If you are responsible for promoting your nonprofit on Facebook, you crave likes and follows. You want your status to go viral so you can connect with a broader audience. But how do you do that? What should you post?
It can help to consider the types of content that garner a lot of shares and likes. I trolled through my own recent Facebook feed and found 6 types of posts that are getting a lot of attention. They are: educational, nostalgic, inspirational, cute, shocking and (not shockingly) funny.
Educational
This post shares information that is easily digested and repeatable. The image of the little child tugs at the heartstrings. Specifically asking people to share is perfect; don’t just hope that people will connect with your content and feel compelled to share. Make a very direct ask.
Nostalgic
This image is sweet. And Facebook is full of people who are keeping up with “friends” they haven’t seen in ages but still want to feel connected to. The comments were full of people tagging friends and posting pictures of themselves with friends who fit this description.
Share historical facts and images associated with your organization or its mission. Ask people to comment or share if they “remember when”.
Have an annual event? Share memorable photos from past events and ask people to share their photos and memories. It’s a perfect way to generate buzz as the event approaches. Don’t forget to include a link to your event registration page.
Inspirational
It takes only a few minutes to find a background and drop some text on top of it. And people love to share words of inspiration. Be sure to include your organization’s name or the url for your website in association with the quote.
Cute
34,126,115 views
This video is particularly cute and unique, but pictures and videos of cute anything are shared widely. If you’ve got the “cute” then flaunt it! Have more than one cute picture or video? Post them on your website and invite people to click through to your webpage for more cuteness. Encourage them to sign up for your newsletter for a weekly dose of cute. Really, people can’t get enough of it.
Shocking
Whether it’s unlikely celebrity mugshots or videos of natural disasters, people love to be shocked. Do you have alarming statistics you can share? Trends that people might find surprising? Shocking images or video? Post it.
Funny
Posts that are funny and relatable are Facebook gold. Humor may not be appropriate for every organization, but if you can find an appropriate way to spread hilarity, do it!
Challenge:
Take 5 of these “types” of shareable Facebook content and see if you can create one status of each type next week. If you do it, post a link to your Facebook page in the comments and I will add to your comments and shares.