American Cancer Society

On May 19, FundRaising Success will host its second annual virtual conference and expo: Engaging, Enlightening, Empowering Donors. Did we mention it's FREE? Each week until then, we'll be publishing bios of our featured speakers. Today: Angie Moore.

Here are 15 mobile fundraising and mobile marketing takeaways shared by four mobile experts at the 2011 Nonprofit Mobile Day.

Advocacy is a powerful strategy for making progress on your issues. It's also a powerful tactic for finding new donors. By giving people the opportunity to engage in your work and join with others to build a better world, you help them take the first step toward becoming long-term supporters of your organization.

Twenty of the top 30 fundraising races, walks and other endurance events increased donations last year, a big change from 2009 when 20 such events lost money, according to the Run Walk Ride Fundraising Council’s fifth annual study.

Overall, the 30 fundraising events produced $1.65-billion in revenue in 2010. That was an increase of 1.6 percent, or $25.9-million, from the year before.

The American Cancer Society's Miles Orkin explained why mobile matters for fundraisers at DMA Nonprofit Mobile Day and shared best practices for implementing a mobile program.

There are ever-growing marriages between group coupons and U.S. charities.

Promoters argue these are "win-win-win situations"-- for the consumer, the advertised business and the charity. But nonprofit leaders warn consumers to do some digging before donating, Some coupon sites donate little. Others much more.

Ever wonder how you can ramp up your charitable-giving efforts? Monica Oxenreiter, a 16-year-old in Pittsburgh, might provide some inspiration. People who give $100 to the nonprofit Oxenreiter started can “buy” their ZIP code — and, on a bright-yellow map on her website that details donations nationwide, that ZIP code turns lime-green.

That’s the ingenious idea behind Oxenreiter’s Zip the Cure, a nonprofit she created to generate contributions for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, or JDRF. See ZiptheCure.com.

The Salvation Army is tapping into the power of the mobile device this holiday season with the launch of a new iPhone® application to help strengthen fundraising for the organization’s iconic Red Kettle Campaign. Developed by Charity Dynamics, the Online Red Kettle iPhone app empowers individuals to conduct personal fundraising campaigns on behalf of The Salvation Army, all from the convenience of their mobile devices.  

Amy Heller has found the answer to the question on every charity executive and board member's mind: How do nonprofits engage the next generation of donors?

"It's about making philanthropy fun, social, relevant and transparent to donors," says Heller.

WGIRLS, which works to provide underprivileged women and children with a quality education, financial independence and self-sufficiency, was started by Heller and a group of other professional women in New York who initially came together to socialize, with a bent on doing something good for their community.

If 2010 seemed like a bad year for your favorite charity, just wait for 2011.

Already struggling this year, cash-strapped nonprofits face the prospect of continued high demand with even more cuts next year, especially for those organizations heavily reliant on state and local government funding. And those signs of a slow recovery for the rest of the economy probably won't come in time to buoy the charitable sector in 2011.