Winter Wonderland Clairity Click-it: Nonprofit Links, Free Resources
Click it for donor communication tips galore!
Donor Communication Special Edition
I cannot say this strongly enough. Do not segregate marketing and fundraising as separate silos.
When it comes to fundraising, communication with your donors should not be an “add-on.” Nor should it be relegated to the marketing department. As the guru of donor-centered fundraising, Penelope Burk, states:
It is a core fundraising function that produces long-term income security. Make meaningful communication with donors your development department’s top priority.
Here are some tips from experts across the web to show you how to do a more effective job with your donor communications.
Click-It: The Key To Ideal Customer Service: Making Exceptions. I love this guest post by Duane Forrester on Duct Tape Marketing for what it says about being customer-centered. Another way of saying this is “rules are meant to be broken.” Not all the time, of course. But don’t use rules as something to hide behind. That makes you an automaton. Be a person who lives to serve. Isn’t that the essence of nonprofit work?
Click-It: 7 Keys of Digital Marketing for Nonprofits. If you think you could be doing a better job with social media, read this post by Edward Jenkins on Linkedin. Did you know that the average consumer is bombarded with over 500 messages a day! It takes some serious talent to make your mission and your organization standout beyond the clutter. Do you have it, or are you just flailing about? I’d add one more tip to these 7: Get to know your target audiences. You can’t deliver meaningful content unless you understand what your constituencies value.
Click-It: 9 Social Media marketing Tips from Top Enterprise Experts [Infographic]. The folks at Social Media Today, Digital Information World and Referral Candy are serving up some bite-size tips that deliver the wallop of a full meal. Which is your favorite? I like #2 and #5.
Click-It: 21 New Rules for Content Marketing [Infographic]. Randy Milanovic put together this dynamite list to help you figure out how to get found. It’s all about why Search Engine Optimization (SEO) no longer rules, and how you can drive folks to your content with some simple steps that don’t require a technical degree. There are a lot of tips that are easy to execute, yet I see too few nonprofits embracing them. How about: “Headlines are Everything: Carefully craft titles for articles to entice readers.” Or this one that I’ve been talking to folks about doing for years: “Use the News: What is everyone talking about? Find out, and discuss how these current events and trends relate to your products or services.”
Click-It: The Top 6 Reasons why that Phone Call is coming into your Living Room. In an era where digital communication tends to overshadow everything else, Erica Waasdrop reminds us of the power of the telephone. Use it to thank, to schmooze and to ask. At a minimum, pick up the phone whenever you can to thank your donors! How? Grab my free Donor Thank You Calls E-Book + Script when you subscribe to my blog.
Call for Submissions
Click-It: October Nonprofit Blog Carnival Call for Submissions: Tricks or Treats – How Do You Get and Sustain Major Gifts? Yours truly is host for this month’s carnival. Send in your posts about major gifts development. What works? What doesn’t? What’s new? Email your permalink to nonprofitcarnival@gmail.com by Monday, 10/27. Check back at Clairification on Wednesday, 10/29 to see if we’ve included your post, and enjoy a bump in traffic as we promote the Carnival to friends and followers. Special credit for getting in the holiday spirit!
OCTOBER GOODIES GALORE!
Don’t you love October? Championship baseball. Costumes. Candy. Indian summer. Oh, yeah… Check out some special October treats here:
- The #HalloweenGoodiesGiveaway: Get free gifts from me and fundraising experts Joe Waters, Mazarine Treyz, Joe Garecht, Gail Perry, Vanessa Chase and Amy Eisenstein.
- The super-discounted 4-session “Hour of Power” COACHING PACKAGES. I only have a few slots left. Buy before Halloween (or while supply lasts); then use your hours whenever. There’s a lot we can accomplish in 4 hours. CLICK HERE to sign-up for the Package of Power and schedule your first session.
Image courtesy of Freedigitalphotos.net
