Developing successful nonprofit email marketing campaigns

As a nonprofit, you have unique goals compared to traditional businesses. You also have a wide range of constituents that require different types of messages and styles. 

That’s why email marketing is such a great tool for nonprofits. Whether you’re raising funds, recruiting volunteers or spreading awareness, email marketing is flexible and helps you communicate with your constituents in a cost-effective and personalized way. 

Email is also one tool most people use regularly and remains one of the most popular and most successful tools to communicate with large groups of people. The key to long-term successful email marketing is to align your efforts with your overall marketing strategy. That’s sometimes easier said than done. 

Choose your type of marketing email 

Many nonprofit email marketing strategies consist of sending a monthly newsletter and occasionally a fundraising ask. If that sounds like your nonprofit, you are missing opportunities to stay in front of those who need and care about your organization. 

So, it you’re looking for new ways to connect via email, here are some great email campaign ideas to stay connected with your constituents in a meaningful way. 

Advocacy emails

• Purpose: Encourage subscribers to act on a specific cause or issue.
• Content: Petitions, letters to legislators or calls to attend rallies or public meetings.

Awareness emails

• Purpose: Educate about your cause, build a network of advocates, strengthen relationships.  
• Content: Updates on new programs/services, local/regional/national information that is relevant to what you do, updates from executive director.

Crisis emails

• Purpose: Mobilize immediate support during crises or emergencies.
• Content: Urgent calls to action, updates on emergency response efforts and ways supporters can help.

Event emails

• Purpose: Promote fundraisers, galas, webinars or community outreach programs.
• Content: Save-the-date, event details, registration links, benefits of attending, event reminders, sponsor recruitment, ticket sale push and post-event thank you emails. 

Feedback emails

• Purpose: Collect feedback, gather input and insights from your audience.
• Content: Ask for opinions on programs, service and events. Use surveys, polls or requests for reviews/testimonials.

Fundraising emails

• Purpose: Encourage one-time or recurring donations.
• Content:  Year-end giving appeals, Giving Tuesday campaigns, holiday-specific/seasonal-specific messages.

Membership emails

• Purpose: Promote or sustain membership programs.
• Content: Explain the benefits of becoming a member, renewal reminders or exclusive offers for members.

Program emails

• Purpose: Announce and promote new programs or services. Or highlight a specific program.
• Content: Features/benefits, sign-up or registration information, special launch offers or get involved content.

Recruitment emails

• Purpose: Attract new volunteers or re-engage past ones.
• Content: Highlight volunteer opportunities, share stories of current volunteers and emphasize the impact they make.

Re-engagement emails

• Purpose: Reconnect with donors who haven't contributed recently.
• Content: Reminders of gift impact, updates on new initiatives and tailored asks.

Stewardship emails

• Purpose: Show donors and supporters the outcomes of their contributions.
• Content: Personalized thank you messages, progress reports, impact metrics, testimonials and stories from beneficiaries. 

Welcome emails

• Purpose: Introduce new subscribers, donors or program participants to your organization.
• Content: Share your mission, impact stories, volunteer opportunities, resources and ways to stay engaged.
  
  

Adopt a campaign mindset

• Pre-launch emails: Build excitement and anticipation.
• Launch email: Clearly explain your campaign’s purpose and how recipients can help.
• Follow-up emails: Provide updates and highlight progress toward goals.
• Thank-you emails: Show gratitude and emphasize impact once donations are made.

By thinking of email as part of a larger campaign, you can maintain consistent messaging, stay top-of-mind and improve overall engagement rates.

Set your email campaign up for success

When it comes to email marketing for nonprofits, planning and organization are crucial. Here are some best practices to keep in mind:

Authenticate your email domain

Yahoo and Google announced changes to their email platforms to reduce spam and phishing emails. These changes took effect in February 2024 and require additional email authentication for your sending email domain. Organizations with large, unauthenticated email lists are most at risk for going to email jail for non-compliance. Your email marketing tool won’t do this for you automatically. [Learn more about this change.]

Plan ahead

Develop a 90-day content calendar that includes email topics, timing and relevant links or calls-to-action (CTAs). A centralized content calendar ensures your email marketing is consistent and coordinated with other digital channels.

Segment your lists

Segmenting lets you tailor your messages to specific audiences, making the content more relevant. Create separate lists for past donors, event attendees, volunteers, etc.

Clean your email list

Ongoing list hygiene is essential to optimal email deliverability. Use tools like Kickbox to clean your list at least once a year to ensure you’re reaching engaged users. Keeping your list healthy also helps you stay compliant with email platforms like Google and Yahoo, which penalize spammy practices.

Create engaging landing pages:

Every email campaign should lead to a dedicated landing page that supports the campaign’s goal. Make sure your landing page is clear, focused and easy to navigate, whether it’s collecting donations, signing up volunteers or promoting an event.

Repurpose content

Reuse content across different campaigns and platforms. Repurposing saves time AND reinforces your key messages to audiences who may have missed them the first time.

Test and optimize

A/B testing subject lines, calls-to-action and design elements can help improve open and click-through rates. Be sure to analyze your email performance regularly and adjust your strategies accordingly.

Make it easy to opt-out

None of us like to see someone unsubscribe, but it happens. The FCC has some new rules about making an unsubscribe option easy to find in your email. 

Use creative and relevant content

Email marketing content should be concise, clear and visually appealing. Avoid industry jargon and keep your messaging accessible to a wide audience, especially those who may be less familiar with your organization’s mission.

• Graphics: Use well-designed, mobile-optimized graphics that complement your text. Make sure all visuals are sized appropriately and tested across devices.
• Copy: Keep your writing brief and focused, with a clear call to action. Emails should quickly communicate why the recipient should care and be relevant to the subject line.
• Subject lines: Speaking of subject lines, make them short, engaging and motivating so people open your email. Use tools like subjectline.com to test your subject lines.
• Friendly from addresses: You can use the same email sending address, but make your email look like it comes from someone else. Mix up the friendly from addresses. [Learn more about friendly from!]

Make email marketing work for you

Email marketing can help you reach more people, raise more money and develop deeper relationships with your constituents. By following these best practices, using thoughtful planning and integrating your email efforts into a larger marketing strategy, your nonprofit can build campaigns that truly connect and convert.

Ready to take your email marketing to the next level? Start planning your next campaign today!