Traditionally, the highest-value donors in terms of dollars lie within the 65-and-older range. But, with more ways than ever to reach prospects, fundraisers increasingly are looking to engage a younger crowd. In a presentation titled "Yeah, Yup, Right On — Getting the Younger Donor to Say 'Yes' to Your Nonprofit" at the 47th Association of Fundraising Professionals International Conference on Fundraising going in Baltimore right now discussed ways to do just that.
Technology, properly applied, can be a great enabler. But, having glimpsed the possibilities, the challenges of achieving it can be frustrating to fundraisers, who want to provide their supporters with a smarter online experience.
“Do more with less.” You hear it from your boss, or maybe even your board in these tough times. Exasperated, you look back at your last six months: You’ve cut costs, backed off your most expensive programs, and maybe even made some painful staff decisions. So, now what?
Chances are, your donors and prospects are spending a lot of their time online. According to a Nielsen report released last month, global consumers spent more than five and half hours on social-networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter alone in December 2009 — an 82 percent increase from the same time last year when users spent just more than three hours on social-networking sites..
Back in 2008, many Americans got their first taste of social networking for good through the Web site mybarack obama.com (or "MyBO" as it came to be known). The site engaged Barack Obama supporters online with a goal of inspiring action offline — attending events, canvassing, phone banking and, of course, donating.
We're calling a new rector for my church. This entails creating a detailed profile of our institution, assessing our ministries, analyzing our finances, and praying and reflecting on our next "calling." It also entails letting some ministries go.
Study after study shows that the multichannel donor has a higher long-term value than the single-channel donor. The donor who gives through and receives communications from multiple channels typically donates more frequently, has a higher average gift and stays active for a longer period of time.
End-of-year campaigns are so important for nonprofit organizations because they allow them to capitalize on the uptick in giving that occurs in November and December. Between 35 percent to 42 percent of online giving happens in November and December each year, and the average gift during the final quarter of the year is significantly higher — $84.51, compared to the average of $67.47 for the other three quarters.
With the potential to reach a wide audience rapidly and cost-effectively, more and more nonprofit organizations are using online communications tools to connect with donors, members, volunteers and supporters.
At the Center for Nonprofit Success' New York Fundraising Summit earlier this month, I discussed the topic of online fundraising, and how to harness technology to build and maintain productive donor relationships.
During the session "Retooling Your Nonprofit to Optimize Fundraising in Today's Multichannel World" at the 46th annual AFP International Conference on Fundraising in New Orleans last month, Matt McCabe, Mike Rogers and Sandy Ellingson outlined these three main keys to multichannel success.
