Uncategorized - Agitator

Behavioral Science Posts

Can Your Organization Raise Money Now?

We aren’t raising the question of “should” your organization be raising money. The question we’re asking is “how viable “will your fundraising be in this time of crisis? The answer? It depends. But first, a major caveat. The situation we are in is very different from those analyzed or theorized about in the past and […]

Learn More March 25, 2020

Emergency Aid for Nonprofits– Call to Action for US Orgs

The governments of Canada, the UK and Australia have announced they will assist nonprofits and small business suppliers with a variety of subsidies and other help. More on that later in this post. U.S. Organizations Take Action Today Meanwhile, in the U.S., as we write this on Monday evening the U.S. Senate is coming down […]

Learn More March 24, 2020

ACTION ALERT: Lifesaving Legislation for U.S. Nonprofits and Their Supply Chain

Drop everything and get your CEO, board members and top leaders on the phone first thing MONDAY morning. Here’s why. Congress is right now at work on the “Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act”. Short-titled the CARES ACT, this emergency financial legislation was drafted by the Republicans in the U.S. Senate and is now being circulated […]

Learn More March 22, 2020

Cancer Wrote This Book

When we mourned the passing of John Haydon, our friend and inspiration, we noted that his last act was to finish a book that distilled his life’s work and insights. Kivi Leroux Miller of Bold and Bright Media led a team of four editors as they rushed to get John’s book, DonorCARE: How to Keep Donors Coming […]

Learn More March 20, 2020

A Closer Look at the Big Five and Personalized Persuasion

My last post introduced the “Big Five” or “Five-Factor” model of personality traits and offered a glimpse of the way personality insights can be useful for donor segmentation and campaign messaging. We’re sticking with these topics in this post but going a little deeper. A Brief History of the Big Five I want to first […]

Learn More March 18, 2020

Stop Toilet Paper Hoarding. Start Empowering Your Donors.

Everyone has an opinion and advice on what to do about the Coronavirus Pandemic. Even ISIS has weighed in, warning its followers to stay away from Europe so they don’t get infected. Here at The Agitator we’re focused on the effects the pandemic will have on fundraising in hopes we can offer some helpful insights, […]

Learn More March 16, 2020

Fundraising Data- Part 3: Own Your Data

Looking back at the implementation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) with nearly 2 years of hindsight, it seems that almost everyone went crazy on the issue of consent and that pendulum is only now just starting to swing back to sanity. What was lost in the scramble and panic over consent was any […]

Learn More March 13, 2020

8 Key Steps for Turning Data into Fundraising Information

Editor’s Note: More and more organizations are using a variety of software applications to meet their fundraising and activist needs. Perhaps a CRM for the main database of record, then a digital application for advocacy, another for social media, an additional one for major gifts and yet another for events. All too often this mashup of software […]

Learn More March 9, 2020

The Bigger World of Behavioral Science

In his Agitator debut our new expert on supporter motivation explains why the time has come for nonprofits to more fully access the psychological insights and tools available to them and maximize their fundraising potential. Traditionally, “motivation” has been seen as an attribute that varied only by amount: folks can be either more or less […]

Learn More March 4, 2020

Does Hand Size Predict Fundraising Success?

A belief, once firmly held, is hard to change, even when the evidence and data overwhelmingly refute that belief. Take male hand size. We all know it correlates with…lower fumble rate among NFL Quarterbacks (why, what were you thinking?) Every year at this time the NFL evaluates college players and their pro worthiness with something […]

Learn More March 2, 2020

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 […]

Read Full Answer

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 […]

Read Full Answer

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 […]

Read Full Answer

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 […]

Read Full Answer

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 […]

Read Full Answer

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 […]

Read Full Answer

Behavioral Science Posts

Can Your Organization Raise Money Now?

Emergency Aid for Nonprofits– Call to Action for US Orgs

ACTION ALERT: Lifesaving Legislation for U.S. Nonprofits and Their Supply Chain

Cancer Wrote This Book

A Closer Look at the Big Five and Personalized Persuasion

Stop Toilet Paper Hoarding. Start Empowering Your Donors.

Fundraising Data- Part 3: Own Your Data

8 Key Steps for Turning Data into Fundraising Information

The Bigger World of Behavioral Science

Does Hand Size Predict Fundraising Success?

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?

DonorVoice products

Commitment System

Donor Feedback Platform™

PreTest Tool

TouchPoint Mapping