The Agitator Evolves
We’re determined to offer readers of The Agitator just what our tagline promises … Fundraising & Advocacy Strategies, Trends, Tips … with an Edge.
We put plenty of people-hours into that mission each week, and appreciate the many public and private messages of support you send … as well as the support evidenced by our steadily growing daily subscriber audience.
So we hope you don’t mind that, to maintain and deepen our service, we’ve evolved The Agitator in two new directions.
First, as you see from the format of today’s email feed, we’ve begun to accept advertising. And if you visit our new website, you’ll see advertising there as well.
We welcome Grizzard … Craver, Mathews, Smith & Company … the International Fundraising Congress … Production Solutions … and Daryl Upsall Consulting International as our inaugural advertisers. Others are readying their creative. Their support will enable us to provide a continuing, robust, free service to both our daily subscribers and the thousands who "drop in" on The Agitator website each month. The Agitator like you’ve known it … and better.
Second, for a few months now, we’ve been offering a deeper resource to fundraising and communications professionals via our Agitator Premium service.
For a modest annual fee, Agitator Premium offers more analysis and recommendations regarding donor trends based on our own research, more "best of" third-party resources we’ve collected and vetted for our private stash, and periodic telebriefings with the two of us on critical fundraising issues like donor loyalty and generational shifts in giving.
We’ll be putting more resources into adding content and tools to the Premium service in coming months. But it’s a value already … check it out here!
So, going forward, you can enjoy The Agitator in two doses — Mildly Agitated or, for the stout-hearted, Extremely Agitated. Either way, we hope a visit to The Agitator will leave you invigorated … and eager for more!
Roger & Tom
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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