February 28, 2014
To join or not to join? That is the question. With hundreds of social-media sites out there, how do you choose which ones to use for your organization? Doing it because it’s popular isn’t necessarily the best reason. Here are a few tips on making the tough choices: You can't be on every network — pick two or three that make the most sense. 2. The message is the medium …
February 26, 2014
If the snow kept you away, the 2014 DMA Nonprofit Federation Washington Nonprofit Conference featured information-packed sessions on all aspects of direct marketing and highlighted the trends and triumphs that are shaping our industry today. The Production Solutions team captured the insights and takeaways that could help propel your organization and your campaigns to the next level. Here they are …
February 21, 2014
If you’re a fundraiser who is struggling to get your executive director or board to understand why you should launch an online fundraising program or invest more in online giving tools, try these talking points to help plead your case: Online giving boosts individual giving. Online giving allows you to interact with your donors where they are — online. You don't have to set up a merchant account. It's not just a fad.
February 20, 2014
Social media is an awesome relationship-building tool. And all fundraising, ultimately, is about engaging and building relationships. But … good relationships — the ones that are sustained over time — are based on give and take. On quid pro quo. If you want to get gifts, you’ve got to give them. Be useful. Be relevant. Be interesting. Be responsive. Don’t be all about you. Don’t be boring. Don’t be absent. Don’t be inconsistent. Don’t just nonchalantly splatter stuff out there!
Without a plan, you’re not going to generate donor investments. Here’s what you must do.
February 19, 2014
At the 2014 Washington Nonprofit Conference, three fundraising professionals tackled "Digital Fundraising 101," specifically covering best practices for email, websites, online acquisition, social media, testing, integration, retargeting, responsive design and mobile optimization.
February 12, 2014
The $1 billion major gift to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation by Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, is the capstone of a long-term strategy to reinvent the foundation in a way that makes it as cutting-edge as the ventures of Silicon Valley’s high-tech donors. Similar calls for modernization are being made across the country by community funds.
February 7, 2014
I gave a workshop on newsletters. People from Gillette Children's Specialty Healthcare in St. Paul, Minn., attended. Their donor newsletter, mailed quarterly to 20,000 people at that point, racked up an annual net loss of $40,000. Was there a better way, they wondered?
Something amazing happened post-workshop: Giving to Gillette's newsletter increased 1,000 percent (not a misprint), after a few changes.
The old way, the foundation received about $5,000 in gifts per issue.
The new way, the foundation received about $50,000 in gifts per issue.
February 7, 2014
Would you like to drive more Facebook traffic to your website? Is quality Facebook traffic important to your business? Use these five steps to help you get more Facebook traffic to your website: 1. Have a steady stream of shareable content on your website. 2. Make it easy to share your content to Facebook on your website. 3. Optimize your Facebook posts. 4. Optimize other places on Facebook to add links to your website. 5. Advertise.
February 6, 2014
As 2014 is gearing up in full swing, you're probably planning out your events calendar for the year. At Eventbrite, I work with a lot of nonprofits, universities and faith-based organizations to share best practices for fundraising and trends we're seeing in the industry. Here are five tips to help with the planning process of your next fundraiser: 1. Choose a theme that resonates with your audience. 2. Create a calendar. 3. Incentivize early ticket purchasing. 4. Build an informative event page. 5. Track, track, track.
February 5, 2014
If creating compelling content can help you make the case for giving and hold the attention of supporters, exactly how do you come up with the best stuff for your nonprofit? Creating content for content’s sake won’t do much for your cause and may have a negative effect when done poorly. A lot goes into making and effectively distributing quality content, but ideally your nonprofit content should be URGENT: useful, relevant, genuine, edited, necessary and tested.
