Emojis Can Boost Your Nonprofit’s Fundraising & Marketing Efforts

in Donors / Nonprofits

Smartphones are dramatically changing how we function as a society. From communicating with one another to paying bills to getting the latest news — the mobile web is dominating our lives like never before.

For those working in the nonprofit sector, it’s almost impacting the very way people give, too. No longer is it enough to blast an email to create a blog or social media post to catch the eyes of potential donors.

In today’s tech-savvy world, organizations must now get creative and “up their marketing game” even more to cater to mobile users. Words and photos are no longer enough to promote their cause — especially when competition is fierce among fellow nonprofits. That’s where emojis — small characters used to express emotions digitally — can help in a big way.

What is an Emoji?

Nowadays, emojis are king. They have the power to showcase an organization’s personality as well as an artistic and humorous side in an entirely new way. In other words, they can help nonprofits stand out. Rather than words, brands, and major influences use them to strategically convey a message, product, or cause to their followers.

Only within the last year or two have emojis gone well beyond just the smiley faces and hearts commonly used by teens. The use of the emoji is now one of many marketing tactics deployed by major brands.

In fact, they are so pervasive that social media platforms like Facebook, Snapchat, and Twitter continue to evolve in order to support emoji characters and monetize custom emoji advertising campaigns.

Brands That Are Using Emojis

Below are just a few organizations who’ve managed to incorporate emojis into their marketing and branding efforts successfully:

  1. World Wildlife Fund (WWF): Last year, the non-profit ran a fundraising campaign based around 17 animal emojis. Each digital creature represented a real endangered species. For example, the emoji turtle represents the green turtle species threatened by the illegal trade of their meat, shells, and eggs.
  2. South Carolina Highway Patrol: In 2016, troopers with this agency are using emojis well beyond their social media campaigns. They’re using them on billboards, too. Recently, their clever use of emojis landed SCHP on NBC’s Today Show, Fox News, and dozens of local news reports. S.C. Troopers attribute their clever use of these digital images to being able to help them save more lives on the roadways.
  3. BRIS: BRIS, a Swedish nonprofit children’s rights organization that offers helpline services for children in need, has developed Abused Emoji, an app intended to help young people communicate their emotions, experiences, and struggles using variations on popular emoji.

Tips for Creating Successful Emoji Campaigns

There’s no better time than now to start incorporating emojis into your marketing and fundraising campaigns. It’ll give your organization the upper hand over other non-profits who have yet to explore them. When using emojis to spread awareness about your organization’s cause, remember to:

  • Make sure your audience will understand them. If you have an “emoji message” in mind, show it to a friend or fellow volunteer after you’ve created it. You want the message to make sense. It probably won’t make sense to potential donors if it doesn’t make sense to them.
  • Appeal to a person’s emotion. When carrying out your organization’s emoji campaign, make use of humor, excitement, or sadness where appropriate. When you appeal to a person’s feelings, your message or cause will resonate with them longer.
  • Use your imagination. There are literally hundreds of emojis available on the mobile web. With a little thinking, devising a clever and successful emoji campaign is possible.

Contact Us

What are your thoughts on emoji marketing? If you’ve used them, we’d love to hear from you and even see some of your examples. We enjoy reading your emails! Feel free to leave a comment below to complete this contact form. We’ll be in touch.

 

Blog post by Alizah T. Epstein 

Alizah is a seasoned, award-winning, creative professional. She founded the Epstein Creative Group — a strategic branding and marketing firm — with the purpose of using design for the greater good. She built a design firm that supports mission-driven organizations that want to improve our community, with a focus on women’s and children’s issues. She complements her creative skills with her analytical skills to create systems and processes that deliver an easy experience to her clients. She is also a speaker and mentor to nonprofits and women entrepreneurs. Through the Epstein Creative Group, Alizah has built a team of passionate, creative professionals who work on strategic branding and marketing projects that secure more donors and build awareness so these organizations can continue their good work. To learn more, visit epsteincreative.com. Design with purpose.