Nonprofit Marketing Guide

FEBRUARY 4, 2015

'Is it me, or can everyone under 30 write, manage, code, photograph, design, analyze, train, present and strategize? Me? I’m not so good with the graphics. I’m getting better, but infographics and photo manipulation aren’t second nature to me. Sometimes, they’re a struggle. But I need visuals to communicate, to tell the story I need to tell, to motivate donors and advocates to act.

Communication 251

Communication Management Nonprofits 251

Ann Green

FEBRUARY 10, 2015

'Most nonprofit organizations produce a newsletter, and many are one big snoozefest. They’re too long and filled with articles that brag about how wonderful the organization is. Newsletters can and should be a great way to stay in touch with your donors and keep them updated on how they are helping you make a difference. I recommend a short e-newsletter once or twice a month and one to four print newsletters a year.

Communication 242

Communication Fundraising Fundraising Nonprofit Organizations 242

Fundraising Coach

FEBRUARY 7, 2015

'Invest #50ShadesofGreen to help end abuse. Let''s turn the multi-million corporate ad budget for 50 Shades of Grey on its head. My wife and I saw our friend JoAnne Hankey suggest people not see the movie but give the money they would''ve spent to a women''s shelter. Awesome idea, isn''t it? Let''s make it ridiculously easy to give. I''ve just donated $50 to my local nonprofit, Family Violence Project.

Energy 111

Energy Children Activism Nonprofits 111

Nonprofit Tech for Good

FEBRUARY 8, 2015

'It’s impossible to apply Twitter best practices across all segments of the nonprofit sector because of the wide variety of causes and follower counts, but scientific analysis of Twitter clearly indicate that there is right way and a wrong way to use Twitter. The challenge is for nonprofits to learn from and apply the scientific data to their Twitter strategy.

Nonprofits 107

Nonprofits Associations Fundraising Fundraising 107

Speaker: Tim Sarrantonio, Director of Corporate Brand

Do you really know your donors? Not just what they give, but who they are? 👥 In this interactive session, we’ll break down how nonprofits can use behavioral indicators (affinity, recency, frequency, and monetary value) to build prospecting segments that go beyond wealth screening and actually align with donor identity. You’ll walk away with practical strategies to move beyond basic demographics and cultivate supporters based on how they already engage with you!

Nonprofits

The Agitator

FEBRUARY 4, 2015

'Let me suggest that for fundraisers there are three levels of analysis — three forms of perspective — about what’s going on with donors. Here are my terms for them: 1. Ignorespective 2. Retrospective 3. Introspective Now, ‘Ignorespective’ (pronounced IGno-respective) really means no analysis or perspective at all. Just keep on doing.

Retention 93

Retention Fundraising Fundraising 93

iMarketSmart

FEBRUARY 2, 2015

'Use family words (stories and simple, colloquial words) not formal words. Use social examples/norms such as: Many of our donors like to make a gift in their will or by beneficiary designation. Tell stories of planned bequest donors who are still alive… not dead! Talk about benefits (including tax benefits). Ask about family/friend connections to the cause and give supporters the option of a tribute/memorial gifts.

Marketing 82

Marketing Marketing Communication Fundraising 82

Ann Green

FEBRUARY 25, 2015

'Casablanca is one of my favorite movies. There are so many priceless lines, which I often recite while I’m watching the movie. One of them is “ Louie , I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.” When someone donates to your organization, it’s also the beginning of a beautiful friendship or the continuation of one if the person is a repeat donor.

Communication 226

Communication Activism Fundraising Fundraising 226

Fundraising Coach

FEBRUARY 24, 2015

'I''ve worked alot on donor retention and often written about the importance of keeping the donors you already have. But in a recent webinar on storytelling for nonprofits , I had a rude awakening. The webinar was presented by the legendary fundraiser Ken Burnett. He was talking about how effective stories can be in the answering the donor''s question, "Did my gift make a difference?".

Retention 111

Retention Communication Fundraising Fundraising 111

Nonprofit Tech for Good

FEBRUARY 21, 2015

'The following is an excerpt from Mobile for Good: A How-To Fundraising Guide for Nonprofits. The amount of time that a nonprofit can invest in mobile and social media depends on capacity. Small nonprofits that are not in a position to hire a part- or full-time new media manager should limit themselves to one or two social networks and place the highest priority on their website, email communications, and online fundraising campaigns.

Fundraising 106

Fundraising Fundraising Management Technology 106

The Agitator

FEBRUARY 9, 2015

'One item on my short ‘To do’ list for 2015 was mastering the use of online video. Here are some recent studies indicating why that is important. The first is from Liveclicker, an e-commerce firm whose clients generate more than 12.5 million video plays per quarter. In a survey of their clients, 88% reported an increase in conversion rates when video product pages were offered, compared to non-video pages.

Production 88

Production Values Marketing Marketing 88

Speaker: Jennifer Hill

Payroll compliance is a cornerstone of business success, yet for small and midsize businesses, it’s becoming increasingly challenging to navigate the ever-evolving landscape of federal, state, and local regulations. Mistakes can lead to costly penalties and operational disruptions, making it essential to adopt advanced solutions that ensure accuracy and efficiency.

Activism

Mission Minded

FEBRUARY 4, 2015

'Do your emails align with your organization’s brand strategy? Do they send a clear, consistent message about the value of your work and the difference donors can make by supporting you? Not sure? Too frequently the emails nonprofits send to would-be donors seem to come out of left field. They take a tone that is […].

Values 81

Values Communication Fundraising Fundraising 81

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

FEBRUARY 27, 2015

'Patricia V. Rivera. I am on a roll lately with meeting talented communications professionals who are willing to blog for us on topics we haven’t covered well here in the past. and today’s guest blogger and post are no exception. Let’s hear from Patricia V. Rivera on how to best create multilingual communications for your community.

Communication 239

Communication Public and Nonprofit Management Education Education 239

Ann Green

FEBRUARY 17, 2015

'Thanking donors shouldn’t be a process: it should be an experience. An experience that will last as long as someone donates to your organization, which hopefully will be for a long time. If you treat thanking your donors as a ho-hum task that you have to do, it will show. Make a good first impression with your thank you landing page. Thanking your online donors is a three-part experience (not process).

Non-Profits 226

Non-Profits Recruitment Fundraising Fundraising 226

Fundraising Coach

FEBRUARY 9, 2015

'A couple weeks ago, I asked subscribers to the Ask Without Fear! email newsletter , " What is stopping you? " I''ve received over 100 responses from nonprofit leaders, fundraising staff, and board members! I''m still sorting through all of them, but a very common one is a variation of, " They''ll resent it if I ask them for money. " It can also be said as: "I''m bugging them.".

Fundraising 107

Fundraising Fundraising Nonprofits Universities 107

Speaker: Duke Heninger, Partner and Fractional CFO at Ampleo & Creator of CFO System

Are you ready to elevate your accounting processes for 2025? 🚀 Join us for an exclusive webinar led by Duke Heninger, a seasoned fractional CFO and CPA passionate about transforming back-office operations for finance teams. This session will cover critical best practices and process improvements tailored specifically for accounting professionals.

Finance

Nonprofit Marketing Blog

FEBRUARY 18, 2015

'If you aren’t familiar with Lynne Wester’s work in donor relations, you are missing out. Last year she presented an amazing webinar (one of our highest attended!) on donor relations and ever since then I’ve been hooked on the topic of donor relations and Lynne’s wise words on this important work that many fundraisers don’t (unfortunately) know much about.

Retention 80

Retention Fundraising Fundraising 80

The Agitator

FEBRUARY 15, 2015

'The Agitator rested on Valentine’s Day this year. However, while we were eating our chocolates, Cupid delivered a thought-provoking message to our inbox in the form of an opinion piece from Jennifer and Peter Buffett, co-presidents of the NoVo Foundation, appearing in last week’s Chronicle of Philanthropy. Before we get to the Valentine, a reminder about the Buffetts.

Fundraising 84

Fundraising Fundraising Philanthropy Foundations 84

Getting Attention

FEBRUARY 10, 2015

'Asking partners, friends and fans to spread the word may be the most effective, yet least expensive, marketing method there is. So I’m always surprised that so few folks put it to work. Hope this case study pushes you into action. The Challenge: To increase qualified entries to, and votes for, the 2015 doGooder Video Awards. Award founders See3 wanted to increase submissions to the its 9th Annual doGooder Awards (9th round).

Marketing 77

Marketing Marketing Communication Nonprofits 77

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

FEBRUARY 9, 2015

'Heather Svoboda. We need more stories for this series! Tell us what you do in a typical day as a nonprofit communications pro. Heather Svoboda is the communications and development manager at the Cat Adoption Team (CAT). Located just outside Portland, Ore., CAT is the largest nonprofit, feline-only, adoption-guarantee shelter in the Pacific Northwest.

Communication 225

Communication Public and Nonprofit Management Nonprofits Management 225

Speaker: Radhika Samant and Todd Wuestenberg

Employee recognition has often been deemed a "feel-good" initiative, tied closely to rewards. While we understand its importance, we tend to associate recognition with intangible outcomes like engagement and sentiment, rather than direct impacts on retention and high performance. In today’s workplace, the true ROI of recognition lies in its ability to regenerate tangible, business-driven results.

Retention

Ann Green

FEBRUARY 3, 2015

'If you’ve ever spent any time with four-year-olds, you know one of their favorite words is why. You’ll answer their question, but they’ll keep responding with why again and again…… A lot of nonprofit communication isn’t focused on why something is important. Besides being organization-centered, it often rambles on about accomplishments with no explanation of why something matters.

Communication 209

Communication Nonprofit Organizations Nonprofit Organizations Fundraising 209

Fundraising Coach

FEBRUARY 16, 2015

'A few weeks back, I was talking with Dan McCormack about an upcoming training. In the midst of our conversation, Dan said he didn''t let his team use the term "a culture of philanthropy." His observations were so right, I asked if he''d do a guest blog post on this. I''m glad he said yes! Dan is the President of the Hospital Sisters of St. Francis Foundation based in Springfield, Illinois and an officer on the Board of Directors for NCDC (the National Catholic Development Conference).

Culture 106

Culture Philanthropy Foundations Activism 106

NonProfit Hub

FEBRUARY 3, 2015

'Remember that DIY project you saw and couldn’t wait to try yourself? It usually goes like this—you start out diving in full-steam ahead, and then before long your memory has completely transformed and you can’t seem to remember why you thought it was a good idea in the first place. Pinterest, anyone? Yeah, I’m pretty familiar with the site Pinterest Fails.

Energy 77

Energy Management Communication Nonprofits 77

The Agitator

FEBRUARY 12, 2015

'At the end of each week Tom and I review the unused goodies that have piled up in our mailboxes from our RSS feeds, Google Alerts and our global network of Agitator correspondents. Then, after saving the gems, we hit the delete button. Last night, in the course of this ritual, I came across a piece from Target Marketing titled What’s the Secret Mix for Social Media Success?

Marketing 82

Marketing Marketing Nonprofits 82

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Management

Getting Attention

FEBRUARY 3, 2015

' Try this fundraising mash-up to close the giving gap you might not know you have! Mix these insights on giving patterns of rich vs. middle- and lower-income donors with Sea Change Strategies’ take— The Missing Middle: Neglecting Middle Donors is Costing You Millions —and you get a clear call to action for every fundraiser and nonprofit communicator.

Values 77

Values Marketing Marketing Fundraising 77

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

FEBRUARY 10, 2015

'Peter Panepento. I am very excited to welcome Peter Panepento to our distinguished list of regular guest bloggers. Peter will be sharing his wisdom and tips with us monthly on the intersections of media relations, content strategy and social media. ~Kivi. Guest Post by Peter Panepento of Panepento Strategies. I came across an old group photo the other day when I was cleaning out some of my files — a picture of me with about 20 other reporters and editors who had gathered at the University of M

Public and Nonprofit Management 221

Public and Nonprofit Management Communication Universities Philanthropy 221

Nonprofit Marketing Blog

FEBRUARY 25, 2015

'What good is a monthly giving program if no one can learn more about how it will help further your mission? This week’s Recurring Giving Challenge lesson is all about highlighting your monthly giving program on your website. For the full lesson, sign up for the Challenge (and learn how you can win your share of $10K in prizes !). Here are a few highlights from a few stellar Network for Good clients (click on the images to see the full pages) : On Your Donation Page.

Agriculture 75

Agriculture Food 75

Fundraising Coach

FEBRUARY 19, 2015

'I''m honored to introduce Tycely Williams. Tycely impresses me with her ability to create solutions for nonprofits that can be sustained even with small staffs. Here are some of her thoughts on helping let fundraising permeate all the areas of your nonprofit. She''ll be expanding on these in her training for The Nonprofit Academy. Tycely is many things, including Regional Chief Development Officer for the American Red Cross.

Nonprofit governance and management 104

Nonprofit governance and management Participation and motivation Nonprofits Education 104

Speaker: Tim Sarrantonio, Director of Corporate Brand

Is your organization ready to build a recurring giving program that not only sustains but also propels your mission forward? 🚀 In this new webinar with industry visionary Tim Sarrantonio, we’ll guide you through the critical steps to establishing and scaling a successful recurring giving program. Whether you’re starting fresh or enhancing an existing program, this session will provide the strategies you need to deepen donor relationships and secure long-term support!

Nonprofits

NonProfit Hub

FEBRUARY 24, 2015

'March Madness is one of the annual rites of spring time—right along with setting your clocks back an hour and discovering what toys were hidden in the huge snow pile in the backyard. The NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament is an annual tradition that can turn even the most indifferent people into basketball fans for three weeks. Anyone can become a quick basketball expert by predicting that North Dakota State would beat Oklahoma or that Mercer can play superior basketball to Duke.

Fundraising 76

Fundraising Fundraising Nonprofits Law 76

The Agitator

FEBRUARY 10, 2015

'Tom and I’ve been focusing lots on the importance of ‘ donor-focused fundraising’ and essential ‘donor experiences’ In fact, we’ve invited Agitator readers to join us on February 17 th for a free webinar on fixing the donor experience. Fixing the problem of donor loss or seizing the opportunity of donor loyalty begins with an understanding of some fundamentals about relationships in general, and more specifically how these fundamentals apply to donors.

Retention 81

Retention Fundraising Fundraising 81

Getting Attention

FEBRUARY 4, 2015

'Get this! Media recluse Bob Dylan recently gave his first interview in a few years…to the AARP magazine. Dylan and his handlers were being crafty, not crazy, here. Dylan’s just-released album, Shadows in the Night, is 100% Sinatra covers. “Bob…wanted to reach the AARP audience. And he thought that this record would be more appreciated by people who had more wisdom and experience in life,” says Robert Love , publisher of the magazine.

Marketing 74

Marketing Marketing Nonprofits 74

Nonprofit Marketing Guide

FEBRUARY 17, 2015

'Image Credit: https://flic.kr/p/6K8pMh. Yearning for company, learning, or meaningful connections on Twitter? Try a Twitter chat! TWITTER CHAT A conversation that happens on Twitter that’s focused within a certain time (usually an hour) on a specific topic and by a specific person or organization. If you’re struggling to “get” Twitter, Twitter chats just may give you that “aha” moment that turns you into a fan of the platform.

Social Entrepreneurship 220

Social Entrepreneurship Entrepreneurship Education Education 220

Speaker: Joe Sharpe and James Carlson

Payroll optimization can be one of the most time-consuming and complex factors of small business management. Yet, organizations that crack the code on streamlining employee compensation often discover innovative avenues for growth. With the right strategies in place, outsourcing and streamlining payroll processes can result in substantial time and resource savings.

Foundations