Wired Causes

You are browsing the archives of 2009 June.

Submitted by Steve MacLaughlin, publisher of Connections For a while now I’ve been talking with a lot of nonprofits about using social media and social networking in their organizations. I thought it would be useful to blog about how to…

Video is here After a year of preparing, moving day has arrived. We spent the day overseeing the move our belongings from the house into the truck. All the happy (and sad) memories of living in the house for twenty…

Are philanthropic assets public or private dollars?

Join the Chronicle on Wednesday at 10 p.m. Eastern time for a real-time discussion about the latest episode of the new NBC show The Philanthropist.

For those who missed it, you can also catch a replay of our discussion of the premiere episode.

Dis…

Submitted by Chad Norman, publisher of I dig webby things…and I bet you do too So much of social media and relationship marketing revolves around storytelling, and this is especially true for nonprofits. Using the internet and social media as…

This, dear readers, is my 500th post here on Katya’s Nonprofit Marketing Blog.  I wanted to make it extra special and wise, so I decided I’d better not be the one writing it.  A couple of weeks ago here and on Twitter, I asked you to contribute to this post with the one piece of wisdom that you wish you’d known at the start of your nonprofit marketing and fundraising efforts - or the lesson you keep finding yourself forgetting.  Here are 16 gems from you - each of which I’ve named in honor of the contributor.  If some of these sound like common sense, good.  That’s the funny thing about common sense - it’s rather uncommon in this world.  Thanks for sharing everyone - and for reminding me of some things that are far too easy to forget amidst the daily grind.

Nancy’s rule: Reflect first.
Think before you act! It’ll save you endless frustration, time and money… and ensure you’re doing the most with the marketing & fundraising resources you have.
Nancy Schwartz

Joel’s rule: But don’t reflect too long.  It’s never going to be perfect anyway.
You can’t get good without practice. If you stay behind your desk, waiting to “get good” before going out to tell your story, you’ll never “get good.” You MUST go out and present people with the chance to get involved with your cause, way before you’re comfortable doing so, and certainly before you’re “good” at it.
Joel Preston

Thomas’s rule: Pay attention to what you do right - and wrong.
My input for your 500th post is my personal philosophy about life in general and fundraising in particular: “Do what works.” If you don’t know what works, research what has worked (and not worked) for others. Once you start trying things, pay attention to what brings positive results and what brings negative results. Hang onto the things that bring positive results and let go the ones that bring negative results. Finally, remember that everything changes, so what worked today may not work tomorrow. You must always keep your eye on the ball.
Thomas Robinson

Tony’s law of targeting
It’s not about being everything to everyone; It’s about crafting a clear, concise, and radically different organization that means much to a select few.
Tony Pantello

Tamsen’s rule of originality
Know what and who you are, and be the best of that you can be.  So many non-profits spend all their time trying to be some other non-profit. But why be a copycat? Copies always lose resolution.
Tamsen McMahon

Laws of the Audience by Amy, Taryn and Zan

My piece of wisdom is that in direct mail fundraising, you, the mailer, are not the audience.
Amy Tripi

Know your audience and adapt your message to them to maximize effect.
Taryn Baranowski

Audience, audience, audience. Always think about what they care about, are dealing with, are motivated by. You (communications pro) might be part of that audience, but you must always be thinking outside of yourself. Start every email, every newsletter article or blog post, with an a specific person in mind that you are trying to reach.
Zan McColloch-Lussier

Jeremy’s rule of relationships
Don’t just market and fundraise to people, connect with their passions and forge relationships—a donation to your cause is nice, but a supporter of your cause is better.
Jeremy Sony

Elizabeth on Storytelling
Tell a good story. I can’t emphasize enough to my nonprofit clients how important it is to tell stories about their work instead of talk about themselves.  Here are some ideas on what makes a good story.
Elizabeth Turnbull

Niels’ Advice: Think like a 14 year old.
I learned this when I was fourteen and then I forgot again. Don’t ask me why.  Go door to door, explain why you are knocking on their door and ask for their help. I you believe in your cause, you will find many other who do too.  What advantage does a fourteen year old have? When you say you believe in something, people tend to believe you. So, what do you need to do to make people believe you? I don’t think it is about the clever packaging, but about the passion of your conviction.
Niels Teunis

Sergio: Be passionate.
Giving is not only talking about money.  Giving is also doing something with your heart.
Sergio Felter

Amy’s Rule of constructive dispassion
A nonprofit organization is still a business.  Don’t ignore those business “tru-isms” because you think they don’t apply to a charity.  One of my professors once said that most nonprofits fail because its run by someone who has great passion for the cause…but little business sense.  If you’ve got passion - that’s the hard part, just bring some business skills into it and you’ve got the major pieces for success!
Amy Shropshire

Clover: Forever young (or dead)
Reach out to young people (for volunteers, board members, staff, etc.) or you will surely die as your supporters do.
Clover Frederick

Karen’s Rule: Don’t try to do it all.
Twitter, Facebook, blogging, newsletters, e-mail blasts, brochures, press releases, internal communication, etc. You can’t do it all. Figure out what you must do and what you can do well that will set you apart, master those, and stay focused.
Karen Washbush

Barb’s Last Word: Take the long view.
It takes time.  I keep forgetting that.
Barb McMahon

Submitted by Rebecca Leaman, publisher of Get your sanity back, Wild Apricot’s non-profit technology blog Great new presentations on social media are coming out almost daily, now that we’re deep into conference season, and many are directed specifically to the…

Submitted by Allison Fine, publisher of A. Fine Blog Lucy pointed me to this great post on Change.org about Tori Hogan’s video series called Beyond Good Intentions. Tori takes a hard look at conventional wisdom in activism. Her latest video…

The annual Tagline Awards are back from Nancy Schwartz and the Getting Attention blog.  Your nonprofit or foundation could be one of this year’s Getting Attention Nonprofit Tagline Award winners!  Enter today.

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Submitted by Robert Rosenthal, of VolunteerMatch After the President’s call to serve during National Volunteer Week, the VolunteerMatch team held lengthy discussions about how the best way for us to help engage a new generation of volunteers inspired by the…