Your nonprofit’s website is one of your most valuable tools for sharing your mission and engaging your community. It’s often the first place people go to learn about your cause, sign up to help, or make a donation.
But having an engaging website isn’t enough. For it to make an impact, people need to find and use it. Increasing site traffic helps more people learn what you do, support your work, and spread the word.
If your website is easy to find and full of helpful content, you can build stronger relationships and encourage action. Think of it this way: more traffic means more opportunities to educate and inspire people. Let’s explore practical ways to attract more visitors to your nonprofit’s website.
Optimize Your Site for Search Engines.
Search engine optimization (SEO)—the process of improving your site so it ranks higher in search engine results—is foundational to nonprofit website marketing. An optimized site helps potential supporters find your organization when they search for topics related to your mission.
For instance, let’s say someone searches Google for “animal rescue organizations near me” or “how to support youth education in Chicago.” If your site’s content is optimized for those terms, your website is more likely to appear in the results.
Cornershop Creative’s guide to SEO for nonprofits dives into several elements search engines consider, such as:
Content Quality
- Keywords: Research specific, relevant words or phrases that your supporters might search for with a tool like Moz or Google Keyword Planner. Then, use them naturally in your content.
- Helpfulness: Keep content accurate, helpful, and updated. Well-written, informative content earns trust from readers and search engines.
- Page structure: Use proper heading levels (H1, H2, H3) ordered in logical heading hierarchies to organize content.
- Meta titles and descriptions: Write strong title tags and meta descriptions to improve click-through rates.
Technical SEO
- Site speed: Improve loading times to reduce bounce rates and increase rankings.
- Mobile-friendliness: Ensure your site works well on smartphones and tablets by using responsive design layouts.
- Security: Use HTTPS encryption to protect visitor data and boost search engine trust.
- Crawlability: Fix broken links and use tools like sitemaps to help search engines navigate your site.
Authority Building
- Internal linking: Link to other pages on your site to guide users and connect relevant content.
- Backlinking: Encourage reputable external sites to link to your content. Common sources include local news outlets, partner organizations, community blogs, and nonprofit directories.
Even small updates to your site’s content or structure can lead to more supporters finding your cause. To get started, choose one of the SEO elements above, such as optimizing your page titles or improving site speed. Each step you take builds a stronger foundation for long-term visibility.
Amplify Your Site with the Google Ad Grant.
The Google Ad Grant gives eligible nonprofits up to $10,000 per month in free Google Ads. These ads appear above organic results on Google Search and direct people to key pages on your website.
To make the most of your ad budget, choose what page you want to amplify. For example, you might boost your donation form, an educational blog post, or a volunteer program page. Then, research keywords related to that page. Write clear ad copy with a call-to-action that matches what people are searching for, and make it clear where they’ll be directed if they click your ad.
Since a Google Ad provides limited character space, use ad assets to expand your listings. These are optional features that allow you to provide additional information beyond the standard headline and description. For example, you might use sitelinks to highlight different pages on your site, callout extensions to add supporting details, or structured snippets to showcase specific aspects of your programs or services.
Determining Your Google Ad Grant Eligibility
Google’s team wants to ensure that the content it amplifies is helpful and reliable, so joining the program means you need to meet a few requirements. You must:
- Have current and valid charity status (e.g., 501(c)(3) status for U.S. nonprofits).
- Be registered with Google for Nonprofits.
- Comply with the Google Ad Grant program policies, such as using donations responsibly and not exercising any discriminatory hiring or service practices.
- Maintain a high-quality website with valuable, mission-related content and a secure sockets layer (SSL) certificate.
Governmental organizations, hospitals, healthcare organizations, and schools are automatically ineligible. However, there is a separate program for schools called Google for Education.
List Your Organization in Online Directories.
Being visible in trusted nonprofit directories can improve both your credibility and visibility. Donors, volunteers, and corporate sponsors will use platforms like GuideStar and Charity Navigator to research nonprofits before committing to supporting them.
Look up your charity on these platforms and claim your profiles. Keep them updated with accurate information, such as your financials and recent program outcomes. Use consistent branding and mission language across platforms to reinforce your identity. Don’t forget to link directly to your website to drive traffic.
These directories are also highly trusted, and including a link on your profiles can improve your domain authority and support your SEO efforts.
Expand Your Reach With Social Media.
Social platforms are a natural channel for distributing your website content and reaching supporters. With smart use of social media, you can connect with current supporters’ networks of friends and family members who likely share similar values. That makes it a great source for attracting donors and volunteers.
Rather than posting randomly, think about how each post can invite people to take action or learn more. Aim to share content that aligns with your mission and links to your website. For example, you might try these strategies:
- Share blog posts, event announcements, or timely updates that link to high-value pages on your site—like a donation form or your volunteer page. Better Impact’s volunteer recruitment guide recommends sharing behind-the-scenes videos and supporter spotlights to strengthen engagement. Then, you can link to a specific page to drive action.
- Use strong visuals and simple graphics to catch attention in busy feeds. For instance, you might pair a powerful photo from a recent community event with a quote from an attendee and a link to a related blog post on your site.
- Interact with your followers. You might prompt conversations by asking questions or posting polls. You can also respond to comments and like or share supporters’ posts about your organization.
When done consistently, this kind of posting builds familiarity and trust. Try creating a simple weekly calendar—like sharing a blog post every Tuesday, spotlighting a donor story on Thursdays, and resharing event photos each weekend. Repetition and relevance will turn passive scrollers into active supporters.
Stay in Touch With Emails.
Your subscriber list gives you a direct line to current supporters. That makes nonprofit emails one of the most effective ways to drive traffic to your website. Whether it’s a newsletter or campaign-specific message, emails can guide recipients back to your site to learn, donate, or get involved in another way.
Make the most of your nonprofit’s emails by:
- Personalizing subject lines. You might use merge tags, which are placeholders that your email marketing platform will automatically fill with the recipient’s name, donation history, or something else. Campaign Monitor found that emails with personalized subject lines have a 26% higher open rate than those without them.
- Delivering tailored content. Consider segmenting your audience into groups to send relevant appeals. For example, you might create segments for volunteers, recurring donors, major donors, corporate sponsors, and so on, and send relevant engagement opportunities. That same study found that segmented campaigns have a 760% increase in revenue.
- Linking directly to key pages. Include clear calls to action that drive readers to your highest-value pages. You might spotlight a current fundraising campaign, volunteer opportunity, or upcoming event and link to that initiative’s page. This helps convert interest into action.
Email marketing platforms make it easy to design, schedule, and measure your emails. Pay attention to metrics like your open and click-through rates to determine what messaging and timing drive the most traffic to your site.
Wrapping Up
A powerful website is only effective if people see it. Improving discoverability ultimately creates more opportunities for people to engage with your mission. Start with one or two strategies that align with your goals, track what works, and build from there. Remember, growth comes from consistent, mission-driven marketing.
About the Author
De’Yonté Wilkinson
De’Yonté’s a late-80s baby who found his passion for web design and development during MySpace’s heyday, when he helped his friends create awesome profiles. He’s spent the last three years specializing in WordPress and conversion optimization, and is an active proponent of coding guidelines. In his off time he enjoys cooking, Rugby, and hanging out with his wife.
