Defenders of Wildlife

Blackbaud announced the release of a report focused on fundraising trends based on monthly findings from The Blackbaud Index and featuring commentary from Dave Strauss, president and chief executive officer of SCA Direct. Additionally, Blackbaud announced the release of a new specialty index focused on environmental and animal welfare organizations.

Following is a sampling of new-to-the-market and newly managed lists.

In a free webinar last month titled "It's All About the List! How to Grow and Cultivate Your Most Valuable Online Asset" sponsored by Network for Good, Justin Perkins, director of nonprofit marketing strategy at Care2, an online community that allows people to sign and send petitions and take a variety of actions on behalf of nonprofit organizations, offered advice to charities interested in building their e-mail lists.

Greater Than Goods, Des Moines, Iowa, has signed its first nationwide partner, Washington-based Defenders of Wildlife. For every eco-friendly Alternative Apparel shirt sold, $5 will be donated to help protect endangered species and preserve natural habitats. Greater Than Goods seeks nonprofit partners that align with its target audiences and market positioning. Besides using original cause-related apparel to fashion a fresh revenue stream for nonprofits, the web store connects people with their passions by providing a medium for organizations and visitors to share stories and build a community of giving.

For fundraisers, the first quarter of the year is as much a time to look back as ahead. It’s a time to find out how year-end appeals tallied up, to assess how winter events performed and perhaps to report back to the board on what it all means.

Many nonprofits are feeling the impact of the financial crisis — in particular those reliant on corporate gifts. Others are bracing themselves for challenging conditions. In difficult economic times, it can be a natural reaction to stop all new investments. Yet, building strong constituent relationships and acquiring new donors to replenish losses is more important than ever.

Nonprofits must adopt a strategic approach to their fundraising investments, cutting less efficient areas and investing where gains can be realized. The traditional fundraising model has been in decline for some time. The financial crisis and competition for donor dollars has heightened the imperative to change models today, re-allocating investment from waning traditional fundraising approaches to new approaches that incorporate the online channel.

The second time I received multiple affinity credit card offers on the same day, I started paying attention. At first glance, with the exception of the nonprofit logos on the corner card of each outer envelope, they seem identical. All shout the 0 percent fixed introductory APR until 2009 — but smaller, thinner type qualifies what month the offer ends and that it’s only for cash advance checks and balance transfers. All but one have a personalized teaser letting me specifically know that this particular card is “The most rewarding card of all®.”

What day is it? In the span of only a few weeks, I received four wall calendars, a personalized pocket planner, a checkbook-sized calendar and a wallet-sized booklet calendar. Not unusual at first glance. But that’s just the beginning! Two of the wall calendars also had back-end premium offers; the pocket planner came with a funky flat pen; and the checkbook-sized calendar came with lots of seriously glitzy stickers and other fun goodies.

Nonprofit direct-response fundraising programs historically have centered around one channel, usually direct mail. But as other channels become more viable and new ones emerge — can you say W-E-B? — innovative organizations have become aggressive in incorporating them into their fundraising mix.

Integration was a definite buzzword at the DMA Nonprofit Federation 2007 Annual Washington Nonprofit Conference last month, along with multi-channel, mid-level and benchmarking. On the first day of the conference there were three sessions that focused specifically on integrating channels. In one of those sessions, “Integration: When 2+2=5 and How to Get Those Results,” Jeff Regen, vice president of online marketing and communications for Defenders of Wildlife, discussed some of the challenges DOW has had integrating its fundraising channels, and recommended some “good” practices based on its experiences. The objectives of DOW’s online efforts, Regen said, are fundraising, advocacy/activism, education and list growth. The