Care2's Digital Engagement Blog

Every year, charities and nonprofits experience churn on their donor file. A significant percentage of supporters will eventually stop responding to direct mail, donating online, following a charity on social media, or opening cause-related emails!

More and more nonprofit donations take place in today’s digital landscape, but how can nonprofits ensure their online storefront is not only open for business, but optimized for donations? And what are some basic fundraising tips to integrate if your nonprofit is just starting out on its online fundraising journey?

As I explored this critical issue in my new book, Nonprofit Fundraising 101, I interviewed Roderick Campbell, the CEO of nonprofit fundraising platform CommitChange. He shared a few takeaways from their efforts to maximize digital donations for Mercy House, a $3.8M nonprofit that has provided housing and support to California’s homeless since 1989.

 No, we’re not suggesting your nonprofit goes to a medium to get a glimpse of your successful future, we’re encouraging you to check out the ever-growing social blogging platform, Medium, founded by Ev Williams, who is also the co-founder of Twitter.

Here’s Why Medium Could Work Well For Your Nonprofit:

1. Storytelling is golden. Medium offers a simple, compelling way to share your stories. Because telling your story up close and personal is key. Julie Neidlinger of CoSchedule notes that instead of a focus on traffic, Medium is focusing on readers.
   
   She says:

Medium is basing discovery of your content on whether or not people have read it. Not hits, not sexy headlines. Readability, not gimmicks or tricks.

 Are Google Analytics your best friend? Does data that gives you insight into your fundraising and advocacy strategy make you happy? If not, they should be. Analytics and metrics are what should be informing your content, your strategy, and your nonprofit campaigns.

Recently General Assembly and HubSpot teamed up to generate a report to fill you in on all the important metrics: Introduction to Inbound Marketing Analytics and the Key Metrics Your Executives Want To See.

They cover what your analytics should look like, and what exactly you should be measuring.

But you also don’t have to be metric-savvy before diving into the report. All the lingo is clearly laid out and defined:

 A couple of weeks ago, we talked about why millennials are one of your best audiences. Today we are digging a little deeper into some of the great research from The Millennial Impact Project about how to better connect with millennials. 

The Millennial Impact Project released their Top 100 data points based on 6 years of millennial cause and workplace engagement research. This data will help your nonprofit better involve the next generation in your fundraising campaigns, volunteer projects, cause initiatives, and programming. Here’s a highlight of the top findings:

 Millennials have been pigeonholed as being lazy, but when it comes to social justice issues, Millennials are quite passionate about causes and donate money to the issues they support. With all these mixed messages, how can your nonprofit really dig in and learn what Millennials need, and how to reach them? Or maybe you’re reading this as a Millennial who’s working at or running a nonprofit, and want to know how to reach your own generation most effectively?