As a nonprofit we are very careful how we spend our money. Our donors work hard and are so kind to share what they have in order to keep our mission alive. We wasn’t to be respectful of that. But we are also held to the same standards as for profit companies. So, here are a few ways that we have found to keep our mission going strong on a budget.
Canva
This online program is so great for helping us make flyers, invitations, artwork, and social media posts. Best of all it’s free to use. There are options you can pay for but, of course, that’s totally optional. It’s so easy to upload your logo and customize posts. It’s also user friendly.
Mail Chimp
This is a way we can send emails out to all those who have opted to join our mailing list. It links seamlessly to our website so we don’t have to keep track of who is signing up. The templets are also easy to use and customizable. Best of all it’s also free.
Wix
This one may not be free but it has been wonderful to manage our website in house for a fraction of the typical web design and management costs. We love how easy it is to use. It’s also great that we can update things very quickly. It’s also a secure website meaning it’s safe to visit. We want to keep our supporters safe. (You can tell by looking at the pad lock symbol next to our web address.) If you’re looking for a platform, you can use wix for free as long as you don’t mind keeping “Wix” on the website and in the web address. We opted to make our website all our own.
Tech Soup
This is a company that networks with lots of tech companies in order to provided majorly discounted services to nonprofits like ours. We have gotten Microsoft Office and our web security features this way.
Google Analytics
This is a great add on to our website that is free to use. It keeps track of how many people visit our site each month and how they found us. This lets us know if we’re doing our jobs well and getting our name and mission in the public eye.
Social Media
This might seem simple enough but there is a lot of power in social media these days. We boost the most important post and ask for our friends to share the rest. We want to be transparent in all we do. We want our supporters to see the impact they are making every day. And we want our parents to know that their CAMPers are in a loving and happy place.
Newspaper
When something big is happening we also try to include an article in the newspaper. Not everyone is on social media and we don’t want anyone to feel left out. Some papers might do this for free like ours does but other papers might have a discounted fee. Just ask.
Class Dojo
This is a wonderful app that we encourage all of our CAMP parents to use. We’re able to share notes home, calendars, student updates, schedule changes (like bad weather days), and more. It’s free to sign up and password protected.
Donations
We have been so fortunate to have wonderful friends and partners who have helped us advertise on the radio, TV, billboards, magazines, even clothing. They have really helped us to shine and we are humbled by their sweet giving natures.
Thanks for taking time to learn a little more about what we do. We are always striving to do better than the previous day. If there is a program you like that's not listed here let us know in the comments.