Basic Social Media Planner - How To Do Social Media When You Don’t Do Social Media

Sep 24, 2026

Upload by Cipher

Guide for nonprofit organizations that do not have a dedicated social media team, focusing on how a non-specialist can build an online community without neglecting programs or other priorities. Explains why social media is chosen by defining clear purposes (brand, issues, audience growth, sales, customer service, support, donations, and listening) and how to select a single primary platform using audience age, content type, website goals, time capacity, and where the audience already spends time. Mentions key platforms and what kind of content they fit best.

LanguageEnglish

CategorySocial Media

FormatPDF

Pages11

Reading Time4 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Step 1: Decide why you are doing this

State your purpose

Step 2: Decide what channel you should you focus on

Focus on one platform

Five questions to narrow down the channel

Audience age

Content

Connecting to your website

Basic Social Media Planner How To Do Social Media When You Don’t Do Social Media: Nonprofit Edition A communications template from [entremission. com](entremission. com) Introduction According to recent-ish studies, only half of nonproﬁt organizations have a team of people working on social media. The other half leave it to one person or don’t do social media at all. This guide is for that second half. Responsibility for social media at smaller nonproﬁts often lands on the desk of someone who has other commitments and priorities. Social media is hard to delegate, because you need to have insight into the communications and strategic goals to know how to use social media most effectively. You need to understand the issues and have access to current information to keep your audience informed. Plus you need to have the passion to personal connection to create an emotional charge with your audience. Those are all manager-level qualities. At the same time, it can take an hour to ﬁnd the best hashtags for an Instagram post. Image and video editing require skill and special software. Direct messages and comments from your audience might need prompt response. These are timesensitive, fussy bits that specialists handle better. As a result, social media rarely ﬁnds a comfortable niche in small organizations. This guide is for the people who“do” social media because someone has to do it. They aren’t specialists, and they probably can’t afford to be. We focus on how you can ﬁnd and connect with a community online, without compromising your programs or other commitments. It’s a plan to keep your organization visible and to show that you care about your community, even when your social media presence is modest. We reference the ﬁve most-used social media platforms in Canada and the USA, and nonproﬁt organizations: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok. We don’t count YouTube, because it’s a step too far into the deep end of the social media swimming pool. We won’t cover advertising, either, because that’s a whole other beast. Here’s how you “do” social media, when other things are also calling for your attention. Please enjoy! A communications template from [entremission. com](entremission. com) - - Step 1: Decide why you are doing this State your purpose It’s important to know why you are choosing to spend time on social media in the ﬁrst place. Since you can only focus on one purpose (for now), what will it be? 1. Brand awareness. Make sure people see your brand, recognize it, and feel positively towards it. 2. Issue awareness. Make sure people hear about an issue and understand what they need to do to help. 3. Build an audience. Increase the number of people who follow you and engage with you online, regardless of the topic. 4. Sell products or services. Get people to buy what you’re selling, literally. 5. Provide customer service. Answer people’s questions about your products and services. 6. Support other voices, brands, topics. Cheer on people in your community, amplify other voices, be a good friend or ally to people doing work you respect. 7. Get donations. Give people reasons to give and generate revenue for your work. 8. Listen. Watch what other people are saying to develop an understanding of trends, emotions, and public priorities. Step 2: Decide what channel you should you focus on We say “channel” not “channels” because you should start by focusing on just one social media platform. You’re going to be tempted to be everywhere. Resist. A communications template from [entremission. com](entremission. com) - - For now, focus on ﬁnding the one channel where you get traction, connect with a community, and you can see real impact ﬂowing from the time you’re spending. These 5 questions can help you narrow down which channel to focus on: (a) What age are the people you want to engage? (b) What type of content do you want to share? (c) Is it important for

FAQs

Who is this guide designed for?

It is for people at nonprofit organizations who are “the ones who do” social media because it has to be done, even if they are not specialists.

What are the main purposes social media can serve in this plan?

The guide lists eight purposes: brand awareness, issue awareness, building an audience, selling products or services, providing customer service, supporting other voices and brands, getting donations, and listening to trends and public priorities.

How should you choose which social media platform to focus on first?

Start with one platform and use five questions: the audience age you want to engage, the type of content you want to share, whether people need to end up on your website, how much time you can spend creating posts, and where your audience already hangs out.

Sep 24, 2026

Upload by Cipher