Driving Participation Podcast: What Is Working in Marketing & Fundraising | Nonprofits | Schools | Associations

Using a donor's first name on a donation receipt. Making the "donate" big and easy to find. These seemingly small changes can make a big difference in not just improving your organization's donor conversion rate but also the donor's experience of giving to your cause. Abby Jarvis, contact director at Qgiv, joins this session to explore the small changes that lead to big results when it comes to donation pages. From website color schemes to the donation page itself, Abby shares how you can make the experience as simple and meaningful as possible for a potential donor.

How do you go about planning a virtual conference? Arianna Rehak brought together speakers and professionals for Surge, an entirely virtual summit spread over the course of a few days, that allowed attendees the chance to join in on educational sessions about topics they care about—without having to go anywhere. From the technology behind the summit (like prerecorded video sessions) to how she measured its success (such as feedback forms), she talks about the logistics of creating a free virtual summit and why the event goes beyond just being a list builder.

How do you go about planning a virtual conference? Arianna Rehak brought together speakers and professionals for Surge, an entirely virtual summit spread over the course of a few days, that allowed attendees the chance to join in on educational sessions about topics they care about—without having to go anywhere. From the technology behind the summit (like prerecorded video sessions) to how she measured its success (such as feedback forms), she talks about the logistics of creating a free virtual summit and why the event goes beyond just being a list builder.

When you know who is really coming to your events, it can change everything. Not just your message and marketing, but the event itself. After attending our Master Class on Audience Focus, Chris Blockus used what he learned to completely transform the "Girls' Night Out" event hosted by the Downtown Somerville Alliance—and participation jumped by 50%! Listen as Chris talks to Beth about how he applied the techniques he learned to create a great experience for the attendees, the vendors and the association. To hear about upcoming trainings text "MASTERCLASS" to 33444 or sign up at www.iriscreative.com

Are you using LinkedIn to its fullest? Mike Kirby, vice president of business partnerships at Within3, joins in to talk about how to use LinkedIn to its full potential. From advice about targeting potential connections and leveraging your contacts, Michael shares his favorite approaches to communicating on the social platform and the messaging that works. He and Beth explore the steps to take when making a LinkedIn connection, how to use LinkedIn for research and much more.

The concept of peer-to-peer is nothing new, but it has certainly changed over the years with the advent of technology. Dorene Ocamb, senior director of integrated marketing at MADD, joins this session to explore what peer-to-peer really is (it's simpler than you think) and how technology has offered new ways for constituents to engage with your organization and spread your mission. She describes what she sees as a "renaissance of participation" and how younger generations are changing the peer-to-peer game.

As we head into 2018, Beth wanted to know: What tactics or strategies are you letting go of? She gathered responses from past Driving Participation guests. From foregoing massive website launches to leaving phonathons in the past to changing up social media habits—maybe even letting go of Facebook altogether—listen in to hear what some in the community are leaving behind in the new year.

Mike Lenda has experience in both the for profit and nonprofit world through working previously in marketing at Starbucks and now mobilization at Compassion International. He joins in this week to share some practices he learned at Starbucks and how they could—and should—be applied to nonprofits. From staying true to your mission—know your story and know your why, Mike says—to making your audience feel like partners in your organization, Mike shares what Starbucks has learned that nonprofits can learn, too.

On the outside, Philadelphia's 30th Street Station is just a big train station. But for Sarah Davis, director of development for the city's University City District, it represents a connection to lifelong employment and exit from poverty in some cases, or the home of outdoor space The Porch, where West Philadelphians can connect over lunch from the food truck on-site. She joins this session to talk about how the 20-year-old organization revitalized an area of the city and the conversations the organization has held with their audience to find out what the University City District means to them.

Some organizations suffer from failure to see things as the donors themselves see it, notes Nick Ellinger on this week's session. Nick, vice president of marketing strategy for DonorVoice, joins in to talk about how to create a connection between development and communications, and why communications in nonprofits is often one-sided. He explains how you can get real, substantive feedback from donors—and then how to actually use it. Where can you improve in your messaging so donors feel a personal connection? He shares some key advice, such as be careful what you ask as well as how you ask.