Reality Check: How Grassroots Environmental Organizations Are (Or Are Not) Raising Money Online
- Fri, August 13 2010
- Filed under: Fundraising essentials
This is the title of a great eBook by Andy Robinson from the Institute for Conservation Leadership, available for free here.
Here are my favorite quotes:
“[While most fundraising is still offline…] Emerging technologies create great opportunities to engage donors, which can result in deeper commitment, a new pool of volunteers, greater board involvement, and more generous offline giving. The sweet spot is the place where old techniques and new technologies come together.” - Andy Robinson
“Much of what is true for successful offline fundraising is also true for online methods. The method is not the panacea; it’s all about the time and attention invested in creating a compelling message and a well-thought out plan; frequent and regular contact with potential donors; and tracking results and adapting accordingly. In the online world, there is faster access to data and greater opportunity to adapt, so over time it will cost less to deeply engage potential donors.”
— Meredith Emmett, Third Space Studio and Institute for Conservation Leadership consultant
The eBook looks at successful campaigns based on email outreach, friends-to-friends giving, contests, and integrated online-offline campaigns. It concludes:
•Despite the proliferation of communications tools, personal contact and relationship-building trump everything.
•Email may not yield a lot of online gifts - an easy-to-use link to the donation page will improve your returns - but repeated contact with donors and prospects will boost offline giving.
•Websites are still essential for effective fundraising - online and off, because offline donors research organizations online.
•Social networks like Facebook remain a lower-tier fundraising strategy — at least for now. They are for relationship-building, not dollars.
•Online recurring gifts are the future of fundraising: it’s easy for donors, it’s lucrative for nonprofits, and the renewal rates are extraordinary. If you have an online fundraising strategy — or even if you don’t — it’s time to prioritize monthly giving as part of the pitch.
•Perfect conditions never exist, so do what you can with what you’ve got — and do it now. Online efforts may take time to pay off, but that’s all the more reason to start now!
Comments
As someone who has worked with many non-profits as an auditor and now as a Board member it is clear to me that success of these organizations relies on strong fundraising. I certainly think that websites are a strong integrative tool for NFP’s to use as both a direct and an indirect fundraising tool. Direct online donations and a place to “trumpet” your organization is a great advantage for NFP’s who go this route. I believe that Governance Boards would do well to ensure they have someone with a strong IT background to help their organization make this happen.
Say well, like our import and export products using the Internet.
The company’s main clothing, bags, footwear, sports product export trade, all the products are exported to Europe, the United States and other countries. Company mainly through electronic business online platform for wholesale and retail business.
http://www.goecshop.com
So true(personal contact and relationship-building trump everything)
When you talk to someone and you communicate how much you care about them and what they need, you have their undivided attention.
I agree with robert. Very interesting. Love coming to this blog every week!
I should read this book. I wanna learn more about the non-profits. I’m glad that finally people see something more than a waist of time in facebook and this kind of online platforms.
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