If you're running a nonprofit, you already know that getting donations consistently isn't easy, and there's always more to do than there are people to do it. Digital often ends up as someone's side responsibility, added on top of everything else they're already doing. Or maybe the website was built by an agency or volunteer years ago, and now nobody's quite sure how to update it. The result is a site that doesn't really reflect what you do anymore, social accounts that go quiet for months, and a vague sense that you should be doing more online but no clarity on where to start.
Here's where to focus when you can't do everything.
Priority 1: A clear, simple website
Your website is often someone's first impression. A potential donor, volunteer, or partner Googling you before they decide whether to engage. It doesn't need to be fancy, but it does need to answer three questions clearly: What do you do? Who do you help? How can someone support you? If those aren't obvious within ten seconds, that's your starting point.
What often gets in the way is the opposite of simplicity. Too many fonts fighting for attention. Animations that distract, things rotating on hover, content sliding in and out. No consistent colour scheme, so every highlighted section competes with every other one and nothing stands out. Sliders with text that moves before anyone can read it. Popups that are broken or just annoying. Too many buttons and links on a single page, leaving visitors unsure what they're actually meant to do. Headings used for long sentences, causing text to overlap or break in odd ways.
If a visitor can't figure out your work in plain language within a few seconds, you're losing people who might want to help.
Priority 2: An easy way to donate
If donations matter to your funding, make the donate button impossible to miss. Put it in your header, not buried in a submenu. Then test the process yourself. Is it quick and painless, or does it require fifteen form fields, account creation, and three confirmation pages? Every extra step loses people. If your donation platform is clunky, consider switching to something simpler. The small cost is usually worth the reduced friction.
Priority 3: Email over social media
For most small nonprofits, email is more valuable than social media. You own your email list. You don't own your Instagram followers. The algorithm decides who sees your posts, and that can change overnight. Build the list, send regular updates (even just monthly), and keep people connected to your work. Social media can support this, but it shouldn't be your only channel.
Something worth thinking about
More people are finding organisations through AI tools now. Asking ChatGPT or Claude for recommendations rather than searching Google. If your website is clear, well-structured, and explains what you do in plain language, you're already doing most of what's needed for both humans and AI to understand you. The same things that help a visitor quickly grasp your work, clear headings, straightforward descriptions, no jargon, also help AI tools surface you when someone asks "which nonprofits help with X in my area."
You don't need a big budget to have a solid digital presence. You need clarity about what matters most and the discipline to ignore the rest, at least for now. Start with a website that actually explains your work, make it easy to donate, and build an email list. Everything else is a bonus.
