A powerful factor affecting communities across the world is the work of non-profit organizations. The services they provide can be a vital source of support in their communities. However, most non-profit professionals will tell you that one of the largest struggles is getting their message in front of people willing to support services with actual money. In this week’s Psychographic Targeting Hot House, aimClear Social Account Manager Chris Davis shows how non-profits can combine location, income, and interest targeting to get their message in front of the right people and increase the donation base.

For our use case this week, we’ll be looking at how the Human Development Center (HDC), a local mental health non-profit, can advertise to potential donors in the community for its annual fundraising gala.

Local Community: First Area of Focus

The starting point for any community-based non-profit looking to advertise is to start with people who live in the area served by the non-profit. We’ve noticed donors are more likely to support causes that affect them and their community directly.

Via Facebook geo-location, target people who live within a reasonable distance to your office or within the communities you service. If the company only serves a small neighborhood or area of a city or region, take advantage of Facebook’s zip code, address or pin-drop targeting — and then set your desired radius.

For the HDC, a Duluth, Minn.-based organization that serves the surrounding communities (including those in Wisconsin), we’ve selected a healthy radius of 25 miles around the city of the non-profit.

Discover Disposable Income

A second challenge for non-profits looking for potential donors is finding people in their area that have enough disposable income to support services. When it comes to donations, it’s not enough just to target users who may be passionate about the HDC or mental health, as they may not be in a position to donate, even if they wanted to.

Fortunately, Facebook’s income targeting makes it a breeze to focus your audience to those who do in fact earn a significant income based on the community. In the case of Duluth and the HDC, we will target only those who have an income of over $100,000. But take note marketers: Align this targeting with average or above average income levels for your own community. Targeting income of $100K in Duluth may be sufficient, but if you’re targeting for a non-profit in San Francisco or New York City, you’ll likely need to reach higher incomes.

Other worthy indicators of wealth or disposable income are net worth and liquid assets, especially for gala dinners hosting silent auctions for big-ticket items!

Another way of tapping into income is to add the life event of a “new job” in your targeting. Many people look to give back or a support a cause when they land a new job that allows them to make more money. Perhaps they have always wanted to give, but didn’t have the financial means to support a non-profit in the past,. If they are looking for a non-profit to support, we would like it to be ours!

Bleeding Heart Behaviors

Finally, just because someone has the income to donate doesn’t mean they  actually want to or will. The challenge for non-profits is to locate those people who not only have the ability to contribute, but also those who have the desire.

Facebook targeting has pinpointed users who have either self-disclosed they are donors and/or modeled after offline behavior. The variety of charitable causes donated to by categories ranges from the environment to veterans, politics and beyond. For the HDC, we’ll use charitable behavior based around heath-related issues.

Heartstring-Tugging Interests

Don’t see your non-profit type listed in Facebook’s charitable donor categories? No worries, you fund-raising phenom!

Select interests and national associations that directly relate to or impact your non-profit to capture uber-focused donors with creative that tugs at their interest-revealed heartstrings.

Utilizing one of these targeting methods is a great way for non-profits to get in front of potential donors who live in their area. Utilizing the targeting parameters together is a winning tactic to dominate donations this year to do more good.

Happy targeting!