More on Broken Models…Much More!
Here are the takeaways from an article on the demise of AOL by one of our favorite tell-it-as-it-is marketing gurus and Guest Agitator Denny Hatch. But you should really read the whole piece and milk it for all its wisdom! The lessons apply to non-profit marketing as well.
If your business model has been a cash elephant for years, think long and hard about summarily changing it.
“The sale begins when the customer says yes.”
Bill Christensen, freelance copywriter
By that, Christensen means its imperative to continually resell the customer on the benefits of doing business with you.
Is every contact between you and your customers a delight for the customer? If not, make it so.
On June 29, 2006, I wrote a story about Zale Corp., a company that changed its business model without testing and with disastrous results. The title of the piece: Before Changing Your Business Model, Consult a Direct Marketer.” The only thing that will save AOL is to call Janice Brandt out of retirement and put her in charge.
It is virtually impossible to reach a live person at AOL. If you want help, prepare to get lost in auto-reply jail. Be accessible.
Do you know how your customer service people are treating your customersreally? Do you have secret shoppers continually pushing them and reporting back to HQ? If not, make it so.
A happy customer will tell three people. A dissatisfied customer will tell the world. For an exercise in vitriol, Google AOL sucks.”
* If you have achieved a marketing breakthrough do not blab to the press how smart you are. A competitor smarter than you are will leave you in his dust. Instead, just shut up and rake in the loot.
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 […]
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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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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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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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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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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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