E-Philanthropy

Every small business has an advantage. Unlike big corporations, smaller companies can be more personal, more relatable, more human. Unfortunately, most small businesses miss these opportunities. E-mail marketing is a classic example of how the little guys have the edge. Here are five ways to add personality to your e-mail marketing: 1. Include a sender name — be a person with a human name. 2. Include a picture of the author. 3. Take a stand. 4. Tell a story. 5. Say thank you.

In this webinar we discuss the fears surrounding mobile & text-to-give, interactive websites, and video… and how to overcome them.

Thanks to Microsoft Citizenship Asia Pacific, I’ve presented a series of online fundraising and social-media trainings to more than 300 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) throughout Asia Pacific over the last three years. The experience has made me aware that access to information about trends in nonprofit technology, online fundraising and social media often does not reach small NGOs. Here are five online best practices to get small NGOs started: 1. Launch a new, mobile-optimized website. 2. Launch an e-newsletter. 3. Acccept donations online. 4. Study and mimic large NGOs. 5. Create a Facebook Page.

Here are three key benefits of incorporating online fundraising in your nonprofit campaign gleaned by Eleventy Marketing Group through data analysis: 1. Online fundraising produces a higher value. 2. Personalization makes a big impact in online fundraising. 3. Multichannel fundraising improves results of the entire campaign.

With so many channels available today, and people using the different channels in different ways, it makes sense to give volunteers and donors options. This way you are not alienating individuals because they prefer one medium over another. This is a major benefit of multichannel marketing.

E-mail is one of the most effective ways to communicate with supporters. But if your e-mails aren’t reaching inboxes, aren’t sparking interest with a thoughtful subject line or are too generic, there’s a chance your supporters won’t read them at all. Below are a few tips to help you personalize messages and refine your delivery strategy so that your e-mails are read (and enjoyed).

I took ExactTarget’s fantastic list of 50 e-mail marketing tips and stats for 2014 and boiled it down to three key takeaways for nonprofits: 1. Don’t fret the small stuff. 2. If you’re not learning, you’re not growing. Start with the simplest of tests (subject lines) before building your knowledge-base utilizing testing frameworks. 3. It’s not a question if the mobile revolution is upon us, but how your organization will embrace it (hint: think content strategy).

Checked your spam folder lately? Probably not. Most people trust in their e-mail software or webmail provider to keep away messages from annoying advertisers or organizations you’d rather not hear from. However, as filtering algorithms grow more efficient and effective and providers pursue the cleanest, most appealing interface for readers, it’s possible that direct-marketing campaigns and other online outreach from nonprofits could end up diverted away from those who might be responsive to them.

Following are some simple ways you can take advantage of any downtime you have during the last few weeks of summer to get more out of you fundraising marketing efforts come the fall.

Nonprofits can learn from e-mail campaigns corporate marketers are sending. Corporate e-mail programs have focused on delivering value. They test offers, messaging and more. They send relevant content based on subscriber interests, preferences and actions. Think about what’s in your inbox. Daily deals, airfare price alerts, offers from favorite retailers and social media alerts. Add in family and friends and the inbox has become a competitive place.

So, how can your e-mail campaigns stand out? Here are three ways: use personalized messaging on different audiences, test subject lines and calls to action, and follow up.

Step 1 is a no-brainer, but are you doing it?