient, effective answer. For example, it's not easy to just email or call a legislator. Constituents need to go to the appropriate website and prove they are in the district and eligible to contact the legislator.
That's a headache!
Most advocacy tools offer a feature called zip-to-district matching. Your supporters enter their zip code and are instantly linked to the correct elected officials to contact. Using a robust advocacy tool will also be accurate, as most systems follow the rules regulated and enforced by the Sargent at Arms at the Capitol and in every state legislature.
Once your supporters know who to contact, your nonprofit will want to provide them with helpful messaging to ensure the important details of the issue are continually reinforced by the supporters.
When you have an army of people with consistent messaging applying pressure on elected officials, it will give the impression that the general public agrees or disagrees with measures that will inevitably affect lives. It’s up to the elected officials to act, and the more vocal and widespread your advocacy campaign, the more of a chance you’ll create change.
One of our clients is an impressive healthcare research nonprofit that amalgamates member organizations from the medical, health, and scientific fields. The client uses tools in our software to automate notifications to supporters, to launch action alerts to send emails, direct posts on social media, make phone calls, and use petitions and surveys. Take a look at your system and make sure these advocacy tools are available for your next campaign.
Many nonprofit associations also have separate foundations that differentiate between their fundraising and lobbying efforts. An all-in-one CRM provides technology to support the fundraising as well as separate engagement campaigns, including grassroots advocacy action alert campaigns.
Why Advocacy Matters
All nonprofits strive to find more ways to engage their supporters and offer opportunities for advocates to show their support. It’s age-old nonprofit stress: you need more supporters, and you need more opportunities for your current supporters to get involved.
Some of the most successful fundraising programs involve lifelong, ongoing support from donors. Many of these sustainers started by buying into the philosophical mission of an organization rather than with a donation. These casual and sideline supporters are the ones that come to an event as a “plus one” or volunteer to help at a community drive or event. Recognize that support for what it is—donations of time and effort—and nurture them accordingly. Use your year-end giving campaign to highlight the good you do to increase the need for your work.
Advocacy offers another easy way supporters can get involved without involving their wallets. You can:
No matter how you position it, and to whom, advocacy is a critical and cost-free way for your supporters to jump in and have a tangible effect on your nonprofit and its mission.
Remember that if you’re not measuring your success, it’s hard to find ways to improve upon it. And as we’ve discussed, it’s not always about dollars; advocates showing their support through time and talent can be measured as easily as dollars can be, and this engagement can help you gauge the health of your donor base. Using software with an advocacy module is the best idea, but any good CRM will let you track engagement and results.
You’ve got your supporters engaged and you’re ready to launch them. How can you help amplify their message and let their voices best be heard? Give them some options to get involved in a variety of ways so it’s easier for them to participate.
And, if you’re just starting with advocacy, pick one outreach method (like signing a petition) and give it a try.
If you are ready to look for technology to help your efforts, this essential guide to advocacy software might help by showing you some top options:
Regardless of how your advocates reach out, you’ll want to recognize their efforts and thank them, as well as keep them apprised of any results or consequences of their actions.
All nonprofits want to change the world, but nonprofit advocacy changes lives. The right plan, whether technology-enhanced or not, can help you arm your advocates with the means to get their message(s) to the right person. While I am always going to tell you that our all-in-one nonprofit CRM is the answer to your success, I can also tell you that there are other advocacy tools out there—they just lack the well-rounded, 360* view of who their supporters are.
Find ways to guide your causal and sideline supporters (volunteers, event attendees) to become advocates and guide your advocates into becoming donors and lifelong supporters of your mission.
Build an advocacy plan that takes into account the demographics of your donors, as well as their personalities. You can develop different outreach efforts that happen at the same time to load the message, or you can commit to smaller, more regular efforts.
Now that you’ve got some ideas, go ahead and start changing lives. If you need help, we’ve got your back.