Marketing trends for charities in 2025

Marketing is all about human behaviour. And human behaviour – and consequently marketing, too – always changes. Socioeconomic factors play their part, as do new technology trends, such as how we use social media, how we pay for goods and services, and the progress made in the customer experience online. We change as the world changes alongside us.  

Successful marketing depends on how we respond to those changes. For charities, the difficulty can be in keeping up with seamless customer experiences provided by large corporations. With everything from our supermarket shop to our banking being done online, we know what a good customer experience feels like. But many charities simply do not have the time and resources to dedicate to keeping up with the latest marketing trends and competing with bigger organisations. 

That’s why Charity Digital has taken a look at the hottest marketing trends for 2025, helping charities to make informed decisions that will boost their reach and improve their ability to fundraise, drive impact, and communicate with their audiences. 

We recognise that marketing is a broad church. It encompasses everything from increasing reads for charity blog posts to driving participation for fundraising events. But ultimately, it is all about providing a great online experience for your supporters and stakeholders.  

Below, we explore the key marketing trends, from how to use social media to the importance of your charity website, and much more.  

 
Skip to: The rise of artificial intelligence 
Skip to: The diversification of channels 
Skip to: The many sides of social media  
Skip to: The impact of a good website  
Skip to: The changing world of search engine optimisation 
Skip to: The steady success of email marketing 
 

The rise of artificial intelligence 

Artificial intelligence (AI) has emerged as one of the biggest drivers of change in the way we work, offering innumerable opportunities for charity marketers. Generative AI, for example, allows users to create images and text very quickly with only a short brief, which can be especially useful for charity marketers who are short on time and limited space to get a message across.  

As of 2023, research by Kantar Media revealed that two thirds of marketers felt somewhat or very positive about generative AI, driven in large part by younger marketing professionals in Gen Z. In 2024, that remains consistent, but with more millennial marketers on board – 71% of millennials and 65% of Gen Z marketers feel positive about Generative AI, compared to 57% of their Gen X counterparts and less than a third of Baby Boomers.  

Research from Salesforce has also revealed that there is an appetite among charities for using AI in their marketing. While only 13% of charities are excited and already making use of AI in their organisation, 45% described themselves as needing to learn more or optimistic but cautious, according to the 2024 Nonprofit Pulse report.  

The biggest use case for AI being considered by charities was “copy for marketing content”, including email and social media, cited by 31% of respondents. The same proportion of charities were also considering it for general content creation, while a fifth wanted to use it for better journeys to acquire and retain supporters. 

Predictive AI can also be useful for charity marketers to gain a better understanding of their audiences, helping them to spot trends and patterns in their supporter behaviours. For example, is there a time or day when email open rates are better? Are there moments in the supporter journey when people drop off? Predictive AI can help charities spot these issues without raking through hundreds and thousands of data entries, making it a potentially vital tool for how charities market to their stakeholders.  

Microsoft Tech for Social Impact has designed a guide for how charities can use AI in their marketing, including prompt templates and practical use cases. It shows specifically how Microsoft 365 Copilot can help boost charity marketing campaigns by summarising data, creating core messaging, and implementing a budget.  

However, a word of caution. There are potential risks in using AI for marketing, such as data bias, plagiarism, and inaccuracy. While Kantar’s research revealed that marketers, on the whole, feel positive about using AI for marketing, fewer consumers felt the same way. While 68% of marketers felt positive about using AI, 62% of consumers agreed. Similarly, 59% of marketers felt excited about the application of AI to ads, compared to 48% of consumers. Two fifths of consumers said AI-generated ads bothered them.  

Research from Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) also revealed that, while 37% of people say the opportunities of AI outweigh the risks, 22% see risks as more important. And even among those who are excited about the opportunities of AI acknowledge that the risks are very real – of the seven risks highlighted by CAF, all were felt to be more likely to happen than not.  

The biggest risks were considered to be workforce reductions, data breaches, and making biased decisions.  

So while AI will surely play a part in charity marketing in 2025, it is worth noting that there remains caution among the public in how it is used. Charities, for whom operational scrutiny is often higher, should proceed with caution, though choosing not to proceed with AI appears not to be an option.

The diversification of channels 

Charity audiences are diverse. It follows that the channels we use to market to them are, too. In fact, a great user or supporter experience relies on using diverse channels to tailor engagement. In fundraising, for example, great supporter experiences are about making user journeys convenient and simple for donors, both existing and prospective. It means reaching donors at the right time, in their preferred way, in order to build a positive relationship that achieves results, whether that means increased funds or more widely consumed content.  

According to the 2024 Nonprofit Pulse report, almost a quarter of charities say they are diversifying their strategy to include a wider mix of channels, while the same proportion say they are increasing their focus on digital channels. In 2023, the top marketing channels were social media, website, and email. In 2022, email was the top marketing channel with social media in second place and website in third. However, though 2023 saw social media usurp email marketing in the channel rankings, it also saw a much more even spread between charities using those channels, a trend likely to carry into 2025. 

Diversifying marketing channels does not mean making sure you’re on every single platform. The charity sector is notoriously time-poor so it’s more important to be aware of what platforms and channels resonate best with your audience to achieve maximum marketing impact. Ensure your messaging is consistent – though tone can vary appropriately according to channel – and reach as many people as possible with news of your mission.  

The many sides of social media 

Social media has become an increasingly important tool for charities, an essential part of their marketing strategy. However, that increasing importance is expected to plateau somewhat in 2025, with trust in social media waning and platforms changing how they are used. 

Take, for example, X (formerly Twitter). The day after the 2024 election in the United States, X lost its largest number of followers since entrepreneur Elon Musk bough the platform in 2022. The Guardian announced it would be ceasing to post on the platform, while other leavers cited the rise in bots, poor advertising, and harassment as reasons behind their departure. It is worth noting that while X has lost many users, it has also gained some, offsetting any reports of the platform’s apparent decline.  

It is clear, from X’s example at least, that social media will continue to influence marketing, albeit not in the same way it used to. The 2024 Summer Pulse report from fundraising platform Enthuse found that more than three in five donors (62%) say they mistrust information they read about charities on social media. Trust levels in social media decline as donor groups get older, with 45% and 48% of Gen Z and Millennials respectively having high or moderate trust, compared to just 21% of those aged between 65 and 80. 

“Overall for charities, this means considering adopting different approaches when talking to different audiences – particularly when it comes to using social media to target over 35s,” Enthuse argues. “The focus should be around how to use channels to drive people back to their own sites – whether that is through a social channel, or a celebrity ambassador or patron.” 

Indeed, while social media usage varies among audiences, platforms such as TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and X will remain significant elements of charity marketing strategy, particularly in terms of their reach. A fifth of charities reported in the 2024 Nonprofit Pulse report that reaching and engaging supporters was a challenging issue for their charity.  

Likewise, the 2024 Charity Digital Skills report shows that the top digital priority for charities is building online presence and social media engagement. This is a decrease of 25 percentage points from 2023, once again demonstrating that, though using social media to drive engagement is helpful, it is not the most important part of a charity marketing strategy. 

While social media usage will continue in 2025, charities must ensure they are able to respond to new challenges thrown up by the rise of misinformation and disinformation. Concerningly, given the proliferation of AI content on social media channels in 2024, only 14% of charities are spending more time monitoring social media, looking out for misinformation for instance. Only one in ten have developed their crisis management plans to be able to respond to issues that arise in this area.  

So the big social media trend for charities, when it comes to marketing, should be adapting our use of it. These tools have a wide reach and can raise awareness of your cause with new audiences – but platforms and content change all the time. What charities really need to prioritise, as with all their marketing, is building trust. 

To find out more about social media trends for 2025, click below. 

Read more about social media trends

The impact of a good website 

A charity’s website is its shop window – an age-old marketing tool that shows charity audiences what they can expect from an organisation. Charities can use their website as a voice to communicate news and insights around their cause. Charities can use statistics to demonstrate impact, such as the number of services delivered or communities helped. And a charity website can house everything from its retail operation to its donation page.  

In 2025, there should be a greater focus on optimising charity websites to support charity marketing. According to the 2024 Charity Digital Skills report, almost a third (29%) of charities say they are poor at making the most of their website, while 31% say they are poor at website and analytics data.  

But, as we’ve established, a charity’s website should be at the heart of its marketing. A charity website brings together every part of a charity’s marketing strategy into one place. Supporters can use the website to verify information found on social media, donors can give money and find out more about a cause they care about, and funders can find out more about the charity’s leadership and the progress of its mission. 

A charity website is crucial in building trust between charities and supporters. The 2024 Summer Pulse report revealed that 73% of donors say they have either moderate or high trust in what they hear directly from charities and their websites. By comparison, 48% mistrust what they see, hear, or read about charities in traditional media. So charity marketers should focus on reinforcing that trusted online voice, rewarding trust with accurate, up-to-date communications, as well as seamless user journeys throughout the site.  

Website analytics can tell charity marketers more about the performance of their marketing efforts. Which types of content are most often consumed? What content most often leads to a donation? What channels are better at driving people to your website? Emails or social media? Perhaps paid advertising such as Google Ads are helpful. According to the Charity Digital Skills report,15% are poor at Pay Per Click ads, while 62% don’t do this.  

So you already have Google Ads, your website can help you work out if they’re working. Charities not already using Google Ads should consider applying for Google Ad Grants, which give eligible organisations free advertising up to $10,000 per month. 

Key website trends that marketers may want to make note of in 2025 are accessibility and sustainability. The charity sector has a responsibility to make sure their websites are accessible to all, including people who use screen readers or audio description. Charities in the process of making their websites accessible can find out more by watching the sessions recorded at Charity Digital’s Digital Inclusion Summit, featuring guidance from the RNIB and ReciteMe.  

In terms of sustainability, there is an increased focus on organisations reducing their digital carbon footprint, given the growth of and reliance on energy-guzzling data centers. Charity marketers talking about improving the sustainability of their organisation should focus too on their own platforms, ensuring websites load quickly and reducing unnecessary content. This should be a win-win for charity marketers who want keep their content fresh and up-to-date, as well as stay aligned with environmental efforts within the organisation. For tips on how to make your charity website greener, click here. 

The changing world of search engine optimisation 

Search engine optimisation (SEO) has become an essential part of charity marketing, helping charities improve their reach, find a larger audience, raise funds, and ultimately drive impact. As Charity Digital’s Head of Content Ioan Marc Jones writes: “SEO is the process of improving the visibility of a web page on a search engine. SEO is a powerful tool for organisations because it allows them to get more visitors – and the right visitors – to their website.” 

The rules of SEO can alter but broadly speaking, search engines are looking for high-quality information from reputable sources. Search engines look for relevant keywords, links to other reputable websites, readable writing, and more to ensure that people get valuable information when searching.  

SEO can seem complex – three in ten charities say their skills are poor in this area, as of 2024. A fifth of charities do not engage with it. However, as we’ve established, it is a useful tool for charity marketing in raising awareness and driving website visits. Charity marketers should consider investing in SEO tools if they are not already doing so.  

There are many AI tools that can help with SEO with 84% of bloggers and SEO specialists saying that AI and automation influenced their strategy in 2023. AI can help charity marketers find the best performing keywords based on their topics, monitor search data to identify trends, and detect broken links, which can affect rankings on search engine sites.  

However, while AI allows charity marketers to get to grips with SEO, it also has changed the way it works, something the sector should watch out for again in 2025. As SEO specialist Scott Keever points out, “the question is not whether AI will affect the future of SEO, but how it will.” 

For example, Google has added an AI chatbot to the top of search results, summarising (sometimes inaccurately) information from multiple webpages to answer questions. This may lead to less clicks for organisations sharing that information, if people take the answer from the chatbot as opposed to visiting the source itself. Microsoft Copilot, which works with search engine Bing, footnotes information linking to its sources, which may be more useful but still could reduce the number of overall website visits. Charity marketers should therefore not become overly reliant on SEO, adapt their strategies to suit changes driven by AI, or else consider new ways of driving traffic to their sites in 2025.  

The steady success of email marketing 

Though email became the third most popular channel for fundraising and engagement across Europe in 2023 – falling from first place in 2022 – it is still a very highly-rated marketing tool for charities, with 46% of charities using it. 

Indeed, it is a channel charities appear to be very comfortable with, as 15% say they are excellent at email marketing in 2024 and 41% feel they are fair.  

But as with all marketing tools, methods change and success will vary according to how we keep track of those changes. AI is likely to have an impact on email marketing, as well as SEO and content marketing, in some helpful ways and some more challenging ones. For example, AI can make it easier for charity marketers to write impactful subject lines. According to HubSpot, 65% of marketers say subject lines have the greatest impact on open rates and the best ones convey urgency, curiosity, personalisation, and more.  

AI can also help charities with other tasks, such as automating supporter journeys (sending emails at the right time in the fundraising cycle to boost donations) and analysing open rates by time and day. But charity marketers should also be aware of challenges when using AI in their email marketing. HubSpot notes that tone can be an issue when using AI tools to generate text, since “most AI tools need to be trained to match your brand’s voice and tone”. Similarly, the quality of content means that it may need to be edited. When using AI in email marketing – or in any capacity – it is always best to apply human oversight to reduce the risk of errors and miscommunication. 

Personalisation is likely to become increasingly important, continuing its upwards trajectory in the world of email marketing. Personalisation allows charities to send supporters communications that are relevant and tailored to them, such as meaningful thank you messages after donations or information on how that donation has been spent.  

Personalised emails perform better than their non-personalised counterparts, with six times higher transaction rates, according to Experian, with click-through rates of around 14%, according to Demand Gen. Personalised emails simply ensure that charities are efficient with their marketing efforts. Charity audiences only receive emails that are relevant and engaging and charities don’t broadcast information that no one is going to read while annoying their user base at the same time. In short, it’s a win-win. 

To find out more about email marketing, you can check out our full guide here. You can also listen to our podcast below.