What Are Your Digital Goals For 2019?

Digital marketing/fundraising is such a big, complex topic that it can be daunting trying to figure out where to start. Break it down into reasonable pieces to help build momentum and achieve success.

If you’re like me, the fresh start of a New Year is a welcome time to reflect on my accomplishments, set new goals, and re-prioritize life. In recent years, with my “work hat” on, digital marketing and fundraising seem to have earned a consistent spot as a goal for the year. The opportunities are endless!

It’s such a big, complex topic that it can be daunting trying to figure out where to start. But like most worthwhile goals, breaking it down into reasonable pieces helps build momentum and leads to success. My encouragement to you this year is to set even a small goal and get started! In that vein, let me offer three questions to consider:

How can you better capture gifts from those who are already engaged with your organization online?

How can you influence people who are already engaged with you in one channel to capture maximum value?

How can you find more donors for your organization?

Pick one, make a plan, and get started.

Maybe the right first step is to focus on people who are already engaged with your organization online. Take a look at your existing web metrics, measure them against industry trends, and set a couple of improvement goals. I might suggest working on email performance since e-appeals still have the potential to generate the bulk of online revenue. Learn from the experts and make changes to optimize your audience, subject line, content and design, and your donation page. You might be surprised at how small tweaks can make a big difference in donor engagement and giving!

Or you may decide your current online givers are performing well and it’s time to get a greater percentage of your traditional donors engaged online. Think about the typical experience your offline donor has. What’s a natural way to nudge them online? How can you make online giving obvious and easy? Does your direct mail and other media prompt them to connect with you on social media, visit your website for more information, or put their gift to work faster by giving online? You may not see quick improvement with any one of these activities, but persistence pays off and over the course of the year you can make a significant difference in your total online giving through the cumulative impact of these efforts.

As time and money allow, it’s always smart to acquire new donors – especially high-value ones that you can find through online mechanisms. If you haven’t already, set up a Google grant account and utilize this free advertising money to help attract more donors and donations. You can supplement with additional Paid Search for better performance if the budget is available. The opportunity is nearly endless when it comes to using digital technology to target high-value prospects. Techniques like retargeting, modeling for “lookalikes,” and using social media to reach your ideal audience can help you build a robust online donor file.

Make 2019 the year you find fundraising success online. Pick a reasonable place to start and get to work – even if you think it’s just a small step. Every bit helps!

If you’re ready to take your digital marketing and fundraising strategy to the next level, let us know how we can help by sending me an email at charity.abate@meyerpartners.com.