One of the best parts of working at NationBuilder is helping our Network customers grow their communities. The associations, non-profits, political parties with big, scary, audacious goals that know they need a movement of people to help them get there. Organizing humans is not easy, but with a bold vision, help from technology, and a little patience, it’s not only possible it’s incredibly rewarding. 

Lately, I’ve been feeling inspired by some of our customers that are moving towards the network model and it makes me want to see more movement building. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again - growing your network is about being stronger together, increasing visibility with brand continuity, and empowering better decision making by sharing data in real time. So, without further ado, here’s my top 9 tips to help you build and support your network. Happy nation building!

Over the last couple of months, we’ve highlighted planning and executing your #GivingTuesday campaign. The action doesn’t stop when the day-of-giving is over, rather, this is when the final phase of engagement begins - the follow up. Following up is just as important as the work leading up to the big day. So, what’s next? Take full advantage of #GivingTuesday as a springboard into building deeper, longer-lasting relationships with your donors.

You’ve heard the old adage rising tides float all boats? The core concept of this still rings true - working together to advance your cause benefits all involved. It’s why political candidates that run with a party generally do better than those that run with as independents and it’s why parties work hard to recruit star candidates - the association with the party or the name recognition of the star candidate means leveraging each other’s networks in addition to one’s own. This helps increase donations, build credibility and boost campaign awareness. Nonprofits can apply this concept to their work through partnerships.

Leveraging your network is like picking the low hanging fruit. You can climb the tree and search for new fruit near the top, but you’re missing all the ripe and ready fruit on your way up.

Leveraging your network doesn’t just mean asking for things when you need it or boosting your message through your community. Your network is a give and take relationship. When engaging your network for this purpose, communicate personally in a way that reflects your relationships and think of ways you can offer something.

You’ve checked all the boxes to set your nonprofit up for success - you’ve set up multiple ways for supporters to engage with you, you’ve targeted your list to send personal communications. So where are your supporters? You did all the things you’re supposed to do, why aren’t supporters signing up in droves?

Before joining the team at NationBuilder, I was a NationBuilder customer as the Director of Operations for a political party in Canada. I wore many hats during my time with the party, and one of them was coordinating (read: shepherding) local campaigns. As a smaller party, continuity among candidates was a big challenge. Because we didn’t have a tonne of resources at our disposal at HQ and we did have fiercely independent candidates, the candidates and their teams would often build their own websites, make their own signs, and design their own materials. This lack of unity made establishing ourselves as a credible brand very difficult.