• Word of mouth networking and marketing are crucial when serving a rural area where internet access may be more limited. Do outreach where people are, such as grocery stores and pharmacies. Build connections with local communities of faith and other community organizations so they can introduce you to other potential clients, volunteers, and partners.
  • Build relationships with local media outlets, like newspapers, TV and radio stations. If your organization or program has an advisory board or community partner group established, invite them to take part. They can assist in raising awareness about your program, events and volunteer opportunities.
  • When recruiting volunteers and participants, consider marketing and outreach campaigns in newspapers and publications that have significant readership among your target populations.
  • Google Ad Grants is an opportunity for consideration to market your organization and programs. Google Ad Grants offer eligible nonprofits $10,000 each month to spend on Google search ads. The goal of these ads is to increase the number of targeted visitors to your website every year. You can utilize Google’s Keyword Research Tool to identify the keywords that would most effectively connect community members to your organization through a google search. You can also use Google Analytics to monitor total website traffic and topic pages.
  • Marketing to rural areas may require very different methods than marketing to urban or suburban areas. Consider contacting the Chamber of Commerce and the Visitor’s Center of the area you plan to serve to find out how community members receive information. Once you determine the most frequently used source of information, you can focus your attention there.
  • In some areas, phone calls directly to potential program participants, family caregivers and volunteers generate more connections and provide more feedback. This often takes more time yet can garner better results. Knowing how your community members communicate most effectively will be helpful to determine if this is a good approach for you.
  • Meet with program participants, caregivers and volunteers and find out what attracted them to your organization. Use that information when marketing for new participants and volunteers.
  • Participating in national trainings, webinars, and conference presentations bring awareness to what your organization is doing outside of your area.
  • Be sure to include marketing in your overall budget. This will help cover the costs of developing and printing materials, postage, ads and other methods you choose to implement.
  • At times, program participants associate receiving assistance as a detriment to their independence. Other times, a family member or caregiver may initiate participation in the volunteer program, but the program participant is not interested in participating. To navigate this, make a practice out of promoting the fact that your volunteer assistance serves to increase the participant’s and family caregiver’s independence and ability to safely stay in their homes.
  • Tips for Marketing to Local News Media