When it comes to social media networking, one channel that nonprofits in particular often overlook is also among the most important: LinkedIn. It's more than just a social networking site that comes with its own built-in "professional" reputation. It's also a direct link to exactly the type of person that you're looking for, provided you know how to tailor your marketing strategy to play to what these people are looking for, to begin with.

Post a Mixture of Content at the Right Time

For a nonprofit, increasing engagement with what you post on social media is a top priority. Engagement leads to more interactions, which raises awareness about the causes you represent, which will ultimately lead to increased donations as well.

According to one recent study, nonprofit pages that post on a daily basis get twice the member engagement as compared to those that do not. Likewise, it has been said that the best times to post are between 9:00 am and 5:00 pm on weekdays.

So not only should you be posting content to your nonprofit LinkedIn page during this period, but you should also mix up what you post. Don't just share blog articles - also include videos, links to podcasts that you think your audience might find insightful, and more. This helps prevent your page from feeling "stale," which can help entice people to check regularly to see what else they might find.

Use LinkedIn to Bring People Into Your Nonprofit's Story

The experts at LinkedIn themselves agree that your page should not just be an opportunity to talk about your mission and why it matters, but also to touch on how other people can help. They cite what the American Red Cross is doing with its "About" section on LinkedIn as an example.

Overall, the Red Cross offers a detailed overview of not just the organization in general, but what individual contributions mean to further the mission. That extends to donors, volunteers, supporters, and more. The page regularly uses words like "you" in its writing to establish a direct connection between the cause and the reader. This makes someone feel like they're already a part of something profound, which entices them to want to learn how to do more. It also makes it easy for people to get involved, offering links to donate, find events in their area that they can participate in, and more.

Claim a Page For Your Nonprofit If It Already Exists

When you first begin to use LinkedIn for your nonprofit, you should conduct a search to see if a page for your organization already exists. Although it is rare, it's possible that LinkedIn itself may have automatically generated a (currently unclaimed) page for your nonprofit.

This auto-generated page likely doesn't accurately reflect what you're trying to do and why it matters, so allowing it to co-exist with your own efforts will only cause confusion down the road. Claim any pre-existing pages and set up your own so that yours is a single voice of truth regarding the causes that you are dedicated to.

Prioritize LinkedIn as Part of Your Larger Social Media Strategy

One of the most important things to remember as a nonprofit is that your LinkedIn page cannot exist in a vacuum. It needs to feed into - and be fed from - all of your larger social media activities.

When you post on Facebook, don't just use it as an opportunity to link to your website - also link to your LinkedIn page. When you include buttons so that people can follow you via social media on your website, make sure that LinkedIn is prominently placed. In your profile on a site like Twitter, make sure that people know how to easily become a member of your network on LinkedIn. For a nonprofit, it's paramount that all of these efforts feed into one another so that they can become something far more valuable together than any one of them could be on their own. LinkedIn, thanks to its professional nature, can and should be an integral part of that.