The Agitator

Convio is brandishing a new "fundraising calculator" that claims to compute the future value of your integrated direct mail, telemarketing and online fundraising stream. Says Jordan Viator of Convio: "The tool allows nonprofit organizations to estimate their online fundraising ...  Read more

Yesterday we reported the quantitative results from The Agitator’s Mid-Year Fundraising Assessment survey. Those responses indicated relative calm at this stage of the fundraising year. As Tom summarized: “Being an optimist, I would characterize the results as saying that seven-in-ten ...  Read more

The verdict is in from Agitator readers … 2009 fundraising for the first half of 2009 is, well, so-so! First of all, thanks to the 130 readers (81% from nonprofits, 19% consultants/agencies) who completed our mid-year assessment survey. Here’s the topline of how you are viewing 2009 ...  Read more

In this mini-debate from DMNews, three approaches to measuring loyalty are advanced: 1. Lifetime value — the person who buys (donates) the most over the longest period. 2. Share of wallet — the person who devotes the largest percentage of their spend (or donations) in your category to ...  Read more

Last week, I raised the question of whether your donors relate to your organization as "friends" or merely "acquaintances?" The hypothesis being that donor loyalty requires building a "friend" relationship. I suggested a simple first step, like including photos of the ...  Read more

Our sister firm DonorTrends has just been in the field with a survey on donor loyalty for a major national nonprofit. This group has been around a few decades, long enough to develop some considerable brand awareness and loyalty. Here’s an interesting finding: Respondents are three times ...  Read more

Yesterday, in light of declining donor retention rates, we raised the question of whether nonprofits were doing an adequate job of inspiring their donors. Here’s a response from Jay Love, CEO of software solutions provider eTapestry. His firm is participating in the Fundraising Effectiveness ...  Read more

Terry Barber, "chief inspirator" at Grizzard Communications, recently offered some critical advice in Forbes.com to business readers. His article was called Your Business Can inspire People the Way Nonprofits Do. It’s not often you see consultants telling businesses to model ...  Read more

My vote goes to Pareto’s 80/20 rule — 80% of the value or activity tends to come from 20% (or less) of customers, or whatever the active universe. The rule is confirmed in marketing scenario after scenario, including fundraising. Most recently, a Harvard Business Review study ...  Read more

This week, a brand you’ve all heard of — and probably enjoyed — announced it was beginning its first ever loyalty program. Here are some quotes from the brand’s spokesman, Mike Giresi, as reported in DM News. Try to guess the brand. "We’ve been talking about ...  Read more