Can We Pull at Donors Heartstrings Online?
by Kari Dunn Saratovsky on 27 Mar 2009
Yesterday Qui Diaz, Beth Kanter and Geoff Livingston issued some of the preliminary findings of their Philanthropy 2.0 Survey which looked at nonprofit donors and their attitudes about causes and giving online. The goal of the survey was to determine whether there is potential for nonprofits to cultivate significant donors online (defined as someone who gives $1,000 or more), and how that can be accomplished.
I’d offer a summary of their summary, but Allison Fine has already done that work, so you can hop on over to her site and check it out or refer to the full article on mashable here.
Essentially what the study found was that yes, there is “tremendous opportunity for nonprofits to participate as trusted providers of credible information and ultimately cultivate the next generation of major donors through the social web.” Great news for all of the early nonprofit experimenters out there testing these new approaches and working to build up their online networks.
While I know that the study clearly focused on dollars – I couldn't help but also think about where donating time and making an emotional connection to donors plays into all of this. I was recently introduced to the work of Jennifer Aaker at Stanford University, her research shows that nonprofits can benefit financially when they help potential donors make an emotional connection to the organization and its mission.
I had the pleasure of attending Jennifer’s Power of Social Technology class earlier this month as her students presented their end of year projects. Each group chose a topic of importance to them and then developed a social media campaign to move people to action, mostly by donating money, but also to sign petitions, volunteer their time, etc. To see some of the students projects you can check out their class blog with links and brief reflections on each. For the most part the students did a great job pulling at our heart strings and convincing people to take action -- and while they were passionate evangelists, at the end of the day they were doing it for a grade. It seems to me that as a general rule it must be much harder for nonprofits to make that emotional connection online rather than face to face.
So, all of this leads me to my question for YOU. If you are leveraging social media to raise money and most of the interaction with your donors is happening virtually, are you still able to pull at people's heart strings and help them make an emotional connection? What campaigns or organizations are doing that best?
Comments
Great point about volunteer or donated time and the emotional connection. I also appreciate the introduction Jennifer's Aaker's work
You can definately pull at heartstrings and build a steady following - if you have a cause that resonates with people on a very personal level. Domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse are all causes that people can relate to without a one-on-one relationship because people posess compassion and concern for our most vulnerable individuals. Compelling stories and information that answers the question "Why should I care?" are an important piece of a successful virtual outreach. One very successful organization I know is Love Without Boundaries (.com) - one of the largest adoption organization for children from China. LWB has an incredible amount of constituents who diligently follow what is going on with the organization. Through consistent updates on the children featured and providing valuable information for their followers, they've achieved an active, engaged online following.
Beth, wow - glad to introduce you to something new, it's usually the other way around!
Margaret, appreciate your thoughtful comments - I was introduced to the work of Love Without Boundaries during the Case Foundation's America's Giving Challenge last year. You're absolutely right, LWB does a terrific job making an emotional connection with their audience. Thanks for sharing with us!
Interesting article. Great information and an insightful perspective.
http://www.saintleo.com
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