Fleeing Flying
In his Changing the Air Travel Story post today, Seth Godin speculates that less and less business travel is inevitable, given the latest terrorist threats and resulting precautionary measures.
I never liked to fly, and for years made my weekly business trips from DC to NYC on the Metroliner. As a result, I watched one morning from a railcar in the Jersey Meadowlands as the Trade Towers burned.
I was fortunate to work at a place that had invested in state-of-the-art videoconferencing facilities connecting our principal offices. Lots of meetings occurred through that venue, saving lots of time and money. And of course there was a robust intranet, online remote access to the mothership archives, and so forth.
And now there's Skype, Gotomeeting.com and other tools for collaboration and connectivity.
It's probably prudent for most non-profits to take stock at this juncture and assess their ability to conduct business in a “no-fly” environment. Could you do it now? What tools would you need? What face-to-face contact is essential? What processes of collaboration, program implementation and decision-making would need to be altered and how?
You owe it to sound management and, more importantly, your employees' peace of mind.
Behavioral Science Q & A
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
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
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
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
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
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