Unusual Twists on Nonprofit Fundraising

Print newsletters are the default communications tactic for nonprofits.But other elements can yield tremendous benefits for nonprofits, as well.

If the goal is community engagement and advocacy, you might produce an annual report or a community report card. If the goal is promotional, you might use postcards, flyers, invitations and event programs. If you want to get in front of new donors, you might consider integrating alternative techniques that gain attention in fresh and surprisingly ways.

What are some of those alternative techniques?

Table tents: Table tents can be powerful tools. Develop a creative tagline to communicate your distinctive competence, then illustrate how the reader can help. Distribute tents in high-traffic areas where people have a minute to read your message, such as restaurant and retail counters. 

Hang tags: Partner with a grocer or retailer to place hang tags on popular products. The association with a well-known brand gives your organization instant credibility. 

“Gift” catalogs: Give benefactors a tangible idea of how donations are being used. A hunger relief organization might “sell” cereal, bread, or a family dinner, with “prices” corresponding to the cost of supplying these items to those in need. World Vision’s Christmas 2014 Gift Catalog allowed supporters to purchase goats, chickens, and ducks for Third World communities to provide both sustainable food sources and merchant opportunities.

These are not products we normally see associated with nonprofits donations, and that’s what makes them so effective. It takes more than clever advertisements to inspire your stakeholders to action. It takes creativity, too.

But beware of using these alternative techniques in a silo-ed fashion. Integrate them into an overall marketing strategy. Include measurable outcomes to keep your staff focused and results-driven. By building in accountability, you will ensure that your board members become your most ardent marketing allies.

Jeff Lampert

Director of Marketing & Business Development

“If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the human race has not achieved, and never will achieve, its full potential, that word would be 'meetings.”
― Dave Barry

Elements of a Successful Cross-Media Campaign

Want to energize your print campaign? Add demographic or psychographic segmentation and personalization. Want to energize your print campaign even more? Combine print with other media to amplify its effect.

The most common cross-media campaigns these days are print and e-mail, but you might also want to consider banner ads, social media, SMS text messaging, search engine advertising and other avenues that complement print. Each will have different uses and benefits, depending on your marketing goals and the target demographic you are trying to reach.

Here are some basic rules to keep in mind:

1. Consistent branding across all media.

Different media have different requirements and limitations, so you aren’t going to be able to maintain 100% consistency all the time. But whenever possible, try to use the same images, color schemes, messaging and other elements across media.

2. Strategic application of media.

Know what role, specifically, each medium is supposed to play. If you are going to combine e-mail with print, what are you trying to accomplish? Are you trying to “prime the pump” for the print piece? Are you using e-mail as a follow-up? Maybe if you’re driving traffic to a campaign-specific website, you might want to consider Internet banner advertising in demographic “hot spots.” The key is to match the medium to the audience and the message so that each medium plays off the other’s strengths.

3. Appropriate matching of media to the audience.

Ensure that you use the right medium to communicate with each target audience. Not all media are appropriate for every demographic. You’re not going to reach many senior citizens with SMS, for example. Plus, the mix is always changing. For example, only teenagers and college students used to use Facebook, but increasingly professionals and businesses use it as well.

Identify your marketing objectives, and then ensure that each medium is the right one to accomplish those goals. Make sure that you match the medium to your demographic and your offer, and use it appropriately within the best practices of that medium.

There is a learning curve associated with multi-channel marketing, but the ability to amplify and reinforce your marketing message can be invaluable.

Jeff Lampert

Director of Marketing & Business Development

Business is a game, played for fantastic stakes, and you're in competition with experts. If you want to win, you have to learn to be a master of the game.
― Sidney Sheldon, Master of the Game