intro to growing your base of support
DESCRIPTION
New supporters are the key to the success of any organization – donors, advocates, volunteers and members are all vital to helping an organization thrive and achieve their mission. But how do you reach new supporters and how do you add them to your lists? In this introductory class, you will learn the top 10 outreach strategies your nonprofit can use to grow your supporter base. Topics Covered include: • The do’s and don’ts of basic list acquisition strategies • The anatomy of sign-up pages • Social media strategies for reaching new audiences • Using paid acquisition effectively to gain supporters • Why swapping email lists is bad for list growth • Overall tips to help you build a permission-based email listTRANSCRIPT
Don’t Let Soc Med Shrink Your List!
• Keep Your Promises– @wmata social media team
• Respond to Disasters ASAP– Susan G. Komen for the Cure
• Follow the Discussion– United Airlines
Put Links Everywhere!
• Let your supporters share your pages – Many people are more
interested in their friends than organizations
– Salsa has this functionality
Newer or More Sophisticated
• Attentive.ly & Action Sprout– Talk to supporters with high Klout
scores; see who is REALLY engaged on Twitter & Facebook
– Easier Sharing through AS• Klout Scores• Facebook Sign-up & Donation
Integration
Offline Strategies
• Events – Paper sign-up forms – Business card drop-ins– Early news/photos first look– Continuing the conversation
Offline Strategies
• Efficiency & Environmentalism Appeal– Faster tax receipts– Rapid response Advocacy– Save postage, for you and them– Save paper
Personalize & Incentivize
• Exclusive Offers• Prizes/Contests/Giveaways for joining the list• Earlybird Discounts• Birthday Club• Unique landing pages
Ask for it - EVERYWHERE
• Direct Mail Solicitations• Live Events• Point of Service• Thank you letters• Surveys• Bounceback Follow Ups
Reasons to consider paying to grow your list
1. Capacity
2. Things usually go viral with a lot of help
Reasons to consider paying to grow your list
1. Capacity
2. Things usually go viral with a lot of help
3. You have a big campaign and you want to make a splash
Reasons to consider paying to grow your list
1. Capacity
2. Things usually go viral with a lot of help
3. You have a big campaign and you want to make a splash
4. Sometimes it’s good to spend money to make money
$ = $$$
Cost-Per-Click
• Inexpensive or free• Easy to stick to a budget• Granular targeting
Pros Cons• Paying for clicks or
impression – no conversion guarantees
Cost per Acquisition
• Gain already committed activists
• Only pay for new people• Care2 and Change.org
have data bridges with Salsa
Pros Cons• It costs money
E-Appends
• A good starting place if you have a big direct mail list and a small e-mail list
• Save money on direct mail by switching to e-mail
• More donations• Inexpensive• Engaging your supporters
more online
Pros Cons
• Need a big list• Match rates and opt-in rates
not always high