How to Build a Non-Profit Blog Editorial Calendar

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How to Build a Non-Profit Blog Editorial Calendar

A blog is a great tool for non-profits. It gives you control over your own news channel essentially.

Without a blog, you can put out press releases and photos all day long, but if the news outlets don’t pick it up, it feels like the news never happened. If you have your own blog, you can post the press release there, along with photos, links, and more materials, then share all of that on social media, on your website, and in an e-newsletter. But if you’re thinking of starting a blog and don’t have a lot of content, you may wonder how to get started.

A blog editorial calendar will help you with timing, messaging, and management. Here’s how to build one:

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Case Study: Inbound Marketing for the Vermont Foodbank

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Case Study: Inbound Marketing for the Vermont Foodbank

Inbound marketing is a technique for bringing more fans into your non-profit engagement funnel by providing them with a product, service, or piece of content for which they give you their name, contact info, and permission to contact them in return. It’s an underutilized marketing tool in the non-profit world, but can reap major rewards for the creative organization.

This is a blog post about an inbound marketing technique I utilized at a statewide non-profit, which expanded our reach in terms of both numbers and types of supporters as well as type and topic of content on the web. It eventually got us recognition from the national Meatless Monday campaign and was a fun project to work on.

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Recommendation from John Sayles, CEO at Vermont Foodbank

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Recommendation from John Sayles, CEO at Vermont Foodbank

“Michelle was a fabulous contributor to the Vermont Foodbank. She came aboard in a newly-created position of digital media specialist where the tasks and goals were co-created with her team. Michelle was able to quickly learn our mission and culture, and help the Foodbank reflect that in the digital world. She created a vibrant digital presence that interacts with our supporters in a way that is nurturing, mission-oriented and always respectful. She truly brought this organization to a new level in the digital world, and created the base for the organization to continue on a path as a nonprofit innovator in the digital space.

“A short story: I took Michelle with me to a talk by a digital marketing consultant who presented on ways to maximize the value of a website. It was very exciting! The next day Michelle was implementing the tools she learned about and making changes to our website. What resulted was a new way of continual testing and improvement that results in more conversions of website hits to donations. Continuous improvement seems to be in her DNA.

“Michelle is smart, mission-driven, inquisitive and innovative. She is driven and self-motivated. I recommend her highly based on my experience working directly with her, and seeing the results of her work for the Vermont Foodbank.”

John Sayles

CEO

Vermont Foodbank

Learn more about the marketing I do for nonprofits and universities.

Recommendation from John Sayles

Time Blocking: Working to Max Efficiency

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Time Blocking: Working to Max Efficiency

Time blocking is one of my favorite life techniques. I won’t say “life hacks,” because it’s not a hack: it’s just an obvious and careful planning tool.

I first shared a video from Fast Company on time blocking in 2011. I had already been using the technique for at least a year, so this brings me up on 6 years I’ve organized my life this way.

What is Time Blocking?

Time blocking is a way to organize your time, whether for work projects, personal projects, goals or even regular household tasks.

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7 Questions to Ask Before Starting a Blog

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7 Questions to Ask Before Starting a Blog

Many non-profit staffers and small business owners start blogging because they “know” they “need” to do it or because someone suggested it would help their cause. These are innocent nudges in the right direction, often doled out by a board member with marketing experience or a CEO who wants to write or by a consultant who is ready to set you up with a blog, whether it’s right or wrong for your needs.

I’ve personally cautioned more people out of blogging than into blogging because a blog wouldn’t best serve their goals or because they just wouldn’t be able to devote the appropriate time to it. Blogging can be a huge undertaking and first one needs to ask if a blog is right for your cause or your business.

Here are some questions to ask before starting a blog:

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Five Days in Raleigh, North Carolina

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Five Days in Raleigh, North Carolina

Raleigh, North Carolina is a quietly bustling capitol city. On the surface, things are quiet. But once you plug into the scenes Raleigh has to offer (food, beer, coffee/donuts, art, history, politics) you’ll quickly find that a lot is going on.

I recently spent five days in Raleigh, visiting friends while working remotely for two clients. My work kept me at the laptop part-time, but the rest of my days and nights were fun and relaxing.

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Recommendation from Chris Meehan, Chief Community Impact Officer at Vermont Foodbank

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Recommendation from Chris Meehan, Chief Community Impact Officer at Vermont Foodbank

“Over the past three years, I’ve had the pleasure of working with Michelle in her role as digital media specialist for the Vermont Foodbank. From the beginning, Michelle took a keen interest in going above and beyond her official job duties to offer her experience and expertise to the Foodbank’s network of 225 food shelves and meal sites. The majority of food shelves and meal sites are run by volunteers and do not have the capacity to enter into the social media realm. Michelle helped to build their capacity by creating a series of classes that were offered in person and online. This made all the difference for many of these small mission driven organizations. She was always interested in improving the classes offered; each year, she sought feedback and made adjustments to ensure that she was providing the best service possible. I would highly recommend Michelle.”

Chris Meehan

Chief Community Impact Officer

Vermont Foodbank

Learn more about the marketing I do for nonprofits and universities.

Recommendation from Chris Meehan