the costs of blogging for NGOs
Posted on | September 30, 2009 | No Comments
There’s no charge, or very minimal charge, to start and maintain your own blog, but of course, that doesn’t mean that it’s free for a nonprofit to blog. There are significant staff time and opportunity costs to consider. However, I argue that those costs are worth it, not because of any eventual benefit to the bottom line, but because of the chance to achieve the organization’s goals. Let’s be honest: even if you get someone to be a loyal blog reader, the chances of converting that person to a donor, especially a donor of any significance for an NGO’s budget, are extremely slim.
I am particularly focused on non-local advocacy organizations here: organizations for which a large part of the mission is to improve laws and policies, and for which the supporter base is relatively disperse. The opportunity, then, is to reach those people who are going to contact their elected representatives every time you ask them to do so. Even a small group of very dedicated people can show staffers that citizens are paying attention to these issues, and can add pressure to sponsor a bill or take action on an issue. NGOs are public servants for a particular cause, not companies selling products. They are only as good as the service they provide.
Don’t blog because it’s good for the organization: blog because it’s good for the cause.
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