Improving Donor Engagement Online
-
Upload
abila -
Category
Technology
-
view
2.591 -
download
1
Transcript of Improving Donor Engagement Online
#deo10
Improving Donor Engagement Online
Richard Dietz, Nonprofit R+D
2#deo10
Consultants have all the answers…
• Nope, not really
• Great at coming up with “Best Practices”
• Only way to know if it works for YOUR organization is to test
• Always be looking for what is working
3#deo10
Myth #6 (From the last webinar on Online Fundraising Myths)
The Only Real Way to Measure Fundraising
Success is the Amount of Money Raised
4#deo10
Myth - Success Equals $ Raised
• Think of the business world– “Sales funnel” = “Donor funnel”– Online donor >> Major Donor
• “Raising Friends” is another measure– Engagement >> Peer to Peer fundraising >> Funnel– Friend of a friend could be major donor
• Engagement is yet another measure– 7 touches before giving - get them involved
5#deo10
What are “Engaged Donors”
• Engaged Donors are those who are taking ACTIONS– Donate– Attend events– Volunteer– Recruit new donors
• Engaged Donors are those who are a part of your “Community”– Interacting and communicating WITH your organization– Interacting and communicating with others ABOUT your
organization (online and offline)– Building a relationship
6#deo10
Why do you want “Engaged Donors”?
• More cost-effective to renew a donor than find a new donors
• Engaged donors extend your organization’s reach into the world
• Engaged donors do more:– More frequent donations, larger donations– Take more actions– Tell more people about your organization– Peer to Peer fundraising
7#deo10
How to Tell if Your Donors Are “Engaged”
• They are taking actions– Back to the definition of an engaged donor
• Social Media– Increased mentions– Increased fans / followers
• Increased traffic to website– From social media, emails, etc.
8#deo10
Ideas to Nurture Engagement Online
9#deo10
Mind the Gap
• The “Engagement Gap”– The gap between a first time donor and an “engaged donor”
• What do you do with your first time donors?
• Need multiple ways / methods to get involved
• Need a graduated offering of actions– Start simple (forward this email)– Move on to more involved actions (peer to peer fundraising)
10#deo10
ASK!
1) Ask them to do small favors– Tell a friend, forward email, sign petition, comment on blog,
volunteer– Every simple action will deepen the engagement and bond
2) Ask them what they want / need / care about– Easy way to engage and get them to do a small favor– The results will allow you to tailor content to what they care
about
11#deo10
Events
• In person and online events– In person - Gala, meetups, etc.– Online - webinars, online chats, Tweets, etc.
• Get to know them on a personal level– Deepen the bond and cultivate those major donors
• Smaller niche events– Eg. Women’s Caucus or Austin Chapter– Easier for individuals to connect
12#deo10
Listen / Connect with Influencers
• Always remember that engagement is a conversation
• Don’t just listen on your site, go where the conversations are already taking place– Facebook, Twitter, etc.– Largest growth on Facebook is 35+ year olds, with the 55+ crowd
growing at 922%
• Join the conversations in an authentic way
• Accept and respond to criticism
• Identify Influencers and engage them separately– Provide extra support to help them spread the word
13#deo10
Give Them the Content They Want
• Community Philanthropy 2.0 survey, donors (30-49) want to hear about:– Organizational Impact (80%)– Success Stories (74%)– More details about the organization (71%)– Info on financial accountability (43%)
• Segment and tailor your content– Examples - Obama and Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
• Make it easy to pass it on– Tell-A-Friend / Forward This Page
14#deo10
Make It Easy
• Make it easy to stay in touch– Capture emails, blog updates, RSS feeds
• Make it easy to spread the word– Tell-A-Friend / Email this Page– Social Media Icons
• Make it easy to interact– Blog commenting– Online forums– Facebook and Twitter widgets on website
15#deo10
Nurturing Engagement in New Versus Established Donors
16#deo10
Nurturing New Donors• Welcome Email(s)
– 1st 30 days is key - Research in retail sector– Higher open rates, click-throughs, and actions
• Special invitations to events / opportunities– “Since you are a new donor…..”
• Give updates on how their donations are helping– Give specific examples / Use emotion
• Ask them to tell others– Tell-A-Friend scripts, social media, etc.
17#deo10
Nurturing Established Donors
• Identify your most passionate donors and give them additional support– Need to identify them (CRM, Sage Fundraising Online, etc.)– Help them to spread the word
• Segment and speak directly to them– Online tools make this much easier– Separate emails for your top supporters
• Special Recognition– Events for repeat donors only (VIP’s)– Recognize at live events and in print
• Name tags / Badges in community / Article in newsletter
18#deo10
Tools to Engage Donors
• Constituent Relationship Management (CRM)
• Tell-A-Friend / Send this article
• Google alerts
• Social media icons
• Sage Fundraising Online
19#deo10
Conclusion
• Donor engagement can lead to many good outcomes
• Only YOU can figure out what works for YOUR organization
• Check out the new online tools like Sage Fundraising Online
20#deo10
Question and Answer
Register for the next webcast in the series:Peer-to-Peer Fundraising
http://bit.ly/apHuSp
Contact Richard Dietz:
512-850-6501
Contact Sage:
www.sagenonprofit.com
800-811-0961
21#deo10
Connect with Sage Contest
Enter for your chance to win a $5000 unrestricted grant
www.connectwithsage.com