• Increase visibility : Associations, whether non-profit, charitable, social, or cultural, need visibility to publicize their missions, actions, and achievements. Advertising provides a platform to spread their message to a wide audience much faster than SEO or word of mouth.
• Fundraising Nonprofits often rely on donations and funding to finance their projects and activities. Advertising can play a vital role in fundraising by highlighting the organization's needs, explaining the impact of each contribution, and encouraging the public to donate. While all large nonprofits advertise year-round, those with a limited budget focus on the end of the year. The goal is to achieve a Return on Investment (ROAS) > 1 by generating more donations than the budget spent. Advertising then becomes a donation multiplier.
• Recruit volunteers: Volunteers play an essential role within associations, Advertising campaigns can highlight your missions facing an audience that is looking for or inclined to engage
• Raising public awareness Some associations have the mission of raising public awareness of important societal or environmental issues. Advertising campaigns can then amplify this message. For example, we worked with Emmaus Connect on their campaigns. Co-sharing to generate +250K views on their great YouTube spot with a budget of a few thousand euros

1. Google Ads:

Google is a go-to source of information and engagement for many people. Using Google Ads allows nonprofits to effectively target users actively searching for information related to their causes. It's an opportunity to recruit volunteers and beneficiaries, and encourage donations.

2. Meta Ads (Facebook/Instagram ads)

For lesser-known organizations, Meta Ads can be powerful for connecting emotionally with audiences through images or videos. Facebook lead gen ads can generate leads/signups at low cost, but the quality can be variable as user engagement isn't always there. However, targeting has become increasingly limited since Apple's iOS 14 release, which blocks tracking of iPhone user behavior in Facebook and IG apps.

3. LinkedIn Ads:

Although considered expensive with an average CPC of around 8 euros in France, LinkedIn Ads offers the most powerful targeting. Associations can target specific audiences such as private funders, foundations, CSR managers, Pôle Emploi advisors, etc. It is ideal for generating leads via documents and webinars. We also learned that job seekers are a much cheaper target than decision-makers because they are less competitive with CPCs that can go as low as 2 euros. For recruiting mentors and volunteers with skills or from a particular sector, the cost per registration is around 50 to 100 euros, but the engagement behind it is much higher than on Meta Ads and Google Ads.

4. TikTok Ads: 

To reach a younger audience, TikTok is an interesting option. However, it's important to develop creative strategies tailored to your target audience to maximize the effectiveness of advertising on this platform. If you don't already have an organic video content strategy tailored to TikTok, we don't recommend investing in TikTok Ads.

In conclusion, advertising plays a vital role in the success of any nonprofit. It allows you to increase your visibility, engage stakeholders, raise funds, recruit volunteers, and raise public awareness of your causes. Choose the right advertising channel is crucial to achieving your goals efficiently and cost-effectively. Each channel has its own specific advantages, depending on the needs of your association and your target audience. A diversified approach, combining multiple channels, can be particularly fruitful for maximizing impact and results.

If you have little knowledge of digital marketing, getting support from an agency could be a good thing!