A state by state breakdown shows us how much this varies depending on geography. In Maine, for instance, 65% of nonprofits have a website. Whereas in New Mexico and Wyoming, a scant 29% do.

This map breaks it down state by state.

The five states with the highest percentage of nonprofits with websites?

1. Maine: 65%

2. DC: 64%

3. Washington: 61%

4. Idaho & Puerto Rico: 60%

5. Vermont: 59%

And the five states with the lowest percentage of nonprofits with websites?

46. Alabama: 37%

47. Rhode Island: 36%

48. Arkansas: 33%

49 & 50. Wyoming & New Mexico: 29%

Makes you wonder: how easy/hard are nonprofits in your state making it for supporters to find them on-line? 

***If you want your nonprofit to stand out from the crowd–whether on-line, in-person, or in print–check out Claxon University.***

*Reminder about what we mean by “no website”: We mean when pulling our sample, we didn’t find an independent url for ~50+% of the nonprofits for which we were searching. Some might have had an online presence, e.g. Facebook pages or a webpage on a connected, but separate organization. For instance, it’s very common for Friends of the Library and PTAs/PTSAs to have a web presence as a page on the related organization’s site, but often not their very own site. Other organizations, businesses, social clubs, or even other nonprofits with a foundation or scholarship might have mentioned the 501c3 arm, or maybe just mention that they have a scholarship, but it is the parent organization that has the website, so that didn’t count.

The post Do you know many nonprofits in your state have a website? appeared first on Claxon Communication.

When we did the research for The Wordifier–the free online tool that helps you increase your impact by amplifying your words–we stumbled upon a very interesting (and startling) finding: more than 50% of nonprofits don’t have a website.

Actually, to be specific, what we can say is that we are 95% confident that 46.33% to 49.03% of nonprofits DO have websites. Meaning we’re 95% confident that a tidge over 50% do NOT.*

Think about that for a minute: A potential donor hears about your organization. They want to learn more. They go online. They search for your organization. If you’re a nonprofit, there’s only a 50/50 chance they’ll find you because there’s only a 50% chance you’re easily found online. That’s a VBP: a Very Big Problem.

No matter how amazing, compelling, and wonderous your work is, people aren’t going to put in a lot of effort into learning more about you. They’re busy and have bigger fish to fry.

Bottom line: The easier you make it for people to find you, the easier you make it for them to support your work.

Your next step: Search for your organization’s name on-line. Do you show up on the first page of search results? If not, making that happen should be a top priority for your organization.

***Knowing which words to use when talking about your organization is key to your on-line strategy. If you’re unsure about the words you’re using, check out Claxon University’s course, Words on a Mission. Might be the Rolaids for your messaging-related indigestion.***

*Just so we’re clear on what we mean by “no website”: we mean when pulling our sample, we didn’t find an independent url for ~50+% of the nonprofits for which we were searching. Some might have had an online presence, e.g. Facebook pages or a webpage on a connected, but separate organization. For instance, it’s very common for Friends of the Library and PTAs/PTSAs to have a web presence as a page on the related organization’s site, but often not their very own site. Other organizations, businesses, social clubs, or even other nonprofits with a foundation or scholarship might have mentioned the 501c3 arm, or maybe just mention that they have a scholarship, but it is the parent organization that has the website, so that didn’t count.

The post New Research Shows More Than 50% of Nonprofits Don’t Have a Website appeared first on Claxon Communication.