More people are making donations online than ever before. According to the latest charitable giving data, online donations have grown 32% over the last three years.
When someone wants to donate, they often type a search term into Google, Yahoo, or Bing, such as “nonprofits to donate to near me.” The search engine will analyze this term and then show the user a list of nonprofit websites that are both local and accepting donations.
75% of people never scroll past the first page of a search engine results page. The process of enhancing your website to rank on page 1 of Google, Yahoo, or Bing is known as SEO— search engine optimization. SEO helps your nonprofit to:
- Get more users to visit your website.
- Learn about your nonprofits objectives and mission.
- Get involved with your nonprofit through donating, volunteering, or fundraising.
SEO will be your nonprofit’s best friend in 2022 and beyond, regardless of your digital marketing goals. This blog reveals 5 essential nonprofit SEO guidelines that will help your website rank in no time.
1. Conduct keyword research
One of the most important aspects of SEO is keyword optimization. In other words, when you use the right keywords throughout your landing pages, blog posts, and case studies, your website is more likely to rank higher in an individual’s SERPs.
For example, let’s say you run an organization that supports vulnerable animals in the Denver area. If this is the case, put yourself in the shoes of those who want to donate or volunteer with your organization. What keywords would they type into a search engine to find causes in their area that they resonate with?
Once you have a list of potential keywords, conduct keyword research to:
- Determine the search volume and competition score of the keywords you would like to target. *Aim for search terms that have above 30 searches a month and a competition score of under 60
- Find additional long-tail keywords (between 3-4 words) that you can use for other blogs/landing pages related to vulnerable animals
2. Incorporate Link Building
There are two types of link-building tactics you can utilize to improve your website’s search engine ranking.
External Linking
This involves finding other websites that are closely aligned with your nonprofit and reaching out to them to build a link-worthy opportunity. Is there a blog you created with relevant statistics that you think would be useful to another organization? The more external websites linking back to your nonprofit will increase your credibility and ranking potential.
Internal Linking
Internal links are links placed within your website content that direct visitors to other pages. I.e., Suppose you write a blog on volunteer management. In that case, specific keywords within the blog might link back to another page on your website focused on how to become a volunteer and find local opportunities. Internal links keep users on your website longer and indicate to search engines that you have authority over a particular topic—both factors that will increase your likelihood of ranking higher.
3. Update your website
Updating various technical aspects of your website can improve your search engine ranking. When your website functions correctly and provides visitors with a positive user experience, users are more likely to increase their time spent on your website and become repeat visitors.
The following are some of the most important things to consider when updating your website:
Website speed: Slow page loading is a kiss of death for websites. Speed up your website by compressing images and eliminating any unnecessary plugins
Streamlined design: A website that is simply designed and easy for the user to navigate through increases overall session duration and the percentage of returning users
Mobile-friendliness: Make sure your website is optimized for mobile devices by choosing a mobile-responsive website template and avoid adding any pop-ups
4. Focus on local SEO
Local SEO involves improving your organization’s search engine ranking for internet users in specific locations. This is great for nonprofits that need help attracting volunteers or want to collect tangible donations (clothing, food, etc.) from those who live nearby.
One of the best ways to improve local SEO is to include location-specific keywords in your content. For example, you might incorporate phrases like “food donations in Detroit” or “Phoenix animal shelter” so that your website is optimized for area-specific search results.
5. Create Great Content
Finally, make sure you’re regularly creating and sharing high-quality content on your website. This includes writing blog posts, sharing infographics, and creating videos.
No matter what kind of content you’re working on, make sure it provides value to the supporters that you hope to reach. It should either teach them something new, answer a question they have, or tug at their heartstrings to get them excited about becoming a supporter of your cause.
Implement These Nonprofit SEO Guidelines
SEO is the secret sauce to your nonprofit’s success. If you want to grow your audience, boost credibility, and increase support, incorporating these nonprofit SEO guidelines into your marketing strategy will go a long way.
Kambeo helps nonprofits make a difference. A robust platform that can help you create fundraisers, collect donations, manage volunteers and track progress.
