It’s easy to see building websites and designing forms as an onerous cost for an organization, especially when there are any number of social media channels that are free to use. But it’s important to ask if those free options are serving the purpose that your organization needs them to serve, and to remember that forms and websites built specifically to help your donors find and support your organization may have a cost, but they also have a value. 

Today’s episode was recorded at the Ask Direct Fundraising Summer School, held in Dublin, Ireland. Tune in to hear an interview with Beate Sørum, an international public speaker and a fundraising consultant based in Norway who brings some unique perspectives on form design and UX optimization. Listen to the interview to hear what Beate has to say about why forms are a good investment, how to engage with your donors through follow-up questions, and how social media is affecting fundraising efforts now. 

Topics Discussed in This Episode: 

• Some of the areas Beate has done testing into and insights that she’s found along the way
• How Norway has sidestepped the issue of copying what others are doing because of their lack of off-the-shelf solutions
• Why Beate sees forms as an investment rather than a cost
• How follow-up questions can be a good way to continue engaging with your donors
• Untraditional ways of designing forms
• How to better understand why people give and where giving comes from
• Why forms end up offering too much choice
• How social media is playing into fundraising right now
• How to develop content in a way that’s most likely to achieve the goals of the organization
• How to determine what’s working on social media when you have so many measurements to choose from
• How organizations can get started with more effective testing and use of digital channels 

Resources: 

The Ask Direct Fundraising Summer School 2018

Beate Sørum

About Beate Sørum

“My task is kind of to get people to stop looking at websites and forms as a cost and start seeing it as an investment.”

“Not everyone is going to fill out all your follow-up questions, but that’s OK. You’d rather actually have them as a donor than know everything about them.”

“A form is just a piece of code. There’s no reason why you shouldn’t be able to put it within the emotional story that you’re telling.”

You’ve probably heard the phrase “behavioral economics” before. Not only is it the subject of several best-selling books, there have also been two Nobel prizes awarded that centered on the topic of behavioral economics. But what is behavioral economics, and how does it apply in the social good community? 

Today’s guest is Bernard Ross, Director of The Management Centre. He’s the co-author of the book Change for Good, written with UNICEF’s Omar Mahmoud. In today’s episode, he’ll discuss behavioral economics in the context of fundraising and social good organization. Listen to the episode to hear Bernard talk about why humans make seemingly irrational decisions, how behavioral economics is at work all around society, and how to use the lessons of behavioral economics ethically. 

Topics Discussed in This Episode: 

• Fundamentals of behavioral economics
• Why irrational decisions can still be predictable and follow patterns
• Examples of behavioral economics in action around us
• How behavioral economics are applied in the social good sector
• How the human brain perceives numbers presented to it
• How moving from heart to head leads to a decrease in giving
• What Bernard would say to fundraisers to encourage them to use behavioral economics
• How ethics intersects with behavioral economics and fundraising
• Resources that Bernard recommends for nonprofit professionals thinking about behavioral economics 

Resources: 

Bernard Ross

Change for Good

Change for Good handout

Stop Listening to Your Supporters

“Behavioral economics says, “what if people are not like that? What if experience and the data tells us that we are all irrational?””

“There’s a whole science of restaurant menu design.”

“We are engaged in a moral business. There’s a moral responsibility to think about “am I using this technique fairly, properly, ethically?””

In this age of social media, activism is becoming more accessible to the masses. But, it's essential that the social media activism is connected to change makers working on the ground. How can philanthropic organizations harness social media activism to create change locally? This episode of Raise & Engage features an interview between Rachel Hutchisson, vice president of Corporate Citizenship and Philanthropy at Blackbaud and Darrin Goss, president and CEO of the Coastal Community Foundation, about social media activism, community engagement and more. Listen to hear how movements are being created by social media channels providing information and engaging people around causes they might not be directly impacted by are coming together with deep local involvement on the ground working to impact lasting change. Topics discussed in this episode:

• The biggest threat to doing social good right now, and the need for social media activism to be supported by on-the-ground support of local organizations changing policies
• The difference between "weak tie" and "strong tie" activism, and how both are fundamentally needed to advance change today
• How organizations can leverage philanthropic capital to impact their communities
• Why social, moral, intellectual and reputational capital are all key parts of a philanthropic organization's ability to make a difference and influence others beyond just their financial capital.
• Challenges faced by the Coastal Community Foundation, how it has embraced a bold new direction marked by a culture of courage, and how the organization has "turned outward" to directly engage the communities it serves in problem solving.

Resources:

• Original interview recording: Social Activism and Community Engagement: A Conversation with Darrin Goss, President & CEO of Coastal Community Foundation
• Rachel Hutchisson
• Darrin Goss
• Coastal Community Foundation

"I think the biggest threat facing philanthropic organizations is a lack of understanding of how real social change takes place in the age of social media." "Philanthropic organizations have far more at their disposal than just the financial capital that we all know and understand." "When funders resolve that they need to work with communities, then they can have the courage to go out and do what the promise of philanthropy is all about."

Big data and data science are hot topics everywhere these days, and the social good sector is no exception. As nonprofit organizations continue to increase their use of data to answer questions about donors and fundraising and drive performance improvements, it’s important to understand as much as possible about data science. 

In today’s episode, I’ll speak to Carrie Cobb, Vice President of Data Science at Blackbaud. We’ll do a deep dive into the subject of data science. Listen to the episode to hear what Carrie has to say about the specifics of what a data scientist does, the techniques they use, and the variety of ways that data science is applicable in the social good community. 

Topics Discussed in This Episode: 

• The differences between what a data scientist does compared to other types of scientists who deal with data, like statisticians
• How data can help reveal answers to questions about why something does or doesn’t happen
• The background and education common to data scientists
• The techniques used by data scientists to try to find answers from a large amount of data
• Whether it's helpful to separate what data scientists are trying to do from how they’re trying to do it
• How data scientist deal with eliminating bias, error, and unknown information
• What happens when the answer the data shows is disappointing
• How data science is applied in the social good community for reasons beyond fundraising
• The frequency with which predictive modeling should be done
• Where data science trends in nonprofit organizations are headed over the next few years 

Resources: 

Carrie Cobb

“When you’re a data scientist you kind of dive into the unknown to find patterns and build connections and make predictions.”

“From a technical perspective, data scientists are highly educated. Almost 90% have at least a master’s degree, and almost 50% have Ph.D.’s.”

“I would say it is an art and a science put together. Depending on your paint and your canvas and what you’re trying to display, you’re going to choose different tools to get you there.”

Now more than ever, nonprofits need to ensure that they have high-quality, up-to-date data. However, a lot of nonprofit organizations struggle with the issue of data health. Why is data health so important in the nonprofit field today, and what can organizations do to bring themselves and their data up to speed? 

In today’s episode, I’ll be speaking with Adriene Chisholm and Alan Dix of Blackbaud’s Target Analytics about the new report from the Blackbaud Institute for Philanthropic Impact, Untapped Potential: The Case for Data Health. Listen to the episode to hear what Adriene and Alan have to say about the biggest struggles nonprofits face with their data and how it affects fundraising, what first steps organizations can take to move in the direction of better data health, and how to avoid those dreaded “yellow stickers.” 

Topics Discussed in This Episode: 

• The most common data health areas that organizations struggle with
• Why physical addresses are such an important piece of data
• How data health can make fundraisers more efficient
• Valuable data to collect beyond basic contact data
• What organizations with a large digital presence should be doing to ensure their data is working for them
• Why organizations shouldn’t rely purely on digital data
• How to manage expectations about digital and social data
• How digital data may be more restricted going forward due to privacy concerns and regulations like GDPR
• First steps organizations can take to move in the direction of better data health
• Where data health is going in the next several years 

Resources:

Download Untapped Potential: The Case for Data Health

Connect with Adriene Chisholm and Alan Dix

“We’re all trying to be C+ students by limiting our ability due to poor data health.” – Alan Dix

 “Maintenance is always easier. It’s a lot easier to maintain your car than it is to get it fixed after it breaks down.” – Adrien Chisolm

“Data health is easy, it really is. It’s like getting your oil changed. You know you have to do it every 3,000 miles, just go and get it done.” – Adriene Chisholm

We often hear about the need for organizations to take about taking a donor-centric approach to engaging supporters. But is that enough, or do nonprofits need to go even deeper to attract and keep donors over the long term?

Today’s guest is Kevin Schulman, founder and managing partner of DonorVoice, a retention and donor experience company. Kevin talks about why understanding donor identity can help organizations better understand the motivations of donors. He also explains how organizations can use donor segmentation to strengthen their relationships with donors, leading to long-lasting relationships that are beneficial for both nonprofits and their donors. Listen to this episode to hear the keys to leveraging a donor identity approach that results in improved outcomes.

Topics Discussed in This Episode: 

• Why it’s important to understand the differences between different groups of donors
• Why segmentation alone isn’t enough
• The nuances of donor identity, and how it can help organizations to be more donor-centric
• How the same donors can have different identities depending on which organization they’re engaging with
• How to build content around donor identity categories
• How to deal with objections to using donor identity
• How focusing donor identity pilot programs on new donors can help organizations get past initial objections
• How organizations can focus on donor identity using existing channels

Resources: 

Kevin Schulman

DonorVoice

“If we want to be donor-centric, you have got to get some level of understanding about who these folks are and what makes them tick.”

“In order to get the kind of data that you need, guess what? You’ve actually got to ask these people.” 

“There ought to be massive perceived risk with status quo, but oftentimes there isn’t.”

Coming up with strategies for fundraising can be difficult. However, if there’s a culture in place that promotes and encourages giving as a norm, an important chunk of the work is already done. That’s why it’s so important to create a culture of philanthropy, especially in the nonprofit sector. 

On today’s episode, Alia McKee and Mark Rovner of Sea Change Strategies are here to talk about their report, Inside Out Fundraising: How to Create a Culture of Philanthropy by Treating Systems Instead of Symptoms. Alia and Mark explain what it means to have a culture of philanthropy, the things that get in the way of creating that culture and how nonprofits can overcome the challenges to doing do. Listen to the episode to learn why culture is an important part of fundraising success and hear the big takeaways from their research. 

Topics Discussed in This Episode: 

• The signs Alia and Mark saw that indicated it was time to start talking about culture with their clients
• What it means to create a culture of philanthropy, and why it’s so important
• What Alia and Mark found in their research
• The primary challenges that get in the way of forming a culture of philanthropy
• Implementing “the golden trio” in your nonprofit
• Balancing facts and data with passion for a cause
• What boards can do to take pressure off fundraisers
• How fundraisers can put recommendations from the Inside Out Fundraising report into action 

Resources: 

Alia McKee

Mark Rovner

Sea Change Strategies

Inside Out Fundraising: How to Create a Culture of Philanthropy by Treating Systems Instead of Symptoms

“Fundraising has become like driving a car with the emergency brake on. The car moves, but it’s not pretty and there’s a lot of friction.” –Mark Rovner

“I think the biggest “aha!” was that only one in five fundraisers say that their organization has a strong culture of philanthropy.” – Alia McKee

“Don’t get overwhelmed with all of the change that needs to happen. Think about how you can shrink that change.” –Alia McKee

Online fundraising has been around for nearly 20 years, and it continues to grow in both size and revenue amongst nonprofit organizations. In light of the increasing importance of digital fundraising and online giving, it’s important to look at what the field has learned about what works and what doesn’t, and how to implement proven best practices to ensure that nonprofits are making the most out of online giving opportunities. 

Today’s guest is Jennifer Abohosh, the chief digital strategist for Dunham + Company, which recently released their second Online Fundraising Scorecard. Listen in to hear what Jennifer has to say about what’s changed in online fundraising over the last five years since their original Online Fundraising Scorecard, what types of organizations are seeing better performance in online giving than others, and how nonprofit organizations can start implementing best practices to improve their digital performance. 

Topics Discussed in This Episode: 

• What’s in Dunham + Company’s second Online Fundraising Scorecard
• The biggest changes, both positive and negative, in email fundraising, email communications, online donation experience and gift acknowledgement over the last five years
• How mobile giving was looked at differently on this scorecard than in the past
• The importance of improving communication between nonprofits and donors
• What organizations need to think about from a digital perspective in the near future

Resources: 

Jennifer Abohosh

Dunham+Company

Online Fundraising Scorecard

“In email specifically, five years ago 46% of emails were mobile-responsive and now 90% of emails are mobile responsive.”

“How can we craft language around an email signup that will make it both exclusive and desirable to the end user?”

“Organizations should be doing some testing to continue to see what works and what doesn’t work for their particular organization, then continue to optimize the donation process along the way.”

You can’t pay attention to the news without hearing about the concerns and issues around data privacy and data protection. It affects every type of industry, government, and nonprofit organization out there. As of May 25th 2018, new laws will go into effect in the European Union that attempt to address these concerns for European citizens. 

In today’s episode, I’ll speak to Cameron Stoll, a member of Blackbaud’s legal counsel team and the chief data protection officer for Blackbaud’s European companies. We will discuss the EU’s General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) and what they mean for NGOs both in and outside of the EU. 

Topics Discussed in This Episode: 

• What GDPR is and what it does
• How GDPR evolved and differs from previous laws
• The difference between processors and controllers and what each one does
• How GDPR aligns with current best practices
• The intent and meaning behind legitimate interest when it comes to GDPR
• How the right to be anonymous plays into GDPR
• How the definition of personal data has been expanded
• How GDPR may affect organizations outside of the EU
• Whether legislation similar to GDPR might be seen in the US, Canada, or other countries 

Links and Resources: 

Cameron Stoll

GDPR 

“We have to have contractual relationships with these processors to make sure that they will abide by our instructions and to make sure that they can’t take that data and analyze it and sell it to another company, for example.” 

“Ultimately it really comes down to very general principles: protect the data that you have, give people choices about how you’re going to use their data, and be really transparent about how you’re using the data you collect.” 

“I think it can be seen as an extension of consumer rights on a really large scales across all industries in Europe.”

We all know that acquiring and retaining donors is one of the most important things nonprofit organizations must do to improve their fundraising performance. The question is how to do it – and do it well. This requires that we take a broader look at trends across the non-profit sector to help us better understand how our organizations are performing but also understand more about our donors. 

To help us explore this and some brand new research from the Blackbaud Institute is Chuck Longfield, Blackbaud’s Chief Scientist and author of the Vital Signs Report. In today’s episode, he’ll share some of the changes that he’s noticed since the last Vital Signs Report and talk about what those changes mean for the future of the non-profit world. 

Topics Discussed in This Episode: 

• What Chuck found in Part 1 of the Vital Signs Report a little over a year ago
• How the newer Vital Signs report shows signs of a turnaround in giving
• The urban legend that giving is a zero-sum game, and how the recent research disproves that theory
• What happens when donors stop giving to a particular organization
• Where donors’ loyalties lie – with a specific organization, or with a cause
• Steps that organizations can take with the new research in mind
• Why organizations should try to convert donors to monthly giving
• Whether the current pool of donors is sustainable long-term
• The directions that Chuck’s research will go in next 

Links and Resources: 

Chuck Longfield

Vital Signs Report Part 2

Vital Signs Report Part 1

Blackbaud Institute for Philanthropic Impact

Blackbaud

“I sort of put it into three categories. You could have more people giving more money, you could have fewer people giving more money, or you could have fewer people giving less money.” 

“A big driver of this – not the only driver, but a big driver – is what some people are calling rage-giving.” 

“If you can get over that initial hurdle and retain these new donors, these are pretty good donors to retain.”