Selfish Giving

SEPTEMBER 2, 2009

Renata von Tscharner, President of The Charles River Conservancy (CRC), isn’t sure why Absolut chose her organization to receive the charitable windfall from its new Absolut Boston Vodka. But she’s thrilled they did. Under the agreement, CRC will receive a $50,000 gift from Absolut that the Boston-based environmental group will use for programs that are generally difficult to fund. “Advocacy work is one area,&# said Renata, “and volunteer programs that help repair and be

Marketing 233

Marketing Marketing Environmental Retail 233

Nonprofit Tech for Good

SEPTEMBER 25, 2009

With over 45 million active users worldwide, LinkedIn is a social networking site that is becoming much more than just a place to have a Web 2.0 resume. Recently they have added many new tools and will likely be adding more in the coming year. Here are three simple, but powerful ways that nonprofits can use LinkedIn: 1) Create a Group : Make sure you create the group under the “Nonprofit&# category and select “Yes&# to both being listed in the “Groups Directory&# and that your

Recruitment 79

Recruitment Nonprofits Activism Technology 79

Kivi's Nonprofit Communications Blog

SEPTEMBER 25, 2009

If you ask veterans of hard-fought political campaigns which matters most, what a person feels or what a person thinks about your candidate, without exception, they will tell you that heart overrules head in the voting booth. The same goes for the way we make purchasing decisions, the way people vote on juries, and whether we support charitable causes.

Advertising 74

Advertising Recruitment Universities Marketing 74

The Agitator

SEPTEMBER 30, 2009

Yesterday we reported our Agitator survey results on current nonprofit fundraising priorities. The survey was triggered by our desire to get a sense of how fundraisers planned to fit social media (Facebook etc) into their marketing mix over the next twelve months. We weren’t surprised by the results — major gift fundraising and and direct mail will be the workhorses, with "conventional" (if I dare use that term already) online fundraising — email appeals, donate pages,

Technology 71

Technology Values Nonprofit Management Marketing 71

Fundraising Coach

SEPTEMBER 4, 2009

All week, I’ve been sharing the answers I’ve been giving to questions I’ve been getting on how to effectively use Twitter. The first two were on what I use to tweet and how to find interesting people to follow. Today is the final installment: What are hashtags? (And why should I care?). What are “hashtags&# ? “Hashtags&# are labels created with the # symbol.

Production 71

Production Fundraising Fundraising Marketing 71

Get Fully Funded

SEPTEMBER 14, 2009

Happy Fundraising Season! Between now and the end of the year is a great time to make some individual asks. If the thought of asking someone face-to-face for a donation scares you, terrifies, or paralyzes you, you’re not alone. Lots of people would rather do most anything else than ask someone for a donation! But it doesn’t have to be that way.

Food 67

Food Production Fundraising Fundraising 67

Selfish Giving

SEPTEMBER 23, 2009

My friend Beth Pfeil’s ( @readerbean ) nonprofit is the cause with the big name and the small staff. The Bachmann-Strauss Dystonia & Parkinson Foundation has only four employees, but that hasn’t stopped them from raising millions for better treatments and cures for the movement disorders dystonia and Parkinson’s disease. Since Beth joined Bachmann-Strauss three years ago as their Special Events Manager, she’s managed their annual golf tournament, New York City marat

Marketing 195

Marketing Marketing Foundations Nonprofits 195

Kivi's Nonprofit Communications Blog

SEPTEMBER 1, 2009

A couple of weeks ago, I noticed Beth Ann Spiegel’s status update on Facebook: “ Beth Ann Spiegel needs your help finding hip songs (rock/alternative/punk/indie/folk/bluegrass/reggae, etc) related to disability/ability, respect, achievement, dignity, friendship, etc. –basically a soundtrack for The Arc of Atlantic County — to play on Stockton’s radio station…we’ll be on 91.7 WLFR talking about The Arc and playing songs connected to our work.

Associations 62

Associations Communication Marketing Marketing 62

The Agitator

SEPTEMBER 16, 2009

Here’s yet another agency white paper on social marketing … this one, from Serengeti Communications, addresses the challenge of measuring social media impact. Everyone from marketing veteran Seth Godin (see his recent Clout post) to the newest hire on your web team (just walk down the hall), probably egged on by Godin, wants your nonprofit to wade into social media … "Get out there on the cutting edge, you loser!

Activism 71

Activism Nonprofit Management Management Values 71

Fundraising Coach

SEPTEMBER 8, 2009

In Fundraising Secret #41 , I encouraged you to go rounding on your donors. Since then, I’ve been reminded how much time this takes! It’s not just the visit time, that time is wonderful. But it’s time to set up the visits and then, more importantly, the time to record the visit in a database and to write follow-up thank yous. In a previous position, my job description included 50% travel.

Fundraising 68

Fundraising Fundraising 68

Get Fully Funded

SEPTEMBER 21, 2009

Last week, I met up with some friends for lunch and got a lesson in relationship-building from a 3 year-old. We’ve met fairly regularly for the past few years and one gal usually brings her son Paul. He’s adorable and she usually has toys to keep him busy while we chat. I realized I had’nt seen Paul in a while when I arrived. He’d gotten so big!

Activism 60

Activism 60

Selfish Giving

SEPTEMBER 17, 2009

I’m always looking for good tools to help make my cause marketing job better and easier, and one of the best additions of late has been Evernote. What is Evernote? Use Evernote to save your ideas, things you see, and things you like. Then find them all on any computer or device you use. Evernote is one-stop saving for everything. Text, pictures and voice.

Marketing 150

Marketing Marketing Management 150

Care2

SEPTEMBER 7, 2009

The goal was simple. Earn a permanent spot on the GlobalGiving website by raising at least $4000 online from 50 individual donors in three weeks. Win up to $6000 in additional bonuses for out-fundraising the 70 other participating organizations. The challenge was daunting. How does C ritical Exposure , a little non-profit with a small group of supporters raise more money than the dozens of other participating organizations, many of whom have a large, established fundraising base?

Non-Profits 64

Non-Profits Communication Fundraising Fundraising 64

Kivi's Nonprofit Communications Blog

SEPTEMBER 14, 2009

It’s a busy, busy week of training, starting with a free Nonprofit911 call from Network for Good on Tuesday, then a webinar on social media skeptics, an online fundraising workshop for AFP, and a conference closing plenary session via webinar. If you are participating in any of these events, let me know. I’d love to hear from you before and after.

Fundraising 61

Fundraising Fundraising Associations Values 61

The Agitator

SEPTEMBER 17, 2009

Our previous posts this week have been pretty positive about social media, their penetration, and their potential marketing (and for us, that means fundraising) contribution. Here are some additional views. Take a look at them and then give us your opinion in a quick three-question Agitator survey. Kate Kaye, a bit of a skeptic, writing in ClickZ asserts: "While attaching causes to brands could help translate tweets and Facebook friends into donations or other tangible ROI, most nonprofits a

Fundraising 67

Fundraising Fundraising Activism Nonprofit Management 67

Fundraising Coach

SEPTEMBER 2, 2009

On Monday, I started the first of three posts I’m calling Twitter 101. That post focuses on programs I use to tweet. Today, I’ll answer the second question I’ve been getting: How do I find people to follow on Twitter? How do I find people to follow on Twitter? Following interesting people is the key to a satisfying experience with Twitter.

Fundraising 63

Fundraising Fundraising Nonprofits 63

Getting Attention

SEPTEMBER 17, 2009

Vote now (but once only) for the 2009 Getting Attention Nonprofit Tagline Awards. Voting will: Sharpen your understanding of what works and what doesn't communications-wise. Inform and inspire your organization's messaging. Give you the chance to register for the free 2009 Nonprofit Tagline Report , with 2,500 tagline examples. The 60 finalists were selected from over 1,700 tagline entries.

Non-Profits 53

Non-Profits Nonprofits Communication Marketing 53

Get Fully Funded

SEPTEMBER 22, 2009

Maybe no one. It all depends on the content. Unfortunately, MOST of the nonprofit newsletters out there are crap. Sorry, but it’s true. With tons of text, few or no photos, and loaded with jargon, donors are immediately turned off when they see your newsletter in the mailbox. If you want your newsletter to get read, here’s what you do: write what’s interesting to the donor , NOT what’s interesting to you.

Fundraising 49

Fundraising Fundraising Nonprofits 49

Care2

SEPTEMBER 9, 2009

As nonprofits get more comfortable integrating social media into their communications outreach, they still face an uphill battle in how to track their brand through a user-friendly dashboard. Sure, there are paid services like Radian6 that will help organizations filter out the noise so you can listen to what different audiences have to say about your brand, but these services can be pricey.

Nonprofits 63

Nonprofits Communication Marketing Marketing 63

Kivi's Nonprofit Communications Blog

SEPTEMBER 21, 2009

This is what I call Mixed Links - an occasional tasty cocktail of great links for nonprofit communicators. Upcoming Webinars. September 29: Fear v. Hope: Using Emotions in Your Nonprofit Communications. Join me for this writing workshop via webinar, where we’ll explore how to make your writing more powerful by using emotions, both positive and negative.

Communication 58

Communication Nonprofits Food Philanthropy 58

The Agitator

SEPTEMBER 22, 2009

All of our postings to date regarding nonprofits’ use of social media have dealt with the possibilities of these platforms for empowering, engaging and "unleashing" your donors, members and activists. But there’s another side to this. What guidance should you give your staff for their use of social media — the ultimate individualistic, decentralized, "let a thousand flowers bloom" media — in the course of promoting your organization’s mission and bra

Nonprofit governance and management 65

Nonprofit governance and management Governance Activism Nonprofit Management 65

Fundraising Coach

SEPTEMBER 22, 2009

Do you remember Jean Preston, the unassuming librarian who’d amassed an $8 million estate ? Or Helene Whitlock Alley, the $100 donor that bequethed $7.3 million to a diabetes group. Well here’s another entry in the never underestimate anyone category: Richard Walters. Perhaps you’ve heard his name on NPR : “Support for NPR comes from the estate of Richard Leroy Walters, whose life was enriched by NPR, and whose bequest seeks to encourage others to discover public radio.&#

Homelessness 60

Homelessness Universities Fundraising Fundraising 60

Nonprofit Tech for Good

SEPTEMBER 21, 2009

Please Note: All nonprofits in the United States that have an entry in GuideStar.org are also on Change.org. You can access your nonprofit’s profile and the Change.org tool set by signing up for a Nonprofit Admin account. Now on to the best practices: 1. Brand your organization’s profile on Change.org. Nonprofits can easily design their profile on change.org to match their website and other social networking sites.

Nonprofits 49

Nonprofits Activism Fundraising Fundraising 49

Nonprofit Marketing Blog

SEPTEMBER 2, 2009

Seth Godin has a great post today that all fundraisers should heed. He notes: If you’ve got a small, fixable problem, people will rush to help, because people like to be on the winning side, take credit and do something that worked. If you’ve got a generational problem, something that is going to take herculean effort and even then probably won’t pan out, we’re going to move on in search of something smaller.

Homelessness 47

Homelessness Marketing Marketing Nonprofits 47

Care2

SEPTEMBER 22, 2009

Marketing guru Seth Godin is a very smart guy – obviously. But one of his recent posts about nonprofits ( “The Problem with Non&# ) is pretty far off base and might lead nonprofits into some wrongheaded actions. Godin’s post starts out on solid ground when he notes that most nonprofits are averse to change. That’s undeniable, though certainly not a problem that’s limited to nonprofits.

Management 62

Management Technology Marketing Marketing 62

Kivi's Nonprofit Communications Blog

SEPTEMBER 8, 2009

Registration is now open for all of our September webinars at Nonprofit Marketing Guide. As always, a la carte registration is $35, which includes everyone in your office who can fit around one computer and two weeks of access to the recording, in case you can’t make the live event. Or you can attend all of these webinars and any others we do in the next 12 weeks when you purchase an All-Access Pass for $97.

Leadership 56

Leadership Communication Values Marketing 56

The Agitator

SEPTEMBER 2, 2009

Here are the stats on direct mail volumes from the latest USPS Household Diary Study (2008). As reported by the Center for Media Research , key factoids include: U.S. Households received 148.6 billion mail pieces in 2008, of which 63% was advertising. Income, education and age of head of household are the major drivers of mail received. For example: A HH earning less than $35K whose head of HH has a high school education receives 10.2 pieces of mail per week, compared to 20.6 pieces for a HH ear

Advertising 65

Advertising Education Education Marketing 65

Getting Attention

SEPTEMBER 29, 2009

Vote now (but once only, thanks to all of you who have already done so) for the 2009 Getting Attention Nonprofit Tagline Awards. Polls close Wed., 9/30 at midnight. Voting will: Sharpen your understanding of what works in nonprofit communications. Inform and inspire your organization's messaging. Give you the chance to register for the free 2009 Nonprofit Tagline Report , with 2,500 tagline examples.

Non-Profits 45

Non-Profits Nonprofits Communication Marketing 45

Get Fully Funded

SEPTEMBER 24, 2009

Now that it’s officially Fall, it’s time to kick-start your fundraising plans for the end of the year. . What have you got planned? I hope you have something planned so you can be proactive instead of waiting to see what happens. (That won’t serve you very well.) . Here are three things you need to make sure you do in order to raise the most money you can in the final quarter of 2009. 1.

Fundraising 45

Fundraising Fundraising Communication 45

Nonprofit Marketing Blog

SEPTEMBER 29, 2009

Anessa Stine , Flickr: “Black Dresses_7 to 14&#. Some time ago, I said transparency is the new black for nonprofits. In the current environment of distrust, everyone in our sector needs to go out of their way to be highly transparent and accountable. You must show where the money goes, in all your outreach. But that’s not enough for everyone.

Philanthropy 42

Philanthropy Foundations Marketing Marketing 42

Care2

SEPTEMBER 23, 2009

Is your nonprofit ready for a website redesign? Are you the one charged with making sure the organization “gets it right this time?&# Before you ask a web designer to produce that first round of homepage comps, you will need to take some initial steps to set yourself up for success. Follow these tips to get started. 1. Establish a style guide and stick to it.

Nonprofits 59

Nonprofits 59

Kivi's Nonprofit Communications Blog

SEPTEMBER 2, 2009

The American Red Cross wants every household to do three things: to build an emergency kit, to create a communication and evacuation plan, and to be informed about the disasters that are common in their communities. Fair enough, but how are they going to make it happen? By working the basics of a good marketing strategy: Defining their audience, creating a message that resonates with that audience, and delivering the message through channels their audience already trusts and uses.

Public and Nonprofit Management 56

Public and Nonprofit Management Activism Marketing Marketing 56

The Agitator

SEPTEMBER 27, 2009

From Smashing Magazine , here are some excellent "best practices" prepared expressly for nonprofit websites. It’s a great resource for your web development team … even if that team is just you! They also offer their "20 examples of great nonprofit sites" (all hotlinked), indicating what they like about each: Greenpeace USA.

Children 63

Children Activism Nonprofit Management Production 63

Getting Attention

SEPTEMBER 2, 2009

Place your vote today for the 2009 Getting Attention Nonprofit Tagline Awards. These 61 tagline finalists have been carefully culled from the more than 1,700 taglines in 13 categories submitted in response to our call for entries. So many of these taglines are effective, but they all can't be the best. The organizations behind these taglines have done a fantastic job in putting well-selected words to build their brands.

Nonprofits 40

Nonprofits Communication 40

Get Fully Funded

SEPTEMBER 28, 2009

Here’s a little Monday Morning Motivation for you. The best exercise in the world is reaching down to lift others up. Sometimes we can get so immersed in the details of our work that we lose sight of the most important thing – changing people’s lives. After all, isn’t that what nonprofit work is all about? Remember to remind yourself of that when things get hectic and the phone keeps ringing and you’re down to your last nerve.

Nonprofits 40

Nonprofits 40

Nonprofit Marketing Blog

SEPTEMBER 21, 2009

Happiness? by me. Did you know can? Yep. According to this article, “ Happiness: A Buyer’s Guide &# by Drake Bennett: A few researchers are looking again at whether happiness can be bought, and they are discovering that quite possibly it can – it’s just that some strategies are a lot better than others. Taking a friend to lunch, it turns out, makes us happier than buying a new outfit.

Psychology 42

Psychology Values Fundraising Fundraising 42

Care2

SEPTEMBER 12, 2009

The Case Foundation is launching a new online series next week called Gear Up for Giving: Social Media Tutorials for Nonprofits featuring some of the best nonprofit communications and social media gurus like blogger and social media trainer Beth Kanter, Katya Andersen of Network for Good, Geoff Livingston of CRT/tanaka, activist and author Allison Fine, Holly Ross of NTEN and more.

Foundations 58

Foundations Nonprofits Communication Fundraising 58