You’ve no doubt heard folks bandying about the latest buzzword: “content marketing.” There’s a reason it’s buzz-worthy. Without content, you’ve got nothing. You’re just a box with nothing inside. Kids like to play with boxes; most folks — when they grow up — are looking for something of value inside the box. At the same time…
DetailsBefore you hold your next fundraising event, ask yourself one simple question: WHY?
Take a minute, right now, to jot down all the things you’d like to happen by virtue of you having held your event.
I’ll wait.
Seriously, do it. Jot.
I’m waiting.
Okay, there are a few of you who don’t yet have pencils and paper in front of you. Yes, I can see you. Remember ‘Miss Nancy’ from Romper Room? [I know; I’m dating myself on this one].
Now, let me guess what you’re writing (and/or thinking).
DetailsHere’s my return-from-vacation Clairity Click-it – and I’ve got some stuff that’s a little outside the box of your basic fundraising and marketing advice. Why? It’s good to take a little trip away from the usual every now and then! So… here come some easy-to-“click-it” links to posts I’ve found thought provoking. With, of course, a few comments of my own.
Let’s begin:
DetailsHere’s this week’s Clairity Click-it, the most intriguing and thought-provoking of the more than 100 articles I seem to read every week – all in an easy-to-“click-it” format with links to posts from an eclectic array of online resources, often sourced from more than one discipline, as I believe we can learn a lot from our colleagues in other sectors. Of course, I add in a few comments of my own.
Let’s begin:
DetailsIt’s the new plague. And a highly contagious epidemic, from which no one is immune.
Are you showing any symptoms? I feel like:
If you checked off three or more, you’ve got the disease. 8 or more and we need to rush you to an unplugged vacation. All of the above and you need a sabbatical!
DetailsWouldn’t you know I’d leave the trenches just when things got Pinteresting? I missed out, but I’m here to tell you… YOU don’t have to!
If we know anything about human beings, we know these two things: (1) they love a story, and (2) a picture is worth 1,000 words. A new guide to visual storytelling practices reveals that when information is presented orally, people tested 72 hours later remember only about 10%. That jumps to 65% when pictures are added! Pinterest is a dream come true for nonprofits wanting to engage constituents with their mission.
DetailsHere’s this week’s Clairity Click-it, the most intriguing and thought-provoking of the more than 100 articles I seem to read every week – all in an easy-to-“click-it” format with links to posts in fundraising, marketing, social media, leadership, change and all sorts of good stuff. I aim for an eclectic array, often sourced from more than one discipline, as I believe we can learn a lot from our colleagues in other sectors. Of course, I add in a few comments of my own.
Let’s begin:
DetailsPhilanthropy, Not Fundraising
“Incremental Change is Not an Option.”
What if this was your charity’s mantra? This is so different than “We keep overhead super low.” The first means dreaming on a large scale, and reaching for true solutions to social problems. The latter, not so much.
For years donors have been taught to look for low overhead as a sign of effectiveness. When you stop to think about it, it makes little common sense. Who cares if you spend only 5 cents on the dollar if you only net $71 from your bake sale? Will this solve your problem? Whatever resources are needed to solve the problem, those are the resources that must be spent. Nothing more. Nothing less.
DetailsXTRA! XTRA: NEWS YOU CAN’T USE
This just in: “Many nonprofits post on Twitter throughout the day to keep constituents up to date.” Woo-hoo! I’m jumping for joy! Over the moon! Popping champagne corks! I’m….
Wait just a dog-gone minute… Is this really a news story? What does this really tell me? How does this help me? Well, perhaps if I read the story I’ll…
Learn more.
What story? Oh… this is a real headline, sent to me by my friend Jimmy (a really smart marketing guy who works in the business sector), for an article that appeared in eMarketer which claims to provide “the world’s top brands, agencies and media companies with the most complete view of digital marketing available.” Yet really all the article does is report on a study by Vertical Response showing that nonprofits were more likely to be present on social media channels than small businesses surveyed in a similar study.
So, great. We’ve got some data on how nonprofits are behaving digitally. They’re putting up Facebook pages and starting Twitter accounts. Whoop-de-do.
What we do not have is a fully fleshed out narrative that tells us why nonprofits are behaving this way, who they’re targeting with their social conversations or what they’re getting out of it. We have no knowledge of their engagement plan or their engagement metrics. As I told my friend Jimmy, the fact that nonprofits are doing incrementally more on social media doesn’t really tell much of a story.
DetailsHere’s this week’s Clairity Click-it, the most intriguing and thought-provoking of the more than 100 articles I seem to read every week – all in an easy-to-“click-it” format with links to posts in fundraising, marketing, social media, leadership, change and all sorts of good stuff. I aim for an eclectic array, often sourced from more than one discipline, as I believe we can learn a lot from our colleagues in other sectors.
Of course, I add in a few comments of my own.
Let’s begin:
Details
