Fundraising Roundup

Charitable Giving Dropped 5% in 2009

The bad economy had a big impact on nonprofits and charitable giving in 2009. How much of a decline did the nonprofit sector experience?  $11.2 billion (almost 5%) according the Center on Wealth and Philanthropy at Boston College.

But as Frogloop reported last month, online fundraising grew overall by 4.5% between 2008 and 2009, according to the 2010 e-Benchmark study, though the report did note that online revenue for half of the nonprofits included in the study either held steady with 2008 or declined.  This decline was driven by a drop in the average gift size.

What’s the ROI of Online Voting and Fundraising Contests?            

Beth Kanter has a terrific post about evaluating nonprofits' investment in sponsored fundraising contests. Is it really worth all that time and energy for a slim chance to win $50K? Kanter and Allison Fine recently did an analysis for the Case Foundation on this topic and recommends that nonprofits look at the contest sponsor and ask yourself the following:

• Are the sponsors and competition model in alignment with our personal values?
• Do we have a relationship?
• Do they get social media?

She also prompts nonprofits to think about the benefits of participating in fundraising contests.

“Many organizations only look at the dollar amount of the winner’s prize, but it is useful to take a holistic look at the benefits beyond that. The first question is whether you have a reasonable chance of winning,” said Kanter. “Here you have to be honest with yourself and analyze the competition. That means it might not be in your best interest to jump in first.”

Ask yourself:

• Do we have a reasonable chance of winning?
• Are there benefits beyond the money?
• Can we follow up with new stakeholders that we connect with?

Check out Kanter’s full post here. 

For Member’s Only: It’s not a jacket, it’s the special attention you give supporters

"The word 'member' has some powerful connotations. Yet we too often treat our members in anything but powerful ways," said Katya Andresen over at Network for Good.  "That’s bad, because membership comes with expectations.  There’s an implicit promise of attention, value and - in the case of nonprofits - true impact."

Andresen did a great write-up on this topic and reminds nonprofits to always remember the following:

1. Being a member should mean belonging to something special and treating them like ATM machines is one of the worst things you can do to your members.
2. Create a sense of community around the change you seek.
3. Adore the members you have now, shower them with love and they will be one of your best word of mouth marketers.

Check out Andresen's full post here.

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