Why Does Obama’s Online Stuff Work So Well?
We’ve all heard the astounding stats about the Obama online fundraising machine … two million donors, giving regularly. A fundraiser’s dream.
But what is there about the Obama campaign’s online approach that makes it so effective?
Most would say that good marketing is of course abetted in the first instance by a good product. But what about marketing strategy and tactics?
Here, from interactive marketer Bryan Eisenberg is a decent crack at analyzing Obama’s online success from a commercial marketing perspective. Some of the attributes he notes:
- Focusing on building relationships and encouraging participation and engagement … knowing that contributions will follow.
- Mastering social media … meaning, having a sophisticated understanding of how different platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Flickr work and how their user communities use them, then developing campaign applications that are relevant to the gestalt of each platform.
- Paying attention to the technical details … Eisenberg cites the simplicity of the various sign-up forms as an example.
- Enforcing brand consistency in look, style and tone.
Good observations … and all relevant to nonprofit online fundraising.
Tom
2 responses to “Why Does Obama’s Online Stuff Work So Well?”
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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Dear Tom and Roger,
I have an entry for “You Ought to be Fired” and sadly it involves the Obama campaign. Here goes …
My husband and I were visiting Chicago last week on vacation. We thought it would be cool to stop by the Obama headquarters to get buttons etc. for ourselves and other FOB’s. We got the address of the national HQ and happily headed off.
We were first greeted by the building’s security officer who told we weren’t allowed up. We asked about other local Obama offices. She didn’t know, saw an Obama staffer walking by and called her over.
Well, this woman looked like a deer caught in the headlights. She told us we couldn’t come up. We said we understood, but wanted to visit an office in Obama’s home town to buy buttons. She said we should do it online. She asked where we were from and told us we should visit the office there. Then she took off as fast as she could possibly get away. This wasn’t exactly the experience we were expecting. And…we could have come there with a big check in our pocket.
So, we turned from happy Obama supporters, volunteers and donors to dismayed and unhappy people who are not going to continue volunteering or giving.
As a fundraiser for over 20 years, here’s why I think the Obama team ought to be fired. 1) They should train everyone on staff with talking points for the many questions and situations that might arise when meeting members of the public; 2) they should know where to direct people who ask questions like this; 3) if they truly see their efforts as grassroots campaigning, they should not look at members of the public as if they were going to mug them.
I suppose I expected better as the online Obama campaign is a wonderful, empowering experience. I was wrong.
One thing Obama has that we do not is the attention of the nation. I wonder how well his campaign would do if he was not on the news every night. I also wonder how donors would respond to a “nonpolitical” organization that sent out as many emails and text messages to their supporters as Obama & McCain do. I wonder if we allow ourselves to be “solicited” more because we know after November that it will be done.
I’m really interested to see what Obama does with his 2 million plus mailing list after the election. He is a pioneer in online campaigns and it is a really amazing to watch.