Building E-lists

April 30, 2008

Remember the good ‘ol days of direct mail fundraising, when if you needed names you just went out and rented or exchanged for them by the bucketloads? And if you knew what you were doing, you could get pretty decent ones.

Of course in the online fundraising culture, new rules apply. [How we direct marketers ever let that happen, I don’t know!]

So, we have to build our own e-lists. Permission marketing. What a pain!

Ironically, despite the fact that permission marketing is the rule of the road for online marketing, whereas the direct mail list market is alive and well, donors still report being far more comfortable receiving an un-solicited direct mail pitch than an email solicitation.

According to The Agitator’s latest DonorTrends survey, 15% of donors are very uncomfortable receiving a fundraising request by mail, versus 53% by email. True, the email discomfort drops to 19% if the email comes from "someone you know." But that raises the interesting philosophical question: Do you really know Paul Newman more than ________ (fill in your exec director’s name) in their emailing personas?!

A virtual invasion of privacy is regarded as far more dastardly than a hard copy one, even though both are "deleted" equally easily. With spam filters these days, do you still get more unwanted email than snail mail?

Of course, some of us try to take short cuts and even try trick our prospects into parting with their email addresses. Here’s a humorous take on the matter.

Tom

Posted by tbelford | Filed Under General Post, email marketing, online fundraising | Leave a Comment 

“I’m Agitated Alright!”

April 28, 2008

So said Kim Cubine, a principal at fundraising firm Adams Hussey, in a recent email to The Agitator. Kim, a veteran direct marketing fundraiser, was taking exception to some observations about online fundraising versus direct mail in a recent Chronicle of Philanthropy article.

Would you like to vent, we asked? Here is her Guest Agitator post …

Dear Tom & Agitator Editorial Team,

I am surprised not to have seen more attention given to the cover story article featured in The Chronicle of Philanthropy. Clearly their publishers do not read The Agitator.

I cannot be the only person who feels that this article totally misrepresented what is happening in direct marketing today. They did not interview anyone that manages both online and offline for their clients that can discuss how donors are moving between channels to make their contributions. So while direct mail
contributions may be down (we are also in a recession) and online contributions increasing, why didn’t they discuss how the mail prompts many individuals to go their computers, get more info and voila — make a gift.

"Direct mail is on life support," says Michael Hoffman, chief executive of See3, a Chicago consulting firm that specializes in nonprofit fundraising and communications. "Charities that have relied on direct mail to get new donors have to start thinking about what’s next, or they will wake up one day and find that an aggressive start-up has taken their place."

This is an outrageous statement in my opinion. Any marketer worth their salt is always thinking about what’s next. And next is multi-channel marketing.

I did not see any statistics where the first time online donor was cross-referenced with a direct mail prospect list to determine the overlap. It’s not just coincidence that organic giving to an organization’s website spikes when prospecting mail is arriving in homes. I suppose it is the reverse of "clicks-to-bricks".

We also have analysis for an aggressive marketing client that shows that donors do indeed move between channels and that nearly half of first -time online donors make their next gift by mail or by phone.

Some of the campaigns listed in the article are super cool. But most nonprofits don’t have the ability to send mosquito nets, plant a tree in the rain forest, enlist a flight attendant to make a personal pitch to a captive audience (no peanuts for you if you decline).

Most nonprofits have to roll up their sleeves and do their fundraising using the old fashion way - test/analyze/test again!

Thanks for letting me vent.

Kim Cubine

Posted by tbelford | Filed Under Don't Miss these Posts, direct marketing, online fundraising | 3 Comments 

Where Will The Writers Come From?

April 25, 2008

From Pew Internet Research comes a disturbing report on teens (12-17), technology and writing.

In my household, with a 14-year-old and two parents paranoid on the subject, this report has landed like a bombshell!

While 87% of teens engage in some form of electronic personal communication — text messaging, email or instant messaging, posting comments on social networking sites — 60% of them do not think of these electronic texts as "writing."

Thank god, you might say.

But the study goes on to indicate the substantial extent to which the informal styles of electronic communication are carried into writing for school. Soon to come … the first dissertation using emoticons! So maybe they’ll be able to write web and email copy … but who’s going to write the direct mail?!

25% of teens report they have done creative writing in the past year. Only 8% report they have written an essay in that time. Interestingly, 6% have written computer programs!!

I guess the good news in the study is that 86% of teens believe that good writing ability is an important component of guaranteeing success later in life … with 56% terming it essential.

Call me a curmudgeon, but is there any evidence they are actually taught good writing in school? Indeed, in Pew’s focus groups (which greatly enrich their survey data), students complain about their teachers’ lack of interest in writing and their inability to provide useful feedback!

I say … let’s begin by making them (the students, that is … the teachers might be a lost cause) read Hemingway!

If there’s one saving grace of electronic personal communications, it’s brevity … direct, short sentences, short paragraphs. All of our writing — certainly mine — would benefit from that.

Here’s a nice piece on writing lessons from Hemingway … from a copywriting blog worth following.

Tom

Posted by tbelford | Filed Under Don't Miss these Posts, communications, copywriting | 3 Comments 

Does Nonprofit Branding Matter?

April 24, 2008

Only if your nonprofit wants to survive in the online era, when there is absolutely NO barrier to entry. Anyone who can build a website can attract a constituency to support precisely what your organization is already doing.

Your protection? Your brand … clearly recognized, sharply defined, and positively regarded.

In The Agitator’s recent DonorTrends survey, we probed a bit the "established & familiar" versus "new kid on the block" issue. Which isn’t to say a newcomer can’t quickly establish a strong, recognized brand … indeed that’s part of the "problem" … or better, challenge, for established groups.

In our survey, 40% agreed with the statement: "I prefer to support well-established organizations rather than new ones." 23% disagreed and 38% were sitting in the middle … on the fence. Not comforting to existing brands.

Similarly, 40% also agreed with this statement: "If I haven’t already heard about a charity or cause in the media or by word of mouth, I won’t contribute." 27% disagreed and 33% sat on the fence. The message here … you’ve got to get into the "consideration set" … and that’s what a strong brand helps you do.

Our DonorTrends survey measured for the first time donors’ awareness of and regard for over 100 "leading" nonprofits. More on those results in the coming weeks.

Meantime, we urge you to read Nancy Schwartz’s tutorial on nonprofit branding. Excellent insights and practical advice. For this contribution, Nancy, you deserve a raise!

Tom

Posted by tbelford | Filed Under DonorTrends, You Deserve a Raise, branding, communications | 3 Comments 

Talking To Boomers Online

April 22, 2008

In The Agitator’s latest DonorTrends survey (completed last month), 62% of Boomers said they had never donated online to a charity, 78% had never donated online to an issue advocacy organization, and 86% had not given online to a political campaign. Still a lot of fields to plow here! [And much more data to come from DonorTrends.]

And keep in mind that our respondents took the survey online … so they are not folks adverse to the medium (indeed, 95% report going online daily).

This article offers some advice on marketing to Boomers online from Hollis Thomases of WebAdvantage.net, an online marketing company. It’s not focused on fundraising, but still has some useful insights on the online likes and dislikes of Boomers.

My favorite comment (being a Boomer): "Frankly, what I like about advertising to Boomers is they have an attention span greater than 10 seconds. You can actually say something meaningful and appeal to a Boomer." Wow! Is that pickin’ a fight or what?!

Tom

 

Posted by tbelford | Filed Under Boomers, Don't Miss these Posts, online advocacy, online fundraising | 1 Comment 

Isn’t Creativity Delightful?

April 22, 2008

Tell me this video , 20Things to Do with Leftover Matzoh, isn’t wonderful!

Every nonprofit needs a way to "officially" recognize creativity … including plain ‘ol thinking outside the box.

Thanks to BL Ochman for pointing me to this.

Tom

Posted by tbelford | Filed Under Pushing the Creative Envelope, creativity, fun, nonprofit management | Leave a Comment 

Ready For Mobile Messaging?

April 21, 2008

Here’s a report from Nielsen that 23% of all mobile phone users (or 58 millon users) have been exposed to advertising on their phones in the past 30 days.

  • Half (51% or 28 million) of those who recall seeing mobile advertising in the previous 30 days say they responded in some way.
  • Teens, Asian-Americans and African-Americans are among those with highest recall.
  • 26% of those who saw an ad responded at least once by sending an SMS text-message, the most popular as response.

Despite these response figures, the same report indicates that only 10% of users think advertising on their mobile devices is acceptable! Go figure.

I confess to being an old codger … so woe to the advertiser that finds their way onto my cell phone uninvited.

But what about you and your nonprofit … are you ready to experiment with mobile messaging? Have any experiences you’d like to share? Try Mobile Active for ideas.

Tom

 

Posted by tbelford | Filed Under Don't Miss these Posts, advocacy, communications, new media | 3 Comments 

Nonprofits Have No Claim On Ethical High Ground

April 18, 2008

The Chronicle of Philanthropy recently reported a study by the Ethics Resource Center on ethical standards and behavior in nonprofits.

Guess what?

Nonprofit ethics are pretty miserable … and apparently in decline. This based upon a survey within our own community.

Should we expect the public (specifically donors and would-be donors) to believe differently than nonprofit employees?

We’ve all become complacent with the assumption that as "do-gooders" we as a sector can somehow automatically lay claim to higher ethical reputation than say, mortgage banks.

But how many scandals at prestigious nonprofit institutions like the Smithsonian, United Way or the Red Cross (let alone all the local potboilers that pop up almost daily on my news feeds) do we think the public needs to witness before that presumptive advantage over other sectors and professions has vanished?

Well I think it has vanished. “Do-gooders” doesn’t translate in the public vernacular to “Be-gooders” anymore.

On the positive side, most consumers these days ascribe as much integrity to — and reward with as much loyalty — a company that is really green, or a fish market that consistently delivers the freshest fish, or any service provider who under-promises and over-delivers.

The integrity playing field has been leveled. No sector — as such — can generically claim an advantage.

And while equal opportunity corruption and malfeasance chips away at the sterling reputation of the nonprofit sector, so too does the intensifying focus on nonprofit performance.

It is inevitable that this focus puts a spotlight on both excellence and mediocrity. As donors become more aware that not all nonprofits are created equal … that they don’t all deliver on their promises … guess what? The overall standing of nonprofits as a sector diminishes.

If a bank, an airline, a cable provider or our toaster can let us down, why not a charity? It’s all the same. The most prominent nonprofit brands display warts for all to see, while the smaller nonprofits have no brand reputation (i.e., bankable goodwill) to begin with.

With multiple charities pursuing every conceivable goal, charities have become a commodity, and are increasing eyed and evaluated as such.

No wonder the hard data indicates a rather steep fall-off in donors (15%-20% in the past three years), particularly new donors.

More on what donors are thinking about nonprofits as The Agitator begins to report on its latest DonorTrends survey in the weeks ahead.

Tom

Thanks to DonorPower Blog for reminding me of ethics.

Posted by tbelford | Filed Under Don't Miss these Posts, accountability | 1 Comment 

Online Marketing Benchmark Study

April 17, 2008

More great data from Convio, compiled from more than 400 nonprofits and millions of online interactions and transactions.

Report looks at seven areas:

  • Website traffic — up 34% for groups with more than 250,000 email addresses
  • Registration rates — 3% of unique visitors convert
  • Email file size — Convio clients grew 32% over previous year
  • Online revenue — grew 25% (including eCommerce), average gift = $60
  • Email appeals — open rates, click-through rates, response rates
  • Email newsletters — open and click-through rates
  • Legislative advocacy — 8.5% of online advocates also donate

The data is great. Exec summary here for anyone. And check out Vinay Bhagat’s video presentation.

Tom

Posted by tbelford | Filed Under Don't Miss these Posts, Hot Research, Uncategorized, email marketing, online advocacy, online fundraising | Leave a Comment 

Is Less Better?

April 16, 2008

MarketingSherpa says "Yes" when it comes to email subject lines. They say emails with shorter subject lines are more likely to get opened. A somewhat contrarian position.

Looking at the fog of visual clutter in e-mailboxes, they note: "White space is eye candy on a crowded screen. Your eye dives in there automatically."

They’ve observed the presidential candidates’ email campaigns moving in this direction.

Something for e-fundraisers to test.

Tom

Posted by tbelford | Filed Under Don't Miss these Posts | 1 Comment 

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