Uncategorized - Agitator

Board Meeting Swipe File

Let’s Burn Some Donors

A group of web developers created a competition: who can design the worst possible volume control? The results are funny, including random number generators, setting the volume level at your longitude automatically, and having to brush in front of a virtual curling stone to get it to the volume number you want. It made me […]

Learn More September 23, 2019

Agitators Out on Strike

Today we’re shutting down the Agitator Global HQ and heading out to participate in today’s international climate strike. You’ll recall when Greta Thunberg, a Swedish school student, sat in front of the Swedish parliament building with her hand-painted “Skolstrejk för klimatet” sign, she kick-started a worldwide movement. It wasn’t the first time school […]

Learn More September 20, 2019

Are F-2-F Managers Squandering Millions?

I fear the answer is “Yes.” Today there are at least a dozen major US nonprofits that are collectively spending tens of millions on F-2-F campaigns. My fear is that many are wasting their organization’s and their donors’ dollars because the Target Benchmark data on retention for F2F, street acquired sustainers is sobering and suggests […]

Learn More September 18, 2019

First DonorVoice Online Behavioral Symposium Speaker Line-Up (and Six Other Updates from the Month that Was)

Online Behavioral Symposium update: You’ve hopefully already saved the date for the first DonorVoice Online Behavioral Symposium on September 30th and October 1st (if not, save your spot now). This is the Symposium where academics and practitioners come together to share insights and promote collaborations in our 1st online behavioral symposium. It will be hosted […]

Learn More September 16, 2019

Revenge of the Branders

In London earlier this week Adrian Sargeant and Alan Clayton publicly presented the findings of their report Brand and Great Fundraising: Help or Hindrance? Here’s a summary of the Report’s findings that The Agitator shared with its readers: Spending on a charity’s brand is most effective when it is used to support fundraising. Fundraising expenditure […]

Learn More September 13, 2019

I Hold You In Contempt!

It is one thing to have contempt for your donors and constituents. It’s another to show them you have contempt for them. The former isn’t recommended (see: every previous Agitator post); the latter is fatal. People fear executives and board members because they can fire you. Donors can fire executives and board members by not giving. […]

Learn More September 11, 2019

Latest Survey on Why Donors Give

The new DonorGraphics study is out from One & All and it’s full of interesting data on stated donor preferences. One of the survey questions asked donors what is their main reason for giving charitably.. Possible responses were: To address/impact needs in my local community To address/impact needs worldwide To fund organizations that enrich my […]

Learn More September 9, 2019

Neglected Treasure

Nick’s post on How Asking Affects the Askedemphasized the importance of requesting feedback directly from the donor and explains why that feedback is so important and so valuable. There’s another form of feedback and I’m afraid in our highly automated, often impersonal processes it’s been lost: the comments donors write on their response forms or […]

Learn More September 6, 2019

Board Meeting Bingo

In various conversations at Bridge and ANA conference recently, there was an undercurrent across organizations and fundraisers: my board won’t let me do X because Y. Or, conversely, my board is insisting we do Z despite my protestations. The person saying this is often a seasoned development professional, respected by their peers but not as […]

Learn More September 4, 2019

Hurricane Dorian and the Season Ahead

From Hurricane Katrina in 2005 to this year’s Hurricane Dorian The Agitator follows fundraising fallout from major storms and natural disasters. As I write this early in the morning of the U.S. Labor Day the path of Dorian is still uncertain. What is for sure is that this is a big (huge) storm and holds the […]

Learn More September 2, 2019

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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Board Meeting Swipe File

Let’s Burn Some Donors

Agitators Out on Strike

Are F-2-F Managers Squandering Millions?

First DonorVoice Online Behavioral Symposium Speaker Line-Up (and Six Other Updates from the Month that Was)

Revenge of the Branders

I Hold You In Contempt!

Latest Survey on Why Donors Give

Neglected Treasure

Board Meeting Bingo

Hurricane Dorian and the Season Ahead

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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