Kenyans are among the highest social media users on the continent which makes a good argument for why your organisation requires social media presence.
While Facebook and Twitter are great for raising awareness, the likes and follows don’t necessarily translate into funds.
And that’s why you need a website.
- A website establishes your existence and location to potential donors and stakeholders. It tells them what you do, why you do it and how you do it.
- It allows you to share your dreams and goals and contact information to an unlimited audience of potential helpers and donors.
- It serves as a vast online billboard for your programmes and achievements
Unfortunately, for small non-profits grappling with funding constraints, inadequate technical know-how, limited staffing and a heavy workload, a website is often low on the list of priorities. But setting up an online presence doesn’t have to be difficult or too expensive.
Getting started:
You will need a domain (your unique address on the internet) and a host for your site. A website needs to be hosted on a dedicated web server in order to make it available on the internet.
Run a Google search and you’ll find there are several Kenyan companies that offer domain registration. Most companies will provide hosting services along with the domain. Hosting prices vary, starting from Ksh. 2,750 per year. Note: domain registration is an annual fee. Buying the two together often works out cheaper but be sure to read and understand the fine print in your agreement. There are free hosting services but these usually have a catch. You may, for example, have to run advertising for your host or have to deal with slower, less reliable service.
As a non-profit organization, .org would be the obvious choice for your website suffix. If you’re based in Kenya .or.ke would reflect your physical address. Once you’ve decided on the domain name (it’s generally a good idea to have the same name as your organisation), the next step is building your website.
You don’t have to hire an expensive programmers and designers to build and design your website. There are lots of free website templates available online. WordPress is free and easy to set up and is an excellent place to start building your site.
Now that you have a website, you need traffic. To publicize your site: 1) create a launch plan to blast out the news to all your stakeholders and partners. 2) Make sure the url (website address) is on all your communications materials. 3) Make sure also that your website is connected to (and is being promoted on) your social media accounts. Keep in mind that a sizable web audience isn’t built overnight. However, by offering useful, entertaining content you can help drive a constant flow of traffic to your website.
Remember before you launch your website:
- Make sure your website is mobile-optimized so it can be read on phones, tablets and other mobile devices.
- Set-up all your social media profiles
- Proof-read everything once, twice, three times
- Make sure all the links work
- Ensure the content on your site can be picked up by search engines
- Have enough content to hold a visitor
- Ensure your brand identity shines through and through
Have I missed anything important? Let me know in the comments section.
Promote Your Cause! 