Offering a grant can be a good opportunity to improve your organization’s image and attract customers to your brand. This is only possible if people know about the grant. That’s why it’s important to always be on the lookout for ways to improve your grant marketing. Here are four ways to promote your grant.
1. Empower More Advocates
The most valuable form of advertising is still word of mouth. Naturally, people pay more attention to the recommendations of their friends, colleagues, family members, and peers than they do to traditional advertising.
With that in mind, the more people you can get talking about your grant, the better. Board members, employees, volunteers, and past recipients can all be recruited as advocates for your grant program. Even employees who aren’t directly involved in managing the grant can be involved in marketing it.
Encourage everyone in your organization to pitch ideas for social media posts, blog articles, and other content. When someone has a great idea, empower them to follow through. You can even offer incentives and some friendly competition to boost participation.
2. Create Quality Content
If the website for your grant includes little more than a description, a list of criteria, and a link to the application, you’re missing out on a key opportunity to promote your grant. Instead of sticking to a bare-bones site, start a blog. Create a variety of content that will establish your organization as a valuable resource and underscore your commitment to whatever cause you are championing.
If your grant helps fund child advocacy centers, for instance, write content that social workers, parents, teachers, and others involved in child protection will find helpful and worth sharing. This will help you build an audience and draw more attention to your grant.
Content marketing doesn’t need to be limited to your own website, either. You can reach a wider audience by sponsoring or even guest-writing posts on other blogs to highlight your grant. You may also want to work on a link-building strategy to improve your site’s search rankings.
3. Form New Partnerships
Effective collaboration should go beyond blogs; partnering with other websites, organizations, and influencers can be a great grant promotion strategy. If you run a nonprofit, partner with local businesses. If you work for a corporation, partner with a local nonprofit. Both parties benefit from these partnerships. For-profit businesses improve their image, nonprofits get a sponsor, and both parties get some free publicity and cross-promotion.
Take advantage of any networking opportunities you can find. Other businesses may want to contribute to your grant fund or help you promote it. Local media outlets can help you get the word out. You may also be able to participate in job fairs, conferences, or similar events to boost your profile and attract high-quality applicants.
4. Master Social Media
Not only can social media be an effective grant promotion tool, but it’s also a great way to support your other efforts. Set up a profile on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social networking sites, then work on attracting followers. Be intentional about what you post. Figure out who your desired audience is and curate content that they will find interesting or helpful. For instance:
- Share news stories, studies, and articles related to your industry.
- Conduct informal polls to find out what your followers think about important topics.
- Post behind-the-scenes pictures or live videos from events you sponsor, host, or attend.
- Retweet inspirational quotes or thought-provoking insights from industry experts.
- Recommend and endorse peers, past recipients, and other connections on LinkedIn.
Whether your grant is brand new or has been around for years, the time you put into grant promotion will not be wasted. In fact, promoting your grant is a vital part of effective grant management. The more people who know about your grant, the better your applicant pool will be, and the more you can accomplish—both for the grant recipients and your company’s reputation. Follow these tips to generate buzz your grant and what your organization is doing for the community.
Rachel Mindell is a Special Projects Editor at Submittable. She also writes and teaches poetry. Connect with her on LinkedIn.