The outer envelope is the wrapper for your all-important ask. It’s the first thing recipients see, feel and interact with.
Abny Santicola
Imagine thousands of people in 135 countries around the world, all raising their cell phones in the air at the same time and then simultaneously placing phone calls to world leaders to make a point about climate change.
The scenario had become all too common for Christian Children's Fund. Mike Pressendo's young son had chosen to sponsor a Cambodian child through the Christian Children's Fund Web site. But when the Cambodian affiliate — called ChildFund Cambodia — sent his sponsor package, it immediately caused confusion for the boy. Why, when he had sponsored a child through Christian Children's Fund, was he now receiving information on the sponsorship from another organization?
More than 81,000 nonprofits have partnered with the online shopping mall GoodShop.com and Yahoo-powered search engine GoodSearch.com to enable their supporters to generate donations by shopping online or searching the Internet.
The Web is constantly evolving and, as it does, the public's expectations for Web sites grow higher. Many organizations are using Web sites to engage with constituents (both existing and prospective), using them to receive donations, sign up volunteers, register members, provide authoritative news and information, create community, and provide information about programs and services…
Puppies or kittens? That age-old question inspired a recent study by Blue State Digital, in which it conducted a double-blind variable-controlled test to determine which pulled better response rates — the image of a puppy or a kitten — for an e-mail advocacy effort around toxic pet food.
The book "The Art of Giving: Where the Soul Meets a Business Plan" by renowned philanthropists Charles Bronfman, co-founder of the Andrea and Charles Bronfman Philanthropies, and Jeffrey Solomon, president of the Andrea and Charles Bronfman Philanthropies, guides philanthropists on how to get the most out of their giving.
The downturn in the economy has made corporate sponsors not only more limited in the amount of dollars available for potential sponsorships, but they also are more aware of the return on investment from their sponsorship and charitable donation dollars.
The Life Rolls On Foundation and Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation announced recently that the two spinal cord injury-focused organizations would merge and the Life Rolls On Foundation, based in Los Angeles, will serve as the West Coast headquarters and division of the Reeve Foundation. The Reeve Foundation is a national, nonprofit organization dedicated to finding cures and treatments for spinal cord injuries and improving the lives of people living with paralysis. Life Rolls On, founded by Jesse and Josh Billauer, is dedicated to improving the quality of life for young people affected by spinal cord injury and uses action sports as a platform to inspire possibilities despite paralysis.
In the Sage Nonprofit Solutions webinar "Intro to Search Engine Optimization & Marketing for Nonprofits" in its Web Wise Series, Katie McNally, account supervisor for Sitewire Marketspace Solutions, and Dan Gonzalez, Web manager for Sage Nonprofit Solutions, discussed search basics, best practices for organic SEO and what search’s role should be in fundraisers' overall interactive marketing mix, among other things.
Research and educational organization The Urban Institute and Social Solutions, provider of performance management software for nonprofits, recently announced that they're collaborating to create a online resource for nonprofit organizations looking to enhance their performance.
In the recent FundRaising Success webinar E-mail Strategies for Driving Donations, Christina Johns, senior manager of direct-response television and social media for the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, and Allison Van Diest, senior product marketing manager for Blackbaud, shared how strong segmentation can drive great e-mail strategy and how social media can fit into e-mail strategy.
In a recent study, M+R Strategic Services studied results of year-end fundraising e-appeals from Easter Seals, Human Rights Campaign, Save Darfur Coalition and The Wilderness Society that were launched in December 2008. Each organization sent an e-appeal with a premium ask and one without the premium. Premiums varied across organizations and included scarves, calendars, T-shirts and blankets.
President Obama's presidential campaign proved that new media technologies can help engage and broaden the base of support for a cause and create a powerful movement.
A post on the blog A Small Change last month by Jason Dick recommends a few tips based on his observations of the successes of recent Twitter campaigns by EpicChange. The EpicChange campaign raised more than $10,000 on Twitter in 24 hours; and Twestival, a campaign in February where people in cities across the globe connected via Twitter and then met up in person, raised more than $250,000 for charity: water.
