I want an ipad--lessons for nonprofits!

I want an Ipad!

I am 100% sure I don't need one. I am not sure if I will know how to use it, will find it valuable, or create new efficiencies as a result of owning it, but I want an Ipad!

And, I am not alone. In a little over a year, Apple's Ipad has more than 15 million customers. So, what can we all learn from it? A lot!

Here are three great tips we can all learn from Apple Ipad's tremendous success.

1. We need to be cool! Ipads are undeniably the must have gadget of the "cool". We need to make sure that our organizations are also appealing in those same ways. Take a look at www.charitywater.org if you are not sure what a "cool" nonprofit looks like.

2. We need to be fun! For some of you, that is a challenge based on your cause, but for some of you there is a real opportunity. Think about creating an app that you could sell for donations or a web game that might go viral. The Ipad is used about 1/3 of the time for games...take advantage of that market to increase awareness of your organization.

3. We need to Share! The Ipad makes it easy to share information. You should do the same for your organization. Use share widgets like the ones available in Sage Fundraising Online. Share information about your organization on the web, at events, in social media, and everywhere you can. Most importantly, make it easy for others to do the same.

Take-away: Be the Ipad, and if you have an extra, please feel free to send it my way!

What should we do? Nonprofits and Diaster Relief Efforts

In central Texas some of our cities look like war zones now, completely devastated by wildfires. We haven't had rain in so long, I have kind of forgotten what it even looks like. With the recent devastation, I have seen many nonprofits struggle with how to help and many step in to work miracles.

I think it is important for nonprofits to remember their focus and mission, but in times like these it is also important to help where you can. Here are some great tips for answering the question of "What Should We Do?"

* Be useful: Remember, people are already overwhelmed with impact of the disaster. Work to align your mission to initiatives which provide a helping hand. Look for ways to help that represent what your organization stands for.

* Don’t forget your employees and volunteers: Employee & volunteer welfare activities and assistance will not only provide much-needed assistance, but also lend strength your tie to those individuals. Remember they are a part of your organization, so start with helping those in your own house.

* Go social, everyone’s talking about it: Social media plays a more important role for disaster updates and assistance. Utilize your own networks to help, and share what you are doing on official channels. Word to the wise, don't overuse official channels.

* Have a disaster policy: Make sure you have a disaster policy in place and ready when you need it, and make sure it includes how you will respond to local and area disasters that may not specifically effect your organization. Here is a link I found of a downloadable plan to get you started.

Take-away: Better safe than sorry, a good experience with your organization in a crisis will never be forgotten.

Project 9/11

Join Project 9/11 today!



The 9/11 Day of Service and Remembrance is a day when individuals, nonprofits, companies, schools and other groups remember by doing, taking time to engage in charitable service in tribute to the victims of 9/11 and those who rose in service in response to the attacks. In observance of the 10-year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, millions of people will participate in the single-largest day of charitable service in American history through large-scale volunteer service projects, individual good deeds and other acts of service in tribute to the 9/11 victims and others. Please visit www.911day.org and facebook.com/911day to post and share your “I will” tributes, good deeds, and service activities for this 9/11.

Take-Away: I will never forget, and I will make sure our company participates in this amazing day of service!

Creating a great experience through transparency

How do you get your nonprofit on board with increasing transparency and listening to donors? Well, you could take a lesson from the fast-food chain Domino’s. In fact, they recently invested in a digital billboard in the heart of New York’s Times Square to display customer feedback.




Over the past couple of years, Domino’s has made a huge push to get customers to give the pizza company feedback so it can improve its pizza and delivery service. Those efforts have paid off tremendously, says Gene Galindo, marketing director of 53 locations in Wilmington, N.C., and Charleston, S.C. “We want to know if there are issues, and social media gives us a chance to make things right. Domino’s is extremely transparent.”
The company’s 125-foot-wide Times Square billboard that broadcasted customer comments and their photos was active through Tuesday. The billboard supported its “Oh Yes We Did” campaign and showed off its ongoing efforts to improve to 500,000 passers-by.

Domino’s spokesman Chris Brandon says about 80% of the feedback on the billboard has been positive, and the other 20% has been “constructive.” People who posted feedback — positive or constructive — received an e-mail to let them know they made the billboard.

“We were already becoming known for placing high emphasis on customer feedback and the theme of accountability,” Brandon said. “People think [the billboard] is a cool customer experience.”

Social media has really opened the door for small and large businesses to connect and keep in touch with customers, and there is no reason that nonprofits can't join that wave of opportunity. Maybe we can't all invest in a billboard on Time Square, but we can certainly invest in having open and honest conversations with our constituents.

Take-away: Start experimenting with social media in your day to day activities. Where can you use social media to increase transparency and start having conversations online about the projects, fundraisers, and events that your organization has slated in its 2012 Program of Works!

5 Steps to Help Your Nonprofit Survive the Stock Market Rollercoaster

I recently read an article on small business and the impact this month of scary political maneuvering is causing. In fact, it has been a scary month for every nonprofit organization. Watching the stock market is enough to make anyone sick, and nonprofits everywhere nervous. Many financial experts believe that the market is always a leading indicator of where the economy is headed. Some are even predicting a "double dip" recession. How will the tumbling of the stock market affect your organization?

The survey of small business owners last week revealed the following:
- Forty-eight percent think sales from their customers will “decrease as a result of a fear of a new recession."
- Forty-three percent replied that “it would have no effect at all.”

So, whether the U.S. is headed into another recession is unknown. But, the author recommends small business owners stop worrying and take more control by following five steps. I have taken the liberty of adapting those five very well thought out steps to the nonprofit world, because I 100% agree with all five of them.

1. Forget Chicken Little
Ignore the daily stock market ups and downs. To listen to the pundits, the world is coming to an end. It is not helpful to get caught up in the emotional hysteria of these massive swings. Don’t try to "time the market" on your own personal investment strategy either. You may get lucky, but for most of us, this is a loser. Turn off the daily negative media if that helps. Just say NO!

2. Find your share of donations
The U.S. donation volume was $303 billion in 2010, and $15 billion online. Do you think you could find another million dollars worth of donations to help grow your organization in such a large pool of donors? Darn right! Stick to the fundamentals and start exploring what you can do instead of what you are scared to do.

3. Watch your cash flow
Cash tends to slow down in a tough economy. Make sure that donors are still engaging with your organization and keep the lines of communication open. Organizations that have positive cash flow and are willing to invest in the future can always find opportunities to prosper.

4. Get boring fast
The knee-jerk reaction is to broaden your organization’s solutions to gain more donors. This is the absolutely wrong strategy. Focus on the areas where new strategies are working for other nonprofits (i.e. online fundraising, year end giving) and where old strategies are proven.

5. Keep selling every day
Again, the first reaction is to cut costs and curtail “overhead expenses” like marketing and sales. Results show that organizations that market through difficult times are more profitable when donors get more money to spend. Remember growing an organization is about building long-term trustful, engaging relationships. None of this can get accomplished successfully if your organization stops marketing itself daily.

Take-away: Is the sky falling? What tactics will you be taking through the remainder of 2011? Share with us here and with other nonprofits!