What is GreatNonprofits.org and how can it help your nonprofit improve its brand and raise more funding? In short, GreatNonprofits is a charity “watchdog” that uses testimonials from volunteers, community members, board members, or others that interact with your nonprofit to “rate” your organization. The idea is to provide a platform for nonprofits to showcase testimonials (and use them for branding, fundraising, and communications). It is subsequently transforming the way potential donors pick charities to support.
GreatNonprofits Statistics Your Nonprofit Needs to Know
On their website, along with testimonial reviews of the site’s impact from philanthropy superstars like Bill Gates, GreatNonprofits claims the following:
- 72 percent of donors say a “Top Rated Badge” increases their likelihood of giving.
- 80 percent of donors are influenced by reviews and testimonials.
- More than 3 million people visit the site annually.
- The network has more than 200,000 nonprofits registered.
If we look at North American sales statistics, we can easily believe that peer reviews and online social reviews have weight in donation-making. Brightlocal found in 2014 that 88 percent of consumers read online reviews to determine which local business to use. That means that nearly everyone seeks and reads testimonials when deciding where to put their money. And those testimonials influence their spending decisions.
What is the Top-Rated Badge and How Does Your Nonprofit Qualify?
GreatNonprofits advertise that people trust the badge more than any other nonprofit charity seal on the market. In fact, an external survey showed that it was second only to the Better Business Bureau! It is easy to get one as well. It just requires you:
- Register your organization. It is possible a volunteer or reviewer already nominated you and you just have to claim your cause.
- Get 10 ratings of 4-5 stars, via social media or SMS.
- Complete the process between January and October.
If you collect those testimonials and maintain a 3.5 star average, you can post a Top-Rated Badge on your website and marketing materials. Detailed directions and suggested emails, texts, and social media messages to invite friends to give testimonials are found here.
Also read: 9 Ways To Use Nonprofit Watchdogs To Up Your Game
Other Features of GreatNonprofits
Registered nonprofits can take advantage of other useful tools once they have an established profile.
- Through a partnership with JustGive.org, acquired by JustGiving.com, you can post a “give now” button on your profile page. Your reviews and related testimonials link to those programs as well.
- Networked with Guidestar so that when donors visit your page there, they automatically see your reviews.
- They have resources to encourage video testimonials to help you better share your story.
In sum, GreatNonprofits is a quickly growing resource to take charity watchdogging into the modern era. Your success depends on your real-time impact from the mouths and fingers of those you serve. Financials and executive salaries, at the end of the day, do not mean much when a charity has hundreds of 5-star reviews from real people that they have impacted! It is a free database to collect and store your stories. Plus it is easy to use, and doing so can only help you spread your social media marketing to a broader audience.