Your Most Important Hire
If you’re serious about raising money and selling your agenda today, the most important individual on your marketing team is your webmaster.
And if you’re serious about raising money and selling your agenda five or more years out (and hopefully that’s not too far beyond your planning horizon), make sure this individual has their own personal key to the restroom!
“Bah, humbug!” you say. In a moment I’ll make the case.
But first I should explain that I’m using “webmaster” as shorthand to describe the person, by whatever title, who is dedicated to knowledgeably driving your organization’s overall use of online (and other digital) technology and tactics for marketing purposes.
“Dedicated” means it’s their primary day-to-day responsibility. “Knowledgeably” means they’re savvy enough technically to appreciate what the best tools out there are and what they can really do to advance your fundraising and communications objectives, but not so geeky that they can’t engage around marketing issues. Now such people — with the right blend of technical and marketing smarts — are really tough to find. If you’ve got one, you’re damn lucky!
Now, why are they so important?
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