Make your website more relevant by increasing staff participation

Face it, the internet is no longer only for “that web guy” to work with.  Pretty much all nonprofit work includes an online component these days. Online donations, online grants management, webinars, articles, etc.  All of this is, of course, in addition to the hundreds of other “real world” tasks that nonprofits have to accomplish daily.

Sound daunting? It doesn’t have to be. Nonprofits can make fast, relevant and well-written website posts utilizing existing staff and resources by following 2 steps:

1. Write posts between 200-500 words

Writing for the web should be short and impactful.  If you don’t get your point across quickly, you don’t get your point across at all.

It’s tough at first, but you’ll be amazed at how much you can remove and how much time you saved by not writing “fluff” that a site visitor may not read.

How can I actually do this?

• Write in the inverted pyramid style. Main message at the top, supporting evidence below.
• Use bullet points whenever possible. It makes it easier to read a post!
• Re-read your post with the goal to cut it down. If you have 800 words, try to go to 500, if you have 500 try to go to 300, etc.

2. Get EVERYONE involved.

Your website represents your entire organization, so it should accurately reflect the expertise of every staff member. Leverage staff expertise by having them update their own subject areas on the site.

How can I actually do this?

• Create a set of guidelines for each section of the site. Include basics such as word count and topics.
• Don’t spend too much time trying to “finalize” your guidelines. They are living, just like your website. Update both often as situations arise!
• Set up permissions on the site to allow staff to access only the area they’ve been assigned to update. This helps prevent confusion, and keeps their workflow simple.
• Trust that your employees are passionate about their work, and as a reflection of that work, you can trust them to be responsible and professional. If you can’t, you have bigger problems than updating your website!

There is more to creating your web content strategy than these 2 steps, but you need to start somewhere. Following these two steps will get you more than halfway to generating great web content for your nonprofit.