Are we mobile? Not yet. Is that an issue? Not yet.
- Fri, April 16 2010
- Filed under: Fundraising essentials
A new study on mobile is out, and it shows only 10% of nonprofits are using mobile for outreach.
The study from Kaptivate sought to gauge the rate of mobile adoption among non-profits as well as to provide insight into the experience of Early Adopters. The survey findings reveal strong interest and excitement over mobile’s potential (not surprising post-Haiti) but also identifies a lack of confidence among non-profits on how to get started. Other key findings of this survey include a general call for: broader education on mobile media; more integration of mobile and social media; and more compelling technology for users and non-profits.
If you’re not mobile, you’re in good company. And that’s okay - for now, though not forever. Unless you’re working in response to a large-scale disaster or have a massive friends-to-friends fundraising campaign underway, you aren’t missing out yet. That will change soon - but that change is not quite upon us. Yet.
A recent Convio study found:
• 77% of respondents knew that they could donate via texting to support Haiti relief work
• 17% of Gen Y & 14% of Gen X donated to Haiti via texting
• 3% of both Boomer and Mature donated via texting
• 36% of all respondents would consider texting a donation after a crisis
• 31% would text a donation if a friend was raising money for a charity
Most of us don’t have optimized websites or email outreach. Nail the basics. Then think mobile.
UPDATE: Kaptivate has added the following in comments - well worth consideration:
Thanks for acknowledging our survey on mobile adoption. While I agree that the mobile opportunity is just getting underway for non-profits, the pace is picking up. Driving this momentum is the extraordinary penetration of the mobile medium. Today, there are over 270 million mobile phone subscribers and increasingly this mobile handset is the way your supporters access the internet and engage social media. When the mobile meant SMS text, the mobile opportunity was relegated to the millennial crowd and their fast-twitching opposable thumbs. The arrival of the web-enabled smartphone (i.e., iPhone, iPad, Blackberry, Android, etc.)—now used by over 70 million Americans and growing at a 4% clip per month—is transforming the opportunity. Now, this more feature rich mobile device is shifting the demographics of the user, presenting a richer user experience, and delivering the functionality and data that non-profits can used to begin engaging donors on their terms. Moreover, early adopters such as the Human Rights Campaign and the American Heart Association are beginning to demonstrate how integrating mobile into your marketing mix can have real impact on results. So, yes, we’re just getting started but the time to get smarter about mobile is now.
If readers want a quick primer on the next generation of mobile engagement and fundraising technology, they should take a quick peek here.
Comments
Good insights, we are working on a white paper for the Christian Leadership Alliance conference that comes to a similar conclusion.
Another piece of the puzzle is how fast this stuff is changing. It seems like once a month what you can do with mobile giving substantively changes.
Such a moving target means heavy investment may not even be given the chance to be returned before the game is changed.
Thanks for acknowledging our survey on mobile adoption. While I agree that the mobile opportunity is just getting underway for non-profits, the pace is picking up. Driving this momentum is the extraordinary penetration of the mobile medium. Today, there are over 270 million mobile phone subscribers and increasingly this mobile handset is the way your supporters access the internet and engage social media. When the mobile meant SMS text, the mobile opportunity was relegated to the millennial crowd and their fast-twitching opposable thumbs. The arrival of the web-enabled smartphone (i.e., iPhone, iPad, Blackberry, Android, etc.)—now used by over 70 million Americans and growing at a 4% clip per month—is transforming the opportunity. Now, this more feature rich mobile device is shifting the demographics of the user, presenting a richer user experience, and delivering the functionality and data that non-profits can used to begin engaging donors on their terms. Moreover, early adopters such as the Human Rights Campaign and the American Heart Association are beginning to demonstrate how integrating mobile into your marketing mix can have real impact on results. So, yes, we’re just getting started but the time to get smarter about mobile is now.
If readers want a quick primer on the next generation of mobile engagement and fundraising technology, they should take a quick peek at: http://tinyurl.com/y58bk9p
Thanks, Ron! I bumped your comments up to the post.
Mobile Adaption can be a daunting task for any marketer, especially because of how we have seen its popularity skyrocket since the release of the iphone just a few years ago. It unbelievable to see the immense effect it can have on people. Thanks for the great post. Those stats really show something interesting.