Sue’s Muse

As many of you might have noticed it has been quiet on Sue’s Muse for the past week.  With the best intentions in the world I simply have not been able to make time to post to the blog.

I will be taking a wee break … collect my thoughts about the current status of the fundraising climate … and will return in early April! 

All the best!

Regards,

Sue

I am a big fan of FREE! 

Of course, there are those that look at that word more sceptically … and relate that if it is free, it can’t possibly be any good!  I totally disagree … especially when we are talking about sharing FREE ideas, lessons learned and fundraising advice!

This is why whenever I present at a conference … I list a number of publications such as Fundraising Success Magazine and eMarketer as great FREE resources for attendees. 

Another is the Online Discussion held by Chronicle of Philanthropy.   This is one FREE discussion that just might be worth your time.

Regards,

Sue

Chronicle of Philanthropy - Online Discussion Tuesday: Social Networking Tools

Join us Tuesday, February 17, at noon Eastern time for an online discussion about the difference among sites like Digg, Facebook, and Twitter — and how charities can use these tools to connect with potential supporters.

The guests:

Chris Garrett, an Internet marketing and new-media consultant in Yorkshire, England, and author of ProBlogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income. He founded OMIQ, a company that helps businesses with their online media.

John Haydon, a sales consultant in Boston and the publisher and founder of the Web site corporatedollar.org, which offers marketing advice to small nonprofit groups. Mr. Haydon is also the author of a recently released electronic book, Twitter Jump Start: The Complete Guide for Small Nonprofits.

The Chronicle’s online discussions are free and open to everyone. People who ask questions in advance have a better chance of getting answers.

Organizations and nonprofits nationwide are scrambling to raise their budgets, continue providing programs and simply trying to keep their heads above water during the current economical crisis.

Yet with all of this going on … The Kennedy Center is looking beyond its own four walls and offering a new program that shares its years of management experience with arts groups across the country.

According to a recent article by Washington Post writer, Jacqueline Trescott – The Kennedy Center is launching the “Arts in Crisis: A Kennedy Center Initiative.”   The “Initiative” provides an opportunity for arts administrators to talk with the center’s staff about the challenges they are facing including decreasing income and audience attendance.

Although this might not avert the continuing drop in arts offerings, staff cuts and, in a number of cases, bankruptcy … it is refreshing to see an organization reach out to provide ideas and support and be a true mentor to others. 

Groups can go to the “Arts in Crisis” website to register to get advice or become a mentor.  Congratulations to The Kennedy Center’s president, Michael Kaiser and two of its far-sighted board members … who had the vision to see how this type of investment will payoff in the long run. 

Regards,

Sue

Millard Fuller, the founder of Habitat for Humanity and The Fuller Center for Housing, died yesterday. 

What can you say about a man who gave away his wealth to fundraise for a small church-funded African American school in Mississippi, spent time in Africa on behalf of the Church of Christ and then returned to the USA with a concept of building no-interest housing for the poor - a concept that he made into reality?

Who today has not heard of Habitat for Humanity International?  From this simple concept begun in 1976, a number of other nonprofit organizations, such as Rebuilding Together and Brad Pitt’s New Orleans Make It Right project, are now working towards the same dream … to rid this country of substandard housing and homelessness.

“Millard Fuller’s drive and relentless commitment to affordable housing captured people’s imagination and changed lives around the world,” said J. Ronald Terwilliger, chair of Habitat for Humanity’s International Board of Directors.

In an earlier interview with the Chicago Tribune Mr. Fuller stated, “We want to make shelter a matter of conscience.”

Habitat has built more than 300,000 houses around the world, providing more than 1.5 million people with safe, decent and affordable housing.  I think we can all agree that he succeeded.

I have been asked by a number of clients and colleagues what results organizations have seen across the board for 2008 year-end giving.  As expected … the results have been varied. 

Nick Allen, one of the top consultants in online fundraising, and his team from Donordigital has just released some results they have seen for December 2008 vs. December 2007, in their latest enewsletter.

DONORS STEADY, AVERAGE GIFTS DOWN

Average gifts were down 20% to 35% in December 2008 compared to December 2007, but the number of donations was about the same. That’s what we’ve seen for several clients. The good news is that most donors continue to believe in the organizations they support. They continue to give, but – no surprise — they’re not giving as much as they did last year, especially at higher giving levels.

At the Target Analysis Internet Benchmarking meeting last week in New York, some organizations reported the same trend, while others reported year-end 2008 hit projections. Many groups were seeing a drop in $500+ gifts, which can have a big impact on average gift!

Search marketing showed similar trends — fewer Google users were searching to make donations. Those who did gave less on average than last year. Even so, search remains a vital part of many organizations’ year-end campaigns with ROI ranging from 5:1 to 20:1. Most search donations come from search on “brand terms.”

Because as many as half of search-driven donors may already be on an organization’s donor database, some believe it’s not worth buying brand terms (or getting them free via a Google Grant). But in the same way that Comcast buys “Comcast”, you want to do everything you can to make it easy for donors to find you, whether they are looking at organic or paid search results. And the ROI numbers prove it.

So if you fall into the 20% - 35% in average gifts raised, it appears that you are not alone!  And to no one’s surprise your loyal donors continue to remain your loyal donors … just perhaps not at the level they have donated to in the past. 

And, along with other online techniques and strategies, “Search” continues to play a significant role in online gifts. It is evident that everyone is continuing to be more conservative in their donating patterns … and I think it is safe to say that, until we see a significant shift in the economy, this will continue to be the rule rather than the exception.  

Best advice … continue to use the tools, strategies and techniques that have made your your fundraising plans successful in the past … cultivate and steward your donors, build trust in your brand, and share your challenges and successes with your donors.

Regards,

Sue