Empathize With Your Audience

In order to create great content, you need to think beyond the bubble of your own organization and empathize with what your intended audience genuinely wants to see, read or hear.

And this brings us to the last piece: Why would an outside person want to engage with the content in the first place? How do you want them to feel, or what do you want them to learn? Lastly, what action would you like them to take next? These questions are central to creating captivating and relevant content at your association. You know your association better than anyone else, and you should also assume that, at least at a baseline, you care more about your mission than any outsider — at least for now.

So, if the point of creating the content is to attract new supporters, you need to make them care about the work you do. Be sure to clearly illustrate the problem you are solving — facts and figures, along with before and after pictures, can help with this. You want your audience to view you as a trusted source for education and information on the issues that are important to them. In the association world, content is in many cases meant to educate and inform your audience, so it's key that you dutifully take on that responsibility by providing accurate and accessible information.

Also, be sure to provide the necessary context to the work you are doing. Think about what is the most important information a total stranger would need to move them to support your cause.

It's important to mention that the desired action you wish a person to take upon interacting with your content is called (in marketing-speak) your "call to action," or CTA. While not every piece of content has one, when it does, your call to action could be for people to click through a link or button embedded in the contact that sends them to a donation page, a newsletter signup, or perhaps a page encouraging them to register for your next volunteer event.