If your organisation’s content feels a bit all over the place, one week you’re sharing stats, the next a volunteer story, and then suddenly a donation appeal, you’re not alone. Not-for-profits have so many stories to tell that it’s easy for messaging to get a little… chaotic. That’s where content mapping comes in. It’s how you turn all those meaningful ideas into a clear, consistent strategy that helps your audience understand who you are, what you do, and why it matters. Let’s break down how to set up a content map that actually works for your mission.

Creating and Choosing Your Content Pillars

Your content pillars are the foundation of your strategy, the key themes or categories your organisation wants to be known for. They should connect your purpose with what your community cares about most. Think of them as your organisation’s “big buckets” of conversation broad enough to hold lots of ideas, but specific enough to keep you focused.

For a not-for-profit focused on child safety, your pillars might look like:

• Education & Awareness: Tips and tools for keeping children safe.
• Support & Recovery: Stories of healing, counselling, and community care.
• Advocacy & Prevention: Raising awareness about laws, policies, and initiatives.
• Community & Impact: Sharing volunteer stories and the difference your programs make.

Having 3–5 pillars helps you stay consistent while still allowing room for creativity. Every post, story, or video should connect back to at least one of these pillars.

Turning Pillars into Columns

Once you’ve chosen your pillars, each one becomes a column in your content map. Imagine a simple table or spreadsheet where each column represents one pillar. Under each, you’ll store ideas, drafts, or planned posts. This structure gives you a bird’s-eye view of your content, helping you see where you’re over-posting or under-posting.

For example, you might notice you’ve shared five awareness posts in a row, but nothing about community or impact. A content map keeps your messaging balanced and your strategy intentional. 

Pro tip: Use tools like Google Sheets, Notion, or Trello to create your map so it’s easy to update and share with your team.

Creating Topics

Now that you’ve got your pillars, it’s time to brainstorm topics under each one. Topics are your big conversation starters, the broad subjects that help structure your storytelling.

Here’s what that might look like for a child-safety organisation:

• Pillar: Education & Awareness
  • Topics:
    • Online safety for families
    • Recognising early warning signs of abuse
    • Building open communication with children
• Pillar: Support & Recovery
  • Topics:
    • How counselling helps rebuild trust
    • The role of community in recovery
    • Encouraging families to seek support early

Each topic should be broad enough to create multiple posts from but focused enough to serve your mission.

Creating Subjects

This is where your big ideas become real, actionable content. Your subjects are the specific story angles, talking points, or questions you’ll explore under each topic.

For example:

• Pillar: Education & Awareness
  • Topic: Online Safety for Families
  • Subjects:
    • “5 simple ways to teach kids about safe internet use”
    • “What to do if your child sees something upsetting online”
    • “How parents can create safe digital boundaries at home”
• Pillar: Support & Recovery
  • Topic: Community Healing
  • Subjects:
    • “How peer support groups are helping families heal”
    • “The power of listening: Why survivors need safe spaces”
    • “What recovery really looks like after trauma”
      

These are the kinds of specific ideas that turn your content from vague “awareness” posts into meaningful, educational storytelling.

What Comes Next

At this point, you should have:

• Clear content pillars that reflect your mission and audience needs
• Columns for each pillar in your content map
• A list of topics under each pillar
• Detailed subjects that can become posts, videos, or blogs

The next step? Turn your map into a content plan. Schedule when and where each piece will go live, maybe one awareness post a week, one impact story a month, and one educational video per quarter.

With a solid map in place, content creation becomes easier, faster, and more strategic. No more wondering what to post or scrambling to fill the gaps, every piece of content has a purpose.

The Takeaway

For not-for-profits, content isn’t just about staying active online, it’s about educating, connecting, and inspiring action. By setting up a clear content map, you can focus less on what to post next, and more on sharing the stories that matter most.