With so much vying for our attention, nonprofits can find it challenging to reach their donors and potential donors about their fundraising efforts. A dedicated microsite — a separate website where nonprofit organizations can share vital information about their campaigns, collect online donations or an upcoming event — can help your organization stand out.
Microsites are self-contained and can easily be launched, run and taken down as needed. They have their own specific marketing strategy and purpose, including message specific design and content. Adding the site to your digital strategy may help you connect in different ways with your donors and would-be donors. For example, a nonprofit’s main mission may be teen mentoring, but its fundraising campaign is focused on raising funds to help the nonprofit buy a larger building. The microsite will have more information on the campaign itself along with information on the nonprofit’s mission and how the new building will serve more teens.
New content: A microsite is not a mini version of your regular website. It requires unique content that’s more focused, keying in on the mission and purpose of the fundraising objective or capital campaign. The site’s key messaging is also slightly different than what is on the main website.
Intuitive navigation. If a microsite has more than one page, it should be easy and intuitive to navigate, directing users to key areas. The more you streamline your navigation, the better your user experience (UX) will be and the more likely supporters will continue engaging with the microsite.
Shareability. Raising awareness about your fundraising efforts will increase your overall reach, impressions, and engagements, drawing your target audience in, to essentially reach your end goal – conversions (audiences making a donation or purchase). Make sure the microsite is easy to share on social media or through email. This shareability is vital if you want to capture your target audiences attention.
Expand your reach. A fundraising microsite may attract more visitors to your regular website as they seek out more information about your organization using backlinks. This provides the opportunity to introduce your nonprofit and its mission to more people.
Optimized URL name. Your microsite stands on its own, requiring its own URL. When creating it, make sure it is optimized so people can easily search for it. The URL should include a slogan, campaign name or target keyword so users can easily discern the site’s mission and purpose.
Get interactive. Microsites’ content and structure differ from your main website so look for opportunities to increase reader engagement through videos, interactive slides or another interactive activity. These interactive efforts can increase awareness not only about your fundraising initiative, but also your nonprofit.
Get proven results. Track and measure every click, interaction and conversion. Microsites are a great tool to measure how well your campaign or fundraising efforts are doing. With tracking tools such as Google Analytics, you can dive deep into the demographics, geographics and behaviors of each visitor that lands on your microsite and track if your goals and objectives are being met.
Microsites provide nonprofits with the tools they need to increase donor engagement, raise the group’s profile with potential donors and provide another opportunity for community members to learn more about its mission. The next time you are planning a fundraising event or launching a campaign, consider using a microsite to amplify your mission.