August 5, 2013
Nonprofit marketing teams are beginning to learn that more people want to donate to their mission, but it is up to them to deliver their message on a platform where supporters can interact. This is why mobile initiatives are becoming more popular among organizations;giving supporters an opportunity to send money straight from their cellphones is a strategy on the rise.
Test messages can help spread information
The annual "mGive Text Donation Study" recently released by mGive, the 501(c)(3) public charity supporting U.S. mobile donation campaigns, revealed 7 in 10 donors said they want to receive information about how they can contribute to fundraising on their cellphones. More than 37 percent are open to getting text messages containing news and updates from their favorite nonprofits and nearly 33 percent are interested in receiving notices regarding volunteer events. Nonprofits that are ready to embrace text message marketing may see their number of supporters continue to grow.
"The takeaway from this year's survey is that mobile isn't just for text giving anymore," said Jenifer Snyder, executive director of The mGive Foundation. "Nonprofits should use text messages to engage their supporters in more robust ways than fundraising."
Text fundraising campaigns can be a good idea
Organizations like the Red Cross have been running successful "Text to Donate" initiatives for years, and more nonprofits should understand the potential of such strategies. The mGive study showed 85 percent of respondents said they would be willing to give $25 to $50 through a text message, while text ranked third behind an organization's website and events as their preferred method of sending a donation.
Despite these findings, nonprofits have difficulty getting supporters to learn about their text message campaigns. However, according to mGive, social media has provided the boost that many of these strategies need to be successful. While TV ranks tops on the list of ways people can learn about text campaigns, social media increased 6 percentage points over the past year to rise to second and email marketing efforts are third.
Mobile strategies have high potential for nonprofits
By implement mobile marketing, nonprofits have the opportunity to draw in a larger audience. A blog post from digital marketing agency J Campbell Social Marketing suggested making content designed for smartphone and tablet owners and creating mobile-optimized websites are two ways nonprofits can boost their support network.
By giving people the chance to learn about recent happenings at organizations straight from their phones, nonprofits are increasing the number of channels that they can interact with their audiences on. Combining these efforts with text campaigns will help organizations create higher expectations for fundraising, due to the potential of mobile.
"Text campaigns are popular and increasingly important not just for donations, but for multiple types of information sharing," Snyder said. "We hear this from our clients, and the survey results add more proof that mobile communication is a central part of supporter outreach."
Ready to chat? Get in touch today to request a no-obligation savings evaluation.
Visually Impaired Preschool Services has been a client of First Non-Profit since it was first offered as a benefit of VisionServe Alliance. We completed a thorough evaluation of cash savings to our agency before taking advantage of this wonderful benefit and it has been a very wise decision. Our experience with the processes from accounting to claims have been professional, expeditious and easy.
The Ensight Skills Center has enjoyed working with First Nonprofit for several years. We are enrolled in their Unemployment Savings Program and although we have not required a lot of intervention, there have been a few times. I know others have dealt with the same problem of unemployment fraud over the last year and in our case, a call to First Nonprofit (they actually answer their phones) cleared up the issue. They also sent us a letter to send to all our employees telling them what they needed to do to prevent this in the future and protect themselves. What a relief! Over the years if I have questions or concerns, they are happy to listen, advise and help if they can. Another BIG advantage of using First Nonprofit is that all the money that is paid into the Unemployment Savings Program lives on my balance sheet as an asset. The money continues to be Ensight’s not the governments. First Nonprofit has certainly given me peace of mind.
In addition to their money-saving purpose on behalf of nonprofit organizations like AHS, First Nonprofit’s Nonprofit Unemployment Fund streamlines the information we need to efficiently manage unemployment claims. Our relationship with NU Fund gave us access to such things as advice on planning for what’s ahead and how to analyze cost scenarios when unexpected events occurred. Both experiences were very helpful.
We have had a great experience with FNP. During Covid, when there was the chance that reimbursable nonprofits would have to pay 50% of the unemployment costs, FNP went to bat for us. We would receive weekly information on the Unemployment claim and how they were working to reduce the costs to reimbursable nonprofits. They have a great service also working with [our claims administrator] to make sure all the paperwork is completed correctly for any unemployment claim.
PORT Health Services has had a great experience with the Unemployment Savings Program offered through First Nonprofit. Throughout the years we have been involved in the program, we have increased our reserve account significantly through this program and find the reporting we receive both timely and useful. We look forward to our continued involvement with this program and our connection with First Nonprofit for many years to come.
Job One was spending a lot of money on unemployment. Our insurance broker, Mark Simcosky, recommended that we switch over to First Nonprofit. We did just that! This switch has been a huge savings for us! This switch saved us over $10,000 in the first year. Their customer service is Superior! Any time we have a question, we get a response very quickly. Any time we send them a report and they have a question; they call rather than just assuming. They were very responsive during COVID, even when they were in crisis mode their selves. They also were always there when we needed during COVID and very helpful! We would 1,000% recommend First Nonprofit to anybody that could benefit from it!
My experience with FNP has always been positive. Every time I have had to contact them, I’m always put in contact with a friendly and knowledgeable person. If something is missing from our account, they reach out to us to request it. It’s nice to work with a company that makes sure our account is current. I would recommend them to any nonprofit looking to reduce their unemployment insurance costs.
We’ve saved tens of thousands of dollars PER YEAR by changing to become a reimbursing employer, freeing funds for much needed capital investment. FNP has been a valued partner in this process, providing assurance that we have stopgap coverage for extraordinary claims and keeping claims response painless and simple. It’s a huge Win/Win!