Marketing might not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of ministry — but if you're part of a small Christian nonprofit, it's likely a necessary part of the work you're doing. But with limited time, tight budgets and small teams, marketing can feel overwhelming.
The good news? You don’t need a massive budget to make an impact. With wisdom, creativity and intentionality, your message can go further than you think.
Below are six tips to help small Christian nonprofits navigate marketing with confidence and clarity — while keeping mission and faith at the centre. Let’s dive in.
1. Be Alert
Small Christian nonprofits often have what I’d call a short runway. Because of their size, they need to be efficient in as many areas as possible — including marketing. The only way to achieve the level of efficiency we’re talking about is by putting in time to truly understand your marketplace so every decision you make can be an informed one.
2. Be Confident
A lack of confidence can drag projects on unnecessarily. Back to the runway analogy: the runway is short, and there’s no time to hem and haw. You need to land quickly and accurately, avoiding the potential dangers that lie beyond the runway’s end.
3. Be Knowledgeable
Small Christian nonprofits typically operate with tight budgets and often can’t afford team members who fully understand the ins and outs of marketing — internally or externally. (Though you might find they can often afford those who think they know everything.) So how do you close the knowledge gap? Be humble. Identify where your internal team is strong and where they’re not — then seek help. Depending on your budget, many gaps can be filled — sometimes in creative ways. God loves creativity, as we can see through His creation. He can bring you expertise from the most unexpected places.
4. Be Wise
Knowing the difference between what you want and what you need is critical. In marketing, there are so many incredible tools available to tell your nonprofit’s story — if you had an unlimited budget. Since you likely don’t, this becomes an exercise in understanding your brand and making realistic choices. Pray for wisdom — God promises to give it to those who ask. Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.
5. Be (Super) Creative
Take risks. Your budget needs to stretch further than that of a larger Christian nonprofit. Learn how to be extremely creative — and how to encourage creativity in those who’ve joined you on this journey. As mentioned earlier, this often means taking risks. Embrace and encourage that.
6. Measure
We understand budgets are tight, and you may not invest much in this area. Still, we encourage all small nonprofits to carve out time to assess the overall effort. Train your organization to regularly ask: Are we accomplishing what God has asked us to accomplish? If not, make a change. If yes, ramp it up.
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Marketing today is a complex mix of strategies and tactics. Expecting a small Christian nonprofit to master them all would be unrealistic. For example, we could talk for hours about how social media impacts fundraising effectiveness alone — the details are endless, and the wisdom needed to implement strategies well is even greater.
The list of considerations is exhaustive: graphic design, storytelling, content writing, the role of video, direct mail (yes — it’s still powerful), SEO, guerrilla marketing, measuring results, data analysis, trade show appearances, segmentation, technology, AI, people management, branded giveaways, blogs, newsletters, donation requests, market analysis, research, website programming, face-to-face communication training, PR training…
As always, we pray that every ministry shining its light is wildly successful. Our world needs more of God and we are grateful for the work you are doing to share Him with the world.
