Tagged communications
How to benefit from the extraordinary knowledge in your community.
What leads to success in getting help from others? A well-defined question or set of questions, a spirit of sharing, careful planning so time is well-spent, an interesting group that also benefits from coming together, commitment to listening and learning, a focus on improvement, reciprocating and appreciating the extraordinary gift you’ve received. Oh yes, you also have to ask.
Retire the donor pyramid? Replace it with a vortex? What’s a fundraiser to do?
I urge you to read The Permanent Disruption of Social Media, in the Winter 2013 edition of Stanford Social Innovation Review.
The authors’ premise is that in a world of social media, the old pyramid or ladder metaphor of donor engagement isn’t relevant any more. (If it ever worked at all.) But the old model implied a somewhat orderly process of communications and solicitations tied to giving frequency and levels. The bigger your gift, the more valuable you are, the more worthy of personalized attention.
The authors accuse this approach of being a one way street, from organization to donor, that ignores the new reality of influence.
Nonprofit marketing – from the inside out
Share of Mind, Share of Heart: Marketing Tools of Engagement for Nonprofits.
There are dozens of books out there on marketing your nonprofit to attract new supporters, advance an advocacy agenda or keep the donors you have. But this is the first book that I’ve read that specifically targets marketing “from the inside-out.” That is, this book focuses on the people who work or volunteer for you.
Keep it simple to be remembered
For those of you in public charities, even though you can’t go near candidates in the sense that you don’t want to do anything that remotely smacks of electioneering, you can certainly learn from their campaigns. Candidates especially have to make their ideas (or impression of themselves) stick as they’ve got very little time to reach us before it’s time to pull the lever.
Okay, no levers anymore. Ink in the middle of the arrow.
Think you’ve communicated enough? Think again (#35 of 100 Things We’ve Learned)
Whether you are trying to educate me about a community issue, hope to turn me out for a special event, or are even trying to renew my annual memberships, don’t underestimate what it will take to get my attention.
If you think that you have sent too many communications, you might want to think that through one more time.