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Picture Worth A Thousand Words

Confess! Do you ever do this? We saw this on Seth Godin's marketing blog. As he captioned it: “Not my job!” From cleaning out the office fridge to cleaning up someone else's dirty data or their “not-quite-there” draft, we all side-step responsibility from time to time. But let's resolve to do it less! PS: Don't […]

Learn More December 10, 2006

Sharp Enough for Acumen Fund?

We noticed on Seth Godin's blog that Acumen Fund is looking for a Chief Development Officer. From what we know of Acumen Fund, this is not a job for a “been there, done that” development officer. The Fund has a decidedly entrepreneurial style, and we suspect the right candidate needs to be a breaker of […]

Learn More December 6, 2006

The Vanishing Donor

In case you missed it during the Thanksgiving hubbub, Holly Hall had a great piece in the Chronicle of Philanthropy on donor retention, called The Vanishing Donor. The article provides some concrete examples of nonprofits like CARE and the University of Montreal who have improved their retention game, and features advice from fundraising consultant Penelope […]

Learn More December 5, 2006

Podcasts – The Segway Of New Media

Remember the Segway? You know, the self-balancing, self-propelled two-wheeler that was going to revolutionize personal transportation? I used to sit in my office overlooking Connecticut Avenue in Washington and watch this same dude cruise down the avenue at a brisk clip almost every day, dodging potholes, oversized sidewalk cracks, and of course pedestrians. One day […]

Learn More December 4, 2006

A Raise from The Agitator for MSF Netherlands

In light of yesterday's post about what consumers look for in “reliability”…and in light of the fact that a week ago, under the title of “Simple But Ignored” we posted a piece on the importance of placing donor testimonials on organizations' websites. And we promised an “Agitator Raise” to anyone doing so. Well, no sooner […]

Learn More December 1, 2006

No Money Please, We’re British

About the only joy of living on airplanes is that I get to Europe frequently and can then tune in to all the channels of the BBC. One of my favorite programs (programmes) on the Beeb as the Brits call it, is Hard Talk. The sometimes puckish, often downright aggressive talking heads, always preppy and […]

Learn More November 29, 2006

Tell All …and Send Your Secret Bedroom Photos

Here at The Agitator find ourselves immersed in a real and very heated debate. Tom says that, in the interest of “transparency” and “accountability” anyone's contributions should be public and readily available online. Roger says, “it's no one's damn business and this sort of mindset is a real and present danger to civil liberties.” Of […]

Learn More November 27, 2006

Youth & Politics – Treasury of Data

Agitator confesses to being asleep at the switch back in October when The Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE, funded by Pew and Carnegie) released its massive study on the civic and political engagement of youth (ages 15-25). CIRCLE's 2006 National Civic and Political Health Survey is a massive treasury […]

Learn More November 22, 2006

Ten Trends Transforming Marketing Measurements

Max Kalehoff is my man. He's VP of Marketing at Nielsen BuzzMetrics, a firm specializing in measuring consumer-generated media (you know, like blogs and YouTube videos). Never met Max, but find him a constant source of superb insight into how to measure and analyze consumer behavior. Our previous posts on consumer engagement and “happy losers” […]

Learn More November 18, 2006

Fundraisers Versus Communicators

You're probably overdosed on post-election punditry by now, but the Agitator just can't resist applying some of the smart analysis we've read to the fundraising and communications missions of progressive advocacy groups. Why? Because a classic battle is about to intensify within many cause groups. “Fundraisers” — whose mission is self-explanatory — thrive primarily by […]

Learn More November 15, 2006

Ask A Behavioral Scientist

Behavioral Science Q & A

Q: Do you have any insight on whether integrating an individual giving appeal with other comms from the charity in both appearance and messaging can uplift results? Or does the actual appeal become ‘lost’ for lack of stand-out?

Integrating an individual giving appeal with other communications from a charity can have both positive and negative effects, and the outcome largely depends on how it’s executed. Advantages of Integration Brand Consistency: Maintaining a consistent appearance and messaging across all communications can reinforce the org’s brand identity and strengthen brand recognition and trust among your […]

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Q: Is there any research on response rate impact in direct mail when referring to a sustainer gift as ongoing or recurring (catching all frequencies) v. monthly or annual?

I’m not aware of any in-market tests specifically comparing recurring vs. gift frequency language. I suspect the answer might not be the same with all gift frequencies, nor with all people. It sounds like a great opportunity for you to test and find out what works for your audience. Based on the literature, here’s a couple […]

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Q: A major conservation nonprofit sends me lots of mail, many of which have on the envelope “time to renew” or “2nd notice.” I find this practice deceptive, especially as I haven’t given to said organization since 1997. It must be effective or they wouldn’t do it. But is it ethical?

Based on what we know from existing data, those renewal notices can actually be pretty effective in getting people to donate. They tap into our psychology – creating a sense of urgency, reminding us of past support, and using personalization to make the message hit home. They’re playing on our natural tendencies to feel obligated […]

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Q: I find it irritating when some nonprofits accept my “gift” and then ask me to cover their credit card fees separately. It feels like a practice that does nothing to help win donors and runs the risk of turning others off. Is there any data on this either way?

Interesting question. I had a quick look at the testing done on this topic. On the positive side, in all cases, over half of donors decide to cover the fee. In some cases, it goes as high as 65%. Not a negligible percentage at all. Here’s another test from iRaiser showing consistent results (see point […]

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Q: What are the three most important things to consider when designing a brilliant supporter journey?

There’s just one thing to consider when designing a supporter journey: the supporter. More specifically, you need to take into account: Who the supporter is i.e. their identity, which is the reason they support this cause, and their personality, which describes the way they “see” and process the world. These will determine the kind of […]

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Q: Is there any evidence that changes to the tax laws in the USA changed end of year giving behaviors? Previously, ~30% of US taxpayers filed itemized tax returns allowing them to receive a deduction for charitable giving. Tax law changed in 2017 so that now only ~10% itemize. This should mean tax year-end giving should not matter to millions of people for whom it used to matter. Is there any data evidence to support this?

I’m not an expert in this but a quick search surfaced this article on the effect of tax reforms on 2019’s charitable giving. The researchers didn’t find a reduction. Actually, they observed an “increase in charitable contributions in 2019, even with the lower tax rates and the dramatically smaller number of taxpayers who itemize their […]

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Uncategorized

Picture Worth A Thousand Words

Sharp Enough for Acumen Fund?

The Vanishing Donor

Podcasts – The Segway Of New Media

A Raise from The Agitator for MSF Netherlands

No Money Please, We’re British

Tell All …and Send Your Secret Bedroom Photos

Youth & Politics – Treasury of Data

Ten Trends Transforming Marketing Measurements

Fundraisers Versus Communicators

Ask A Behavioral Scientist

Behavioral Science Q & A

Q: Do you have any insight on whether integrating an individual giving appeal with other comms from the charity in both appearance and messaging can uplift results? Or does the actual appeal become ‘lost’ for lack of stand-out?

Q: Is there any research on response rate impact in direct mail when referring to a sustainer gift as ongoing or recurring (catching all frequencies) v. monthly or annual?

Q: A major conservation nonprofit sends me lots of mail, many of which have on the envelope “time to renew” or “2nd notice.” I find this practice deceptive, especially as I haven’t given to said organization since 1997. It must be effective or they wouldn’t do it. But is it ethical?

Q: I find it irritating when some nonprofits accept my “gift” and then ask me to cover their credit card fees separately. It feels like a practice that does nothing to help win donors and runs the risk of turning others off. Is there any data on this either way?

Q: What are the three most important things to consider when designing a brilliant supporter journey?

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