LinkedIn for Non-Profits

If you are running a non-profit, you have a unique set of challenges.

You are running an organization with all the complexity of a for-profit enterprise, and also dealing with the unique mindset of volunteer labor. You are probably also asking for donations from businesses and individuals, but not seeking clients from among them.

The difference in practice is small but crucial: You need to persuade, motivate and build relationships, but this is not sales: you need to project sincerity, passion and compassion, and get your messages out while sounding informational but not promotional.

LinkedIn can be a huge asset for the nonprofit. The right approach can be critical in helping you to:

• Generate awareness of your brand
• Build a network of believers
• Interact with your audience
• Get your vision, purpose and strategy messages out
• Organically grow your pool of potential donors, professional volunteers, business/consultation partners, and board members.

Recently, Radial Creations’ Heshy Friedman teamed up with Laibel from Headshots by Laibel Schwartz to conduct a seminar on how nonprofits can leverage LinkedIn to build exposure and reputation.

Here are some highlights:

• LinkedIn has transitioned from an online resume platform into a social media powerhouse where you can build an audience that is professional, entrepreneurial, intelligent, and focused on results.
• Interesting posts, a professional and personable profile, and actively engaging high-profile members of your audience are key elements to building your presence.
• Direct messaging is the next step, taking the conversation private where a call to action will be most effective.
• Showcase your personality—it’s your greatest asset. Find your voice and use it.
• Start small, start incrementally, but start NOW.

There’s lots more than will fit here. Listen to the full event as it happened (MP3, 89 minutes).

Or let’s talk about your specific needs. Give me a call, drop me a text or email, or (of course!) start a conversation on LinkedIn. You’ve heard this message from us before: this is a first-mover opportunity. Very few organizations are doing this now—or doing it right. If you act now, you can be a category leader.

Bottom line: For nonprofits, LinkedIn’s social side can be a key part of your success.