Connections : email marketing

Blackbaud's 2009 Relationship Management Conference - Day 2

Steve MacLaughlin — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 05:54:00 GMT

It's the second full day of Blackbaud's 2009 Relationship Management Conference here in London. You can follow the conference on Twitter using the #bbeconf09 hashtag.

I'm doing a sessions today called "The Changing Nature of Online Fundraising" that covers a variety of topics. Lots of stats, trends, and information from across online giving, email, social media, etc. in this session.

There are 30 different sessions today and here are some that might be of interest:

Email Marketing For Fun(draising) & (Non) Profit! – Margaret Farmakis, Return Path
Cool Tools – How Technology Is Changing The Way We Communicate With Our Supporters – Robert McAllen, Program Manager, Blackbaud Europe
Launching the Space Shuttle – Practical Advice To Ensure A Smooth Public Launch Of Your Website – Raheel Gauba, Creative Director, Blackbaud Internet Solutions
donorCentrics Helps Me Make Decisions! – Stephen O’Neill & Kevin Morton, MS Society
Deep Dive into Blackbaud NetCommunity - Robert McAllen, Program Manager, Blackbaud Europe

Blackbaud's Chief Technology Officer Shaun Sullivan is the plenary speaker today. I'm sure he'll have a few new surprises for the attendees.

Look for updates on this blog and Twitter.

NetWits Summer Camp - Day 5 - Online Metrics Demystified

Steve MacLaughlin — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 15:01:00 GMT

NetWits Summer Camp wraps up today with session all about online metrics. I want to thank everyone that has attended all of the sessions so far this week. We've covered a lot of topics and materials over the past five days.

The last session of the week will be covering online metrics and brings together a lot of the concepts that have been discussed throughout NetWits Summer Camp. This is a recap of today's presentation:

Online Metrics Demystified
The combined use of a website, email, online fundraising, and social media brings with it a lot of powerful metrics to measure your results. This session will cover what are the key online metrics to measure, what they mean, and how to manage them on an ongoing basis. Here is a brief outline of the session and the major topics covered:

What is a Metric and Why Should You Care
Website Metrics
Email Metrics
Online Fundraising Metrics
Social Media Metrics
Online Nonprofit Benchmarking
Where We Go from Here

The team at Blackbaud is excited about the great feedback we've received about NetWits Summer Camp. We're looking forward to doing more sessions like this in the future.

NetWits Summer Camp - Day 2 - Email Demystified

Steve MacLaughlin — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 15:06:00 GMT

Today is the second day of Blackbaud's NetWits Summer Camp. The free web seminar series sold out quickly and yesterday's sessions about nonprofit websites was jam packed with people.

The next session is later today and focuses on using email marketing as part of a nonprofit's online strategy. Here is a brief summary of the session:

Email Demystified
A successful email marketing program combined with an effective website form the core of your Internet efforts. This session will focus on the different types of email communication, ways to build your email lists, and best practices for getting the most out of your email marketing program. Here is a brief outline of the session and the major topics covered:

Why All Email is Not the Same
Get Started and Get Growing
Email Dos and Don'ts
Using Passive vs. Active Email
Email ROI Made Simple
Where We Go from Here

There is always room for improvement with email marketing. I hope today's attendees get a lot out of the session.

5 Questions Nonprofits Should Ask Before Sending an Email

Steve MacLaughlin — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 15:05:00 GMT

Email marketing has come a long way in the nonprofit sector, but there are still some fundamental questions good senders should answer before they hit the send button.

I'll be covering several email do's and don'ts at NetWits Summer Camp. Until then, here is a list of five questions every nonprofit should ask themselves before sending an email marketing message:

Who
Who is the audience? If the audience is everyone, then you're doing it wrong. Think about the specific segments of constituents that the messages are being targeted towards. Are they alumni, donors, members, volunteers, activists, board members, staff, lapsed donors, event participants, etc.? Don't forget to make sure that you actually have permission to email these individuals.

What
What type of email are we sending to this audience? Is it an action focused message like a fundraising appeal or an advocacy action alert? Is it a communication focused message like a monthly enewsletter? Is it an acknowledgement focused message like confirming a gift or event registration? Don't forget to keep track of the various types of emails you send as their performance metrics will be different.

Why
Why are we sending this audience this type of message? If there's not a good reason for sending — don't. Is the call to action, the communication style, and the content of the message clear and concise? If it's not clear to you, then it won't be clear to the recipient. Don't forget to make testing email messages a regular part of your routine.

When
When are you sending this audience this type of message? We're talking down to the day of the week, hour of the day, and time zone overlap kind of stuff. Is the content of the message time sensitive? Should some audience segments get the message sooner than others? Is this email part of a broader campaign or sequence? Don't forget that the majority of your results from an email campaign happen in the first 48 hours.

How Much
How often are you sending this audience any type of message? Do you have a calendar or planning schedule for all online and offline communication? Where are there lots of overlaps? Where are there gaps in the schedule? Don't forget that not emailing enough can be as bad as emailing too much.

More NetWits Summer Camp Sessions Added

Steve MacLaughlin — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 21:28:00 GMT

We must be on to something. In just two days, Blackbaud is close to completely filling up NetWits Summer Camp, our free five-day series of web seminars about how nonprofits can better use the Internet.

So we've gone ahead and added five more sessions during the week of August 24th to 28th. Visit the NetWits Summer Camp homepage to sign up for sessions about your website, email marketing, online fundraising, social media, and related metrics.

Websites Demystified
Monday, August 24 at 1 p.m. ET - SESSION FULL
Monday, August 24 at 3 p.m. ET - SESSION FULL

Email Demystified
Tuesday, August 25 at 1 p.m. ET - SESSION FULL
Tuesday, August 25 at 3 p.m. ET - SESSION FULL

Online Fundraising Demystified
Wednesday, August 26 at 1 p.m. ET - SESSION FULL
Wednesday, August 26 at 3 p.m. ET - SESSION FULL

Social Media Demystified
Thursday, August 27 at 1 p.m. ET - SESSION FULL
Thursday, August 27 at 3 p.m. ET - SESSION FULL

Online Metrics Demystified
Friday, August 28 at 1 p.m. ET - SESSION FULL
Friday, August 28 at 3 p.m. ET - SESSION FULL

Hope to see you there...

Early Registration Reminder for Relationship Management Conference

Steve MacLaughlin — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 09:08:00 GMT

Just a quick reminder for readers in the UK and Europe that the early registration deadline for Blackbaud's Relationship Management Conference is 31st July. The early registration offer is £329 per delegate. Full registration includes all sessions, materials and meals (breakfast and lunch), as well invitations to the evening networking event.

This year's event is being held on 12th and 13th October at the Victoria Park Plaza, London. There are session tracks on Marketing, Performance Management, Fundraising, and Supporter Relations. Here are just some of the speakers:

Live & Interactive: Your Website in Focus: Does Your Website Meet Your Organisational Objectives? - Raheel Gauba, Creative Director - Blackbaud Internet Solutions
Email Marketing for Fun(draising) and (Non)Profit! - Margaret Farmakis, Senior Director - Return Path
Why Direct Mail's Not Dead - Reuben Turner, Creative Director - The Good Agency
Creating a Post-Crisis Charity Mindset: Moving Beyond the Transaction - Steve Bridger, nfp2.0

The keynote speaker for the conference is Paul Williamson, Head of Ticketing for the 2012 Olympic games in London. Paul Williamson has the ultimate responsibility to fill the 35 stadiums to capacity for the wide range of events, from gymnastics to judo, archery to paralympic boccia. Paul will present the aspiration of the Olympic Games, as well as its legacy. Drawing on his extensive experience in ticketing and customer relations as he will discuss the challenges and opportunities the games bring; identifying the market, message and building relationships with a relatively unknown audience.

This year's conference is going to raise the bar to the next level. We are adding new and pertinent subject matter to satisfy the expectations of the audience; from marketing managers, fundraising managers and heads of departments to those involved in website development, emedia and ticket management. Don't miss out on this registration deadline.

Digital Leap Conference in London

Steve MacLaughlin — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 11:29:00 GMT

Today is the Digital Leap conference in London. It's all about fundraising, social networking, and online charity success in the UK and Europe.

Digital Leap is being held at the ICO Conference Centre in central London. There are a great set of speakers at the event including:

Ted Hart, CEO, Hart Philanthropic Services Group
Alan Clayton, Director of Innovation, The Good Agency
Richie Jones, Founder and Creative Technology Director, Yucca UK
Robert McAllen, Programme Manager, Blackbaud Europe
Jason Potts, Director, Think Consulting Solutions
Reuben Turner, Creative Director, The Good Agency
Beth Granter, Social Media Marketer, Twentyfirst Will McInnes, Managing Director, NixonMcInnes

Be sure to check out the Digital Leap blog and follow the conference on Twitter.

5 Email Sins to Avoid

Steve MacLaughlin — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 14:02:00 GMT

Every day nonprofits send out millions of email messages. And every day there are some common sins committed with email. Here are some common email sins that should be avoided:

No Purpose
Before you hit send — stop and ask yourself: Why am I sending this message? Does the message have a clear purpose? If it doesn't then you're doing more harm than good. Make sure that there's a self-evident purpose for the message. Everything from the subject line to the content of the message and the links in it should reinforce that purpose.

No Segmentation
Sending a blast email message to every single email address that you have is bad. And it's more than likely spam, too. "No communication without segmentation" should be your motto. Focus on your best segments and personalize the message in ways that will reinforce your message and resonate better with those targeted recipients.

No Testing
They practice the coin toss for the Super Bowl. Don't you think you should be testing your emails? The most successful nonprofits test everything from segments and subject lines, the day and time of the message, and variations on the content and landing pages. There is no such thing as luck with email. You need to test, test, and test.

No Call to Action
Email is not where the action is. The action only happens on your website. Never send an email message or enewsletter without a call to action. That action doesn't always have to be a financial transaction or advocacy alert. It could be asking to take a poll, survey, participate in a contest, or help spread the word for your organization.

No Follow-Up
Email campaigns are never one-and-done. You need to have a follow-up plan for those who take action and those who don't to maximize results. This could be as simple as a reminder email for people who registered online for an event. It might be a series of emails to new constituents who aren't yet donors. Following up gets results.

These are just a few common mistakes made with email. Do you have any others to confess? Let me know and be sure to look for more in the future.

Is 99% Failure Acceptable?

Steve MacLaughlin — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 16:02:00 GMT

I am spending a lot of time these days looking at numbers. Lots and lots of numbers. Mostly because I'm working on a new book and exploring the wonderful and strange world of online fundraising metrics. (More on that in future blog posts)

One thing that has got my attention are some of the latest online fundraising benchmarks in the 2009 eNonprofit Benchmarks Study done by M+R Strategic Services and NTEN. I also had a copy of the 2008 study and did a mash-up of some of the findings. All good studies raise questions and this one begs the following question: Is 99% failure acceptable?

Email Results Dropping
The studies highlight the performance of email fundraising appeals sent by nonprofits. To be clear, the studies also look at separate metrics for email newsletter and advocacy alert messages. The three year trend for email shows a drop across the board with the exception of page completion rate. Open rates can be deceptive, but click-through rates and response rates are very telling. And what they are telling us is that 99.88% of these fundraising focused emails failed to result in a gift.

Why 99% Failure is Acceptable
Some nonprofit consultants will point to direct mail where a 2% to 3% conversion rate has people popping the champagne. Others will add that the sheer volume of spam dilutes the potential effectiveness of email. Organizations might also claim that using email is still relatively new for many of them and they can't be expected to outperform more traditional channels.

Why 99% Failure is Not Acceptable
Email is not direct mail. While many of the same strategies apply, it is like comparing apples and iPhones. Email communication has more robust segmentation and personalization capabilities. It has faster response cycles, is more cost effective to test, and combined with higher average gifts it can have better ROI than traditional channels. Email isn't perfect or the Holy Grail of marketing tools, but having success less than 1% of the time shouldn't be acceptable.

What is Your Success Rate?
Go ahead and pick your side in the debate. But make sure you know how you measure up. How do your results compare to these benchmarks? Where is it today? How has it changed over time? Where do you want it to be? What's the value of the difference? Welcome to the beauty and importance of benchmarks. They establish a point of comparison over a period of time and help you measure your own performance against it. Benchmarks don't set your goals, but they can absolutely help drive your performance measurement in meaningful ways.

Results May Vary
All statistical averages hide the reality that some organizations are well above the benchmark and others are way below it. Successful nonprofits have learned that better segmentation, message testing, and integrating their efforts with other channels yields the best results. These organizations also don't push the send button without having a goal for the campaign, a targeted audience for the email, a clear purpose for the message, a measurable call to action, and a plan to monitor the results. 99% failure is not acceptable for these nonprofits.

Recent Required Reading

Steve MacLaughlin — Mon, 11 May 2009 15:02:00 GMT

There is a lot going on in the nonprofit world these days. Here are some excellent blog posts to keep you in the know.

Study Provides A Baseline for Nonprofit Use of Social Networks
Beth Kanter does a review of the Nonprofit Social Network Survey Report produced by ThePort Network, Inc, NTEN, and Common Knowledge. The survey examines the use of social networking as a marketing and fundraising tool.

My recent visit with Heifer International
Blackbaud's Raheel Gauba recounts his recent visit to this client in pictures and words. He talks about the work Heifer does as well as their green friendly working environment.

Blogger Outreach. Tread Lightly
Jocelyn Harmon talks about the mistakes made by so many organizations trying to get bloggers to pick up their story. What might work in traditional public relations or mainstream media does not work with social media. Want to get personal attention? Build a personal relationship.

Help a Nonprofit This Mother's Day
Blackbaud's Anthony Sicola covers some nonprofit websites and how they used ecards and tribute giving pages for a Mother's Day focused campaign. He gives plenty of examples and links to check out.

6-Minute Guide to Winning Fundraising Campaigns
Katya Andresen and Rebecca Ruby Higman discuss how the “if you build it, they will come" approach to online giving simply doesn't work anymore. They cover some recommendations for setting goals and using technology to engage donors in better ways.

Common Adwords Mistakes
Beaconfire's Brett Gerstein gives some advice about improving your Google Adwords campaigns. He covers the importance of keyword selection and how to avoid some common mistakes.

4 Keys to Building a Successful Nonprofit Web Site
Blackbaud's Frank Berry blogs about what it takes to build a successful website. He gives some tips on the best way to get the most reach and results from your online content.

Taking Five Website Staples to the Next Level

Steve MacLaughlin — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 15:03:00 GMT

Allison Van Diest, senior product marketing manager for Blackbaud’s Internet Solutions, has just published a new white paper called Beyond the Basics: Taking Five Website Staples to the Next Level.

The recommendations come in part from findings in the 2008 State of the Nonprofit Industry (SONI) survey.This paper shows how nonprofits can use five web staples to enrich current relationships, establish new relationships, and encourage constituents to interact and give online. Some of the findings and insights include:

Direct or mass email marketing — 79% of nonprofits say they are doing this, although only 58% claim their email address files have grown in the past twelve months, indicating much room for improvement.

Online fundraising — 68% of nonprofits provide the ability for a website visitor to make a donation.

Electronic newsletters — 59% of nonprofits send out an electronic newsletter, which means that right away, there is an obvious opportunity for the 20% who are emailing without sending e-newsletters to add one to the marketing mix.

Website usage reports — 49% of nonprofits are utilizing this absolutely essential (and often free!) tool.

Online event registration — 43% of nonprofits allow prospective attendees to register for events online, and 78% of nonprofits send event invitations through direct mail — this wide gap between online and offline is an area that screams for better constituent service.

Allison uses some of the findings in the SONI survey to make recommendations around improving email marketing, online fundraising, electronic newsletters, website usage reports, and online event registration.

"The most interesting thing our SONI surveys reveal is that the more things change, the more they stay the same. Since nonprofits have been looking at the internet as a marketing and fundraising channel, they have consistently been looking for better ways to addresses the basics. This isn't to say that many organizations aren't finding success as they push the envelope into other areas online, but there is still so much potential for improvement - strategically and tactically - on the ground floor." - Allison Van Diest, Sr. Product Marketing Manager

You can get a copy of Beyond the Basics: Taking Five Website Staples to the Next Level by clicking here.

NetWits Live @ San Francisco

Steve MacLaughlin — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 15:09:00 GMT

A lot of people from the Blackbaud Internet Solutions team are in San Francisco for today's NetWits event. Blackbaud has teamed up with TechSoup Global to provide sessions on social networking, Web 2.0, email best practices, and more at this free event in the Bay area.

Here's a look at the sessions we're doing at today's event:

The Right Message, The Right People, The Right Time — Making the Most of Email Marketing
Speaker: Allison Van Diest, Senior Internet Product Marketing Manager, Blackbaud

Rapid Donor Cultivation
Speaker: Jeff Patrick, President and Founder, Common Knowledge

The Changing Nature of Online Fundraising
Speaker: Steve MacLaughlin, Director of Internet Solutions, Blackbaud

Across the Spectrum of Social Media: How Organizations of All Sizes Are Leveraging Web 2.0
Panel Moderator: Chad Norman, Internet Marketing Manager, Blackbaud
Janet Fouts, Social Media Coach, Tatu Digital Media
Susan Tenby, Senior Manager, Online Community Development, TechSoup

Upcoming NetWits Live @ San Francisco Event

Steve MacLaughlin — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 14:01:00 GMT

NetWits Live is coming to the Hyatt Regency in San Francisco. Blackbaud Internet Solutions has teamed up with TechSoup Global to provide sessions on social networking, Web 2.0, email best practices, and more at this free, one-of-a-kind, half-day event.

Where: Hyatt Regency San Francisco
When: Wednesday | March 4th | 8:30am to 12:00pm
Who: Nonprofits on West Coast and San Francisco area
How: To register please visit: http://www.blackbaud.com/netwitslive

The Right Message, The Right People, The Right Time — Making the Most of Email Marketing
Join Blackbaud Interactive Marketing Manager Allison Van Diest to discuss winning strategies and tools for planning, developing, launching, and managing a successful email marketing program, including tips and tricks that you can put to use right away.
Speaker: Allison Van Diest, Blackbaud Internet Solutions Marketing Manager, Blackbaud, Inc.

Rapid Donor Cultivation
You might not know that your new email opt-ins are in a crucial stage during the first 30 days. How do you engage people when they first join your nonprofit’s email list? In this presentation we will explain how to: Ensure a strategic stream of email communications, Engage new supporters with frequent, targeted, high-quality messages, and Rapidly cultivate new prospects
Speaker: Jeff Patrick, President and Founder, Common Knowledge

The Changing Nature of Online Fundraising
There are three major trends impacting nonprofits today: The channels used to fundraise are changing, the people who donate are changing, and the giving experience is changing. We’ll discuss why it's critical to fundraise with integrated and multi-channel campaigns, engage Generation-X and Millennial donors, and move beyond the donation page.
Speaker: Steve MacLaughlin, Director of Internet Solutions, Blackbaud, Inc.

Across the Spectrum of Social Media: How Organizations of All Sizes Are Leveraging Web 2.0
Chad Norman, social web strategist and self-confessed web-geek, will host a panel discussion featuring industry experts who consult with a wide variety of organizations on social media and Web 2.0. The panel will address how social media affects organizations’ resources, goals, and branding and will cover the tools that organizations can potentially put to use immediately following the event.
Panel Moderator: Chad Norman, Internet Marketing Manager, Blackbaud, Inc.