Sue’s Muse

Target Analysis has just released its 2009 2nd quarter report …the Index of National Fundraising Performance, - which includes 36 million donors who gave 68 million gifts or, in round numbers, almost $2 billion in donations. The report focuses mainly on direct mail, but also includes web, telemarketing and face to face canvassing.  Gifts over $5,000 were excluded. 

Once again, to no one’s surprise, all key metrics showed a decline in the 1st half of 2009 when compared to 2008.  The main decline continues to be attributed to the low acquisition rate of new donors.  Loyal donors have, and will continue to be, the ones who make a difference in an organization’s bottom line. 

Direct response donors have been declining over the past 5 years … most noticeably after the hurricanes of 2005.  Reason?  They are numerous … but the ones that stand out are a declining direct response donor population, the economy and an increased focus by organizations on major gifts. 

So - where should you put your limited organizational resources?  Should you drop investment in direct response programs … invest only in major gifts, cause marketing, foundations, and planned giving?  If anything, what the analysis shows is that organizations that invest across the board are feeling the least impact from the current economic crisis.  Diversification is key!

This is not a time for the timid … nonprofits should look at continued investment in all direct response vehicles … including acquisition, cultivation and second gift strategies.  Why?

To quote my good friend and Direct Response guru extraordinaire … Roger Craver: 

“If an organization truly understands the source of its gifts and understands how the process of upgrading over the years truly works (in spite of what most organizations or consultants do), they would be willing to pay far more for the right type of newly acquired donor. Why? Because in virtually all organizations a significant portion of the major gifts spring from the ‘small’ gift programs and so do significant numbers (although not the majority) of bequests. And when these riches are imputed back to acquisition costs, the return on investment is terrific.”

I couldn’t say it any better myself!

Regards,

Sue

No flies on you … you’ve invested time and organizational resources on your social networking sites.  You can now be found on all the biggies … Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Flickr, and YouTube.  But is all this effort really paying off?  

I have always viewed social media sites as marketing tools … a way to share information about organizations, causes and programs.  It was simply a bonus when sites created opportunities to support nonprofits through such programs as TwitCause, Twitgiftly, Facebook Causes, and YouTube Nonprofit.

According to a recent article in eMarketer, … enhanced relationships, building a brand and lead generation are also benefits of investing in social networking.  Even though the article is focused on commercial use … it is not hard to see how these same tactics and strategies can be used to promote nonprofits.

So - is it all paying off?  Well let’s check some numbers … Twitter is estimated to currently have 18 million users in the USA (a 200% increase from 2008), and Facebook now reaches over 300 million world wide.  Yeah, I would say that that kind of outreach could really pay off.

Regards,

Sue

I have been an avid reader of Seth Godin’s (author of Permission Marketing) blog ever since I first heard him speak at a Get Active Conference several years ago.  Ideas such as “Small is the new big because big has gone from a huge advantage to a liability” and “The ability to change fast is the single best asset for any person or organization” really resonated.

In Seth’s latest blog he chides nonprofits for not being the top 100 followers on Twitter.  Is the work you’re doing not important enough to follow, or is it (and I’m betting it is) paralysis in decision making in the face of change?

I have to admit that I can’t buy in 100% to his theory that nonprofits are paralyzed by fear … oh yes there is resistance at some nonprofits when the word CHANGE is mentioned … but that is also true in many commercial businesses? (Need I mention the term bailout?)

So I decided to look at the top 10 charities listed in the Chronicle of Philanthropy.  Leaving out two which are gift funds, of the remaining eight –  four have prominent social network links on their homepages, one you have to click through to join our community which then has links, leaving three with no social media mentions. (Two of these are affiliate-based, and many their local chapters use a variety of social networking tools.) 

The top 100 Twitter followers – well let’s see. There are numerous celebrities, political bloggers, national media outlets and, oh yeah … “The World Economic Forum” ranked at #76, a Swiss international not-for-profit foundation.  We progress!

Regards,

Sue

Get your Twitter accounts ready … Twestival begins today!   Folks in over 40 US communities and 90 other cities worldwide are using their Twitter accounts to invite their friends and family to attend events and support local charities.  

Are you surprised?  A very clever idea that taps into one of the top four reasons people give, according to a survey conducted by Harris Interactive and Virilion. 1- Personal connection to an issue, 2- good reputation, 3- national disaster and 4- attending a benefit or event.

Hats off to Amanda Rose from England who thought of the concept that raised about a thousand UK Pounds in 2008 for one charity - to numerous events around the globe that raised over $250,000 in February 09 and is anticipating well over $400,000 this time round.  To find out about Twestival venues, simply go to www.twestival.com.  Enjoy your weekend tweeting!

Regards,

Sue

Recently while listening to one of my favorite TV talk shows … a guest possed the question ”Why would anybody blog - it’s so yesterday!”  The speaker seemed to feel that everyone should communicate in 140 characters or less. 

I will admit that sometimes folks do drone on … I mean “Why use 4 to 5 words when 10 will do?  Where can one go to share thoughts and ideas with oodles more characters? 

You could try Woofer.  It is a micro-blogging site set up initially as a gag by a couple of friends (Peter Martin and Portman Wills) in around three hours.  The main difference?  Woofer requires a minimum of 1,400 characters.  So much for the gag … the site has over 11,000 users and 13,000 woofs.  We will have to wait to see if it really does become a Twitter competitor.

For those real Twitter fans who simply don’t have time to go through all the palaver of finding just the right Tweet or multiple Tweets to stay current … then Tweetmix just might be for you.  Tweetmixx will match your interests, while ensuring that you don’t receive multiple Tweets on a common subject.  Very clever software -  just tell them your pursuits and specially selected Tweets will soon be coming your way!

How does this relate to your constituents?  Social net-workers are like donors … some Tweet, some use Facebook, MySpace, YouTube and, yes, even good old blogs. They have a preferred channel … just like donors prefer to give through mail, online, phone, face to face, or participating in an event.   

Don’t try and make the choice for them … use every channel available. Your donors will use their preferred way, so make sure your message is there.

Lastly - this business changes constantly. Stay awake, learn about any new channels and make sure you appear on the new ones that last, say, a couple of months - they could be the next New Big Thing.

Regards,

Sue

Imagine that you are in a foreign country … you want to go for a bike ride … you send out a Twitter saying where you will be in around 6 hours and hope some folks can join you.  You figure around 50 - 60 people will show up.  You get there and there are over 1,000 people waiting to ride with you!

That is what happened to Lance Armstrong recently in Dublin, Ireland.  Yeah okay I hear you … that was Lance Armstrong … but it shows how quickly a Twitter message can spread … especially from the right messenger.

To Tweet or not to Tweet … it has to be the easiest decision for a nonprofit to make if you are wanting to either get into the social network space or add to your tool kit.  Unlike other social networks that require significant time and resource to update pages and pictures … Twitter can provide a quick snapshot on programs, promote an event, ask for support or provide 3rd party endorsement in less then 140 characters. 

You can:  Share images (Flickr2Twitter), Share video (Tweetube), Raise Money (Twitpay), Lobby (Tweet your Senator), Start a petition (Twitition) … there is also TwitCause and Twitgiftly just to name a few possible uses.  

Why are so many Twittering?  Simplicity.

If you aren’t already doing so … why not start Twittering … and if you are … keep up the outreach … who knows - your 50 - 60 followers may also turn into thousands!

Regards,

Sue

I have been searching for several months to find something that would excite, entice and entreat me to start up Sue’s Muse again.  I found it yesterday! 

Years ago, in a session at some fundraising conference … the speaker shared a piece of information that I have never forgotten - even if I have forgotten many other details!

” A key indicator as to how well you will do with your organizational fundraising efforts is the S & P 500.”

Today, however, according to Ylan Q. Mui of the Washington Post , you can kiss the S & P 500 goodbye and instead, start watching the sales of men’s underwear.  Yes, you read that correctly … men’s underwear sales are a key indicator of how quickly the economy will bounce back. 

Why?

According to the article … it is one of those necessities that normally have stable sales … except during a downturn economy … when men will buy less and/or try and stretch the time between purchases.  It appears that men’s singular underwear sales have increased between 2004 and 2008 while purchases of multi-packs have decreased over the same period.  Are you are beginning to see the correlation?

I certainly don’t find this hard to believe … as a woman who has worn pantyhose over the years … making numerous annual purchases of said torture garments … I could pretty well rely on the fact that many of my male colleagues were still wearing socks from their high school days. 

So, as you get together with your boards, volunteers or CEO … check before your meeting … and if men’s underwear sales are up, or at least stabilizing … you can report that you just might be headed for a banner year!

Regards,

Sue