The ENGAGE Podcast

It’s clear that social media can be a powerful tool for social good. Online campaigns like #MeToo have been greatly effective at raising awareness and sparking action. But not every campaign is so effective, and social media activism can be polarizing and difficult to manage.

This episode’s guest is Susan McPherson, founder and CEO of McPherson Strategies. She joins the podcast  to talk  about hashtag activism, why some social media campaigns are successful while others aren’t, what social good organizations can do to help ensure the success of their social media campaigns, and how to appeal to members of Generation Z.

Topics Discussed in This Episode:

• When social media activism is powerful and when it is not
• How social good organizations can make their campaigns  effective and lasting
• Hashtag campaigns that Susan has seen succeed, and why they succeeded
• How nonprofits will need to adapt to capture the attention of the upcoming generation

Resources:

Follow Susan on Twitter: @susanmcp1

McPherson Strategies

GRASSROOTS GALVANIZER: A modern playbook to mobilize, organize, fundraise and influence

Quotes:

“Social media can be an incredible way to scale reaction, to rapidly organize a message of dissent or awareness about an issue.”

“Remember, sometimes it’s OK if every campaign isn’t about getting people to make a donation."

“The most moving social campaigns are generally not associated with specific brands or organizations. They’re typically supported with a moment, feeling, or call to action.”

Today’s young people know that they can have a hand in shaping a better future and solving the world’s challenges, and they’re embracing their role by engaging in causes and supporting organizations and companies that align with their values.

This episode’s guest is Meredith Ferguson, the Managing Director of DoSomething Strategic. Listen to today’s conversation to hear more about DoSomething.org and DoSomething Strategic and how they are helping engage millions of young people in social change. Learn about how Generation Z is different from previous generations when it comes to social good, how social good organizations and companies can engage with this younger generation, and what makes young people gravitate toward causes.

Topics Discussed in This Episode:

• How young people are engaging in social change today, and the biggest driver for them to get involved
• How Generation Z is different from other generations when it comes to engaging in social impact
• How nonprofits and other social good organizations can get young people involved
• Examples of organizations that do a good job of engaging the younger generation
• Best modes of communicating with young activists
• How young people feel about brands taking stands
• How companies can engage young employees in CSR initiatives
• Resources for learning more about how to engage Gen Z

Resources:

Meredith Ferguson

Learn about DoSomething Strategic and DoSomething.org

Article: What Drives Gen Z: Is It the Experience or the Cause?

Quotes:

“DoSomething.org is the largest platform for young people and social change. We have 6 million members worldwide in 121 countries between the ages of 13 and 25.”

“The interesting thing is when we ask young people who is responsible for solving the world’s most pressing problems today, they said “citizens”. A plurality of them said, “we are.”

“If you’re not communicating via text, then you’re likely not activating as highly as you should.”

Work doesn’t mean the same thing now that it once meant. Workers have different motivations and skills, and organizations are changing their look in order to be more diverse and inclusive. What does that mean for the future of work?

In today’s episode, you’ll hear a session from the 2018 Social Innovation Summit facilitated by Rachel Hutchisson on the topic of “Skills, Brand, and Space: The Future of Work.” Listen to the conversation with Carina Wong, Senior Advisor, Innovation & Scale at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Gary Bolles, Chair for the Future of Work, Singularity University as they answer questions about purpose and passion in the workplace, the changing skills required in today’s workplaces, and how workplaces themselves are changing.

Topics Discussed in This Episode:

• The intersection of what the individual employee and the organization want
• Finding purpose in the workplace
• Skills people need to be successful today and in the future
• How organizations have changed and need to expand
• Diversity and inclusion in the worksplace

Resources:

Carina Wong

Gary Bolles

Social Innovation Summit 2019

Watch this session on YouTube

Quotes:

“Working at the Gates Foundation, I know that I work at one of the most purposeful places in the world, and that it’s a privilege to be able to follow your purpose and passion.” –Carina Wong

“Engagement with work sort of runs this spectrum from mild disinterest to all the way through to feeling like it’s your mission in life.” –Gary Bolles

“Inclusion is simply the inevitable result of that kind of process – of opening up your thinking and realizing that only by having a diverse set of problem solvers will you be able to solve the problems of tomorrow.” –Gary Bolles

Social good organizations and private companies have many differences, but they also have many things in common and can benefit from some of the same strategies. Lean principles are being used more and more often among startups and tech companies, and social good organizations are alsolso seeing the value of these principles: thinking big, starting small, and seeking impact.

In today’s episode, Steve MacLaughlin talks with our guest Ann Mei Chang, author of the book Lean Impact: HJow to Innovate for Radically Greater Social Good, about how some of these lean principles are being implemented in social good organizations. Listen in to hear what she has to say about transitioning to using lean principles, getting comfortable with failures, and ensuring that a successful program can scale.

Topics Discussed in This Episode:

• How Ann Mei leverages her Silicon Valley background to help social good organizations achieve greater impact
• How social good organizations can transition to using lean principles as an approach to solving problems
• The core principles involved in lean  strategies
• Setting big goals and getting comfortable with failure
• Making a successful program that can scale, and learning how to iterate

Resources:

Ann Mei Chang

Lean Impact: How to Innovate for Radically Greater Social Good

Quotes:

“I started to realize that while people get really excited about technology, what I think truly differentiates Silicon Valley are two things: one is the audacity of the ambitions in Silicon Valley, and the second is the pace of progress.”

“I think there are many, many organizations doing incredible work, but it’s still in the early adopter phase.”

“One of the things I like to say is it’s important to fall in love with your problem, not your solution.”

Digital transformation is a buzz word now in the social good space. But what does it actually mean? And why is it important that nonprofits and other social good organizations digitally transform?

In this episode, which was recorded live at bbcon, you’ll hear from Jim Daniell, the Chief Transformation Officer for NetHope, which works with nonprofits and other social good organizations to change the world through the power of technology.

Jim talks about what NetHope is doing with its Center for Digital Innovation, the non-technology related changes that are required for digital transformation, and how social good organizations can leverage technology to have a bigger social impact. Listen to the episode to hear more about how organizations can undertake their own digital transformations that push them and their impact to the next level.

Topics Discussed in This Episode:

• NetHope’s work and how they are connecting nonprofits with technology innovators to help change the world
• Why digital transformation isn’t just about technology, and why it’s actually mostly about people and process
• How nonprofits and funders can better work together to drive innovation that solves the world’s biggest problems
• How organizations can start their own digital transformations, including by shifting their mindsets

Resources:

Jim Daniell

NetHope

Video: What is Digital Transformation?

Quotes:

“It turns out that international relief, the relief workers, the number one thing you need is data.”

“Information is a form of aid.”

“We often say, digital transformation is not about technology. It’s about people, process, and technology, and it’s mostly about people and process.”

Research has found that charitable donors who also give to political campaigns are more generous than donors who don’t give to political campaigns. But how do elections impact charitable giving overall, and what effect does gender have?

In today’s episode, we’ll hear from Jacqueline Ackerman, assistant director for Research and Partnerships at the Women's Philanthropy Institute at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. Listen to the episode to hear about the key findings of the Institute’s research, which types of organizations saw a spike in giving after the 2016 U.S. election, and how women and men give differently – and what that means for how nonprofits should target donors.

Topics Discussed in This Episode:

• Research that the Women’s Philanthropy Institute has done into giving from a gender perspective
• Key findings of research relating to the 2016 election in the U.S.
• Why giving immediately following the election was lower than expected across charitable organizations overall
• The difference between giving to progressive organizations generally and progressive organizations that were relevant to election issues.
• The differences between women’s and men’s giving following the election
• How organizations can think about and apply the data from the Women’s Philanthropy Institute’s research

Resources:

Jacqueline Ackerman

Women's Philanthropy Institute

Charitable Giving Around the 2016 Election: Does Gender Matter?

Infographic: Charitable Giving Around the 2016 Election: Does Gender Matter? - 

Notable Quotes:

“Our third key finding is that charitable giving after the 2016 election increased significantly for these relevant progressive charities.”

“What we tried to do was piece out the election effect from the typical end-of-the-year increase in giving that we would see anyway.”

“We know that women and men are motivated differently. Women tend to give to help others, men tend to focus on the benefits they accrue from giving.”

The end of the year, or the “season of giving,” is important for all types of social good organizations. Year-end appeals are powerful fundraising vehicles, create additional exposure for your organization, and offer an opportunity to connect with donors on how they’ve helped you throughout the year.

In this episode of The sgENGAGE podcast, Tanya Fitzgerald, Senior Customer Success Manager at Blackbaud, talks with Steve MacLaughlin about what organizations can do now to have successful end-of-year giving campaigns. Listen to the episode to hear what Tanya has to say about telling your impact story, using digital channels to drive end-of-year giving, and stewarding donors into 2019.

Topics Discussed in This Episode:

• Driving additional end-of-year giving through various channels
• Tips for leveraging #GivingTuesday and other existing campaigns for end-of-year fundraising
• Making the donor the hero of the stories you share
• What arts and cultural organizations do at the end of the year that other types of nonprofits can learn from
• Recommendations for moving into 2019

Resources:

End of Year Fundraising Toolkit
Preparing for the Season of Giving: Steps to Ready Your Year-End Appeal
Tip Sheet: What to Do After End-of-Year Fundraising

Quotes:

“Everyone’s expecting to hear from you, so why not share your information with them?”

“I believe that immediately, as soon as that gift comes in, that stewardship plan should be in effect.”

“If you can continually steward throughout the year, your campaigns are going to go smoother as they come up.”

Nonprofits and social good organizations rely on volunteerism, making volunteers are one of the most important assets that an organization has. Today’s guest emphasizes the importance of volunteers and talks about how organizations can best manage and leverage those valued assets.

In today’s episode, recorded at bbcon 2018, Points of Light CEO Natalye Paquin talks about how the critical role that volunteers and volunteerism can have on advancing social good and achieving the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals. Natalye also talks about the role of technology in facilitating and tracking the impact of volunteers, and how Points of Light and Blackbaud are collaborating to advance data, insights and measurement for volunteerism.

Topics Discussed in This Episode:

• Points of Light’s new strategic plan
• How nonprofits can leverage volunteers as one of their most valuable assets
• How volunteers and volunteerism can support the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals
• The role of technology in facilitating volunteerism, tracking data and  measuring impact
• Why the sector needs a standard taxonomy to manage and measure volunteerism

Resources:

• Article: “Volunteers” by Jenny Lawson, President of Innovation, Points of Light in npEXPERTS 2018
• Announcement about Blackbaud-Points of Light partnership
• Natalye Paquin
• Points of Light

Notable Quotes from Natalye Paquin:

“We are really focused on better leveraging the power of people.”

“…over 30 percent of the workforce in the nonprofit sector is really contributions by volunteers. 58 percent of the output is by volunteers. Volunteers understand your mission personally, so they can be champions as well as donors.”

“This is really about creating a common language, a taxonomy, of how you measure and manage volunteers.”

Storytelling is important in the social good community. It’s through stories that donors become interested and engaged in an organization and its cause. It’s not enough to just tell the stories in words. Visual images help donors visualize and understand what the organizations they support are doing, and how their contributions make a difference.

Today’s guest joined the podcast to talk about how organizations can better incorporate visual elements into their storytelling. Ira Horowitz, the founder of Cornershop Creative, has worked in communications, fundraising, and advocacy for nearly 20 years. Listen to the episode to hear what Ira has to say about why visuals matter in storytelling, how to demonstrate to donors that they can be the heroes of the story, and how to match copy with the right visuals for maximum impact.

Topics Discussed in This Episode:

• Why visual storytelling matters to fundraising
• Ways that organizations can make donors the heroes of the stories they’re telling
• Resources that organizations can use to get the visual images that they need
• Matching the right copy and content with the right visual images
• How to test and fine-tune a story over time
• How to make use of imagery even when an organization has limited staff or resources
• How visuals can help make data more comprehensible
• Examples of great visual storytelling

Resources:

Ira Horowitz

Cornershop Creative

Quotes:

“Everybody knows the old adage that a picture is worth a thousand words. That’s actually wrong, though. A picture is worth about 60,000 words because studies have shown that the human brain processes images about 60,000 times faster than plain text.”

“The studies I’ve seen have said that text accompanied with images actually do a lot better. People process that information three or four times faster if they’re looking at both images and text.”

“Don’t be afraid of using emojis, actually.”

Donors want to help when disaster strikes, but they often don’t realize how long disaster recovery can really take. Donors often contribute toward disaster relief when the news of the disaster is fresh, but months or even years later, the recovery is still in progress and a variety of needs still require funding.

In today’s episode, recorded live at bbcon, Bob Ottenhoff, president and CEO of the Center for Disaster Philanthropy, talks with Blackbaud’s Rachel Hutchisson about disaster philanthropy and what it means to have a strategic and holistic response that considers mid- and long-term needs. Listen to the episode to hear what Bob has to say about the funding “mosaic” involved in disaster relief, how donors can make sure their funds are having the greatest impact, and the role that community organizations play in disaster recovery efforts.

Topics Discussed in This Episode:

• How to define a disaster, and the increasing number of disasters occurring each year
• The current state of disaster philanthropy
• What it means to think of disasters in the mid-to-long-term sense
• How philanthropy fits into the overall disaster response landscape
• The role of community foundations in disaster relief
• Advice for philanthropic organizations on how to develop strategic, holistic disaster response plans

Resources:

• Bob Ottenhoff and Center for Disaster Philanthropy
• Article: The Future of Our Communities Require Strategic, Long-term Disaster Philanthropy by Bob Ottenhoff
• Report: Measuring the State of Disaster Philanthropy 2018 with Data Dashboard
• Webinar: Disaster Relief: Are You Prepared?
• Resource: Disaster Philanthropy Playbook 
• White Paper: Public and Private Partnerships in Disaster Relief

Notable Quotes from Bob Ottenhoff:

“There were 16 disasters in 2017 that caused a billion dollars or more in damage.”

“We find consistently that about 70% or more of all dollars are given within 30 days of a disaster…by 60 days or so, we're pretty much at the end of the giving cycle for that disaster.”

“So, the philanthropic dollars become really important. They’re not the biggest in terms of dollars, but they have the ability to do things nobody else could do.”

“There’s a lot of funds that have gotten into serious trouble because there were misunderstandings about the purpose of the fund, how decisions were going to be made, when the money was going to be disbursed.”