Career guide
Nonprofit Marketing Jobs: The Roles, the Employers and How to Get One
Nonprofit marketing jobs raise awareness, money and support for a cause, at charities, foundations, museums, hospitals, universities and advocacy groups. The main roles are communications, digital and social, fundraising and donor marketing, content and storytelling, and events, often with small teams where one person covers several of them.
Key takeaways
- Nonprofit marketing jobs sit at charities, foundations, museums, universities, hospitals, membership associations and advocacy groups, and most of them connect marketing to fundraising.
- The most common nonprofit marketing roles are communications manager, digital and social media manager, donor or development marketing, content and storytelling, and events.
- Nonprofit marketing teams are often small, so a nonprofit marketer usually handles several channels and learns faster than a specialist at a large company would.
- A 501(c)(3) charity can't support or oppose political candidates, so nonprofit communications staff learn where advocacy ends and campaign activity begins.
- Volunteering your marketing skills for a cause you care about is one of the most direct ways to build proof for a nonprofit marketing job.
What is nonprofit marketing?
Nonprofit marketing is the work of getting people to care about a cause and then act on it: donate, volunteer, attend, sign up, share or change a habit. The “customer” can be a donor, a member, a volunteer, a visitor or the person the organization serves, and many nonprofits market to all of them at once.
That’s the biggest shift for marketers coming from companies. In a business, the buyer and the user are usually the same person. At a food bank, the people giving the food and the people receiving it need completely different messages, and both matter.
If this is your first look at the sector, the good news is that nonprofit teams value the same core skills every marketing team does: clear writing, a feel for audiences, and the ability to show what worked.
Who hires for nonprofit marketing jobs?
Nonprofit marketing jobs sit at a wider range of organizations than most people picture. Charities are only one part of it.
| Employer type | What marketing does there | Typical roles |
|---|---|---|
| Charities and service organizations | Raise money, recruit volunteers, explain the work to the public | Communications, digital, donor marketing |
| Foundations | Share what they fund, publish research, build the foundation’s reputation | Communications, content, PR |
| Museums, arts and culture | Sell tickets and memberships, promote exhibitions and shows | Audience development, membership marketing, social |
| Universities and schools | Recruit students, engage alumni, support fundraising campaigns | Enrollment marketing, alumni relations, content |
| Nonprofit hospitals and health systems | Promote services, support patient trust, back fundraising | Marketing manager, communications, digital |
| Membership and trade associations | Recruit and keep members, promote events and conferences | Membership marketing, events, email |
| Advocacy and campaign groups | Build support for an issue, grow supporter lists, drive action | Digital organizing, email, social, PR |
Each type has its own rhythm. A museum lives by its exhibition calendar, a university by its admissions cycle, and an advocacy group by the news.
What are the main nonprofit marketing jobs?
The most common nonprofit marketing jobs are communications, digital and social, donor marketing, content and events. The table shows what each one does and the usual way in.
| Job | What you do | Where it sits | Entry route |
|---|---|---|---|
| Communications manager or director | Owns the organization’s voice, press, website, newsletters and annual report | Most nonprofits | Communications coordinator, PR or journalism |
| Digital marketing manager | Runs the website, email, paid ads and analytics | Mid-size and large nonprofits | Digital marketing specialist roles |
| Social media manager | Runs the channels, responds to supporters, reports on reach | Most nonprofits | Social media jobs, volunteer social work |
| Donor or development marketing | Plans fundraising appeals, donor emails, direct mail and giving days | Charities, universities, hospitals | Development coordinator, email marketing |
| Content and storytelling | Writes impact stories, case studies, reports and video scripts | Larger nonprofits, foundations | Writing, journalism, content marketing |
| Membership or audience marketing | Grows and keeps members, visitors or subscribers | Museums, associations, arts groups | Box office, membership services, CRM |
| Events and campaigns | Runs galas, walks, conferences and awareness weeks | Most nonprofits | Event coordinator, field and event marketing |
| Digital organizer | Turns supporters into action: petitions, calls, sign-ups | Advocacy groups | Campaign volunteering, email and SMS work |
At a small nonprofit, one marketing or communications manager may cover most of this list. That can sound like a lot, and it is busy, but it’s also why nonprofit marketers often build a wide set of skills early.
What’s different about marketing at a nonprofit?
Nonprofit marketing differs from company marketing mainly because the results you report are donations, sign-ups and impact rather than sales, and the budget is usually smaller. A few other things shape the day-to-day.
- Marketing and fundraising work side by side. The development (fundraising) team usually owns donor relationships, and marketing supports them with appeals, stories and campaigns. Knowing how the two teams split the work is half the job.
- Stories need care. Impact stories often involve the people the organization serves. Good nonprofit marketers get consent, protect privacy and tell stories with dignity rather than pity.
- Budgets are tight, so creativity counts. Free tools, volunteer help, partner channels and earned media do a lot of the work. Ad grants and nonprofit discounts from tech platforms are common, so ask what the organization already has.
- Political campaign activity is off limits for charities. The IRS says a 501(c)(3) organization can’t support or oppose candidates for public office, though it can do nonpartisan voter education and take positions on issues within limits. See the IRS page on political campaign intervention by 501(c)(3) organizations. Communications teams check this with leadership or counsel before election-season posts.
- Fundraising email is still commercial-style email in practice. Teams follow their email platform’s rules on consent and unsubscribes, and many follow the FTC’s CAN-SPAM guidance as a baseline. Ask how the organization handles its lists.
- Seasons matter. Year-end giving, giving days and awareness months drive the calendar, and the last weeks of the year are often the busiest.
How do you get a nonprofit marketing job?
You get a nonprofit marketing job by showing you can do the work on a small budget and that you understand the cause. Both are easier to prove than they sound.
- Pick causes you care about. Interviewers can tell, and it makes the research easy. A short list of organizations beats a scattershot search.
- Volunteer your marketing skills. Offer to run a small nonprofit’s newsletter, social channel or event promotion for a few months. Set a goal at the start and track it. That’s real experience you can put on a resume.
- Bring skills that carry over. Email, social, content, analytics and events all transfer directly from company marketing. If you’re moving from the corporate side, translate your results into supporters, sign-ups and money raised where you can.
- Learn the fundraising basics. Know the difference between annual giving, major gifts and grants, and how a donor moves from first gift to regular giver. It changes how you talk in interviews.
- Look in the right places. Nonprofit job boards, sector newsletters, local nonprofit associations and the organizations’ own careers pages list more roles than general boards do.
- Tailor every application. A museum’s audience role and an advocacy group’s digital role want different proof. Our marketing resume guide shows how to lead with results, and how to get into marketing covers the first steps if you’re new.
A good first step this week: write down three organizations whose work you’d happily talk about for an hour, and sign up for their newsletters.
What should you research before a nonprofit marketing interview?
Research the organization’s mission, its supporters and how it talks about its work, because nonprofit interviewers want to see you already understand the audience. A quick look goes a long way.
- Mission and programs. What it does, who it serves and where.
- The annual report or impact report. Most nonprofits publish one. Note the programs they highlight and how they describe results.
- Public filings. US charities file a Form 990 with the IRS, and many are searchable online. Skim the revenue sources to see how much comes from donations, grants or earned income.
- The donation page and recent appeals. Sign up for the newsletter a week before the interview and see what arrives.
- Social channels. How they tell stories, how often they post, how supporters respond.
- Recent campaigns and events. Giving days, galas, awareness campaigns, partnerships.
Our guide to researching a company before an interview covers the general method. Bring one idea tied to something you found, such as a story worth telling more often or a sign-up path you’d simplify. When they ask why this cause, answer in your own words, not the mission statement’s: the personal reason is the one they’ll remember.
How much do nonprofit marketing jobs pay?
Nonprofit marketing pay follows the job and the size of the organization, and BLS has no separate figure for nonprofit marketing. Use the nearest occupation: our marketing manager salary page for manager and director roles, the marketing specialist salary page for coordinator and specialist roles, and PR specialist salary for communications roles. Many nonprofits list pay ranges in postings, so compare those for the organizations you’re targeting.
Tailor your resume to the nonprofit role
Nonprofit postings ask for specific proof: an appeal that raised money, a list that grew, an event that filled. Lead with the result that matches the posting, even if it came from volunteer work. Recon reads the posting and your resume and suggests rewrites using only what’s already true on your resume.
FAQ
Do you need nonprofit experience to get a nonprofit marketing job?
No. Many nonprofit marketers come from companies, agencies or journalism. Volunteer work for a cause helps, and so does showing you understand donors and the people the organization serves.
Is nonprofit marketing a good career?
It can be a rewarding one if you want your work tied to a cause, and the breadth of a small team builds skills quickly. Pay and budgets are often tighter than at large companies, so weigh the role, the organization’s size and the posted range.
What’s the difference between nonprofit marketing and fundraising?
Fundraising (often called development) owns relationships with donors, grants and major gifts. Marketing builds awareness, tells the stories and runs the channels that bring in supporters. The two work closely, and some smaller nonprofits combine them in one role.
What entry-level nonprofit marketing jobs are there?
Communications coordinator, marketing coordinator, social media coordinator, development coordinator, events assistant and digital fellowships. Our list of entry-level marketing jobs explains what each kind of entry role does.
Can you move from nonprofit marketing to a company later?
Yes. Email, social, content, events and analytics carry over, and running several channels on a small budget is a strength in a growth role. Translate your results into numbers a company hiring manager recognizes.
Where can you find nonprofit marketing jobs?
Look on nonprofit job boards first, then on the organizations’ own careers pages. Idealist is a large social-impact job board covering nonprofit jobs and internships, and The Chronicle of Philanthropy runs a job board for the nonprofit sector. Local nonprofit associations and sector newsletters often list roles that never reach the big general boards.
Are there remote nonprofit marketing jobs?
Yes. Digital roles such as email, social media, content and digital fundraising are often remote, especially at national organizations, while event and community roles tend to be local. Filter the nonprofit boards for remote roles, and read our remote marketing jobs guide for how to stand out when you can’t meet the team in person.