Robert L. Weiner: Nonprofit Fundraising Technology Consulting » Email Marketing

Prizes for Paperless Fundraising

Robert — Sat, 29 May 2010 08:59:03 +0000

Have you successfully moved from paper-based direct mail fundraising to digital tools (email, websites, video, social media, widgets, and/or mobile)? Want to gloat about your successes and possibly make some (more) money as well?

The Paperless Choice Challenge is rewarding successful, creative, replicable campaigns that use electronic fundraising tools by giving away eight prizes totalling over $20,000. Entries can be submitted between June 15 and September 15, 2010.

For more information go to http://www.paperlesschoice.org/. And while you're at it, check out more resources on going paperless from the GreenTech Initiative's paper reduction campaign.

SF Fundraising Day 2010

Robert — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:39:09 +0000

San Francisco's Fundraising Day will be happening June 16 at the downtown Marriott. Once again I have the honor of co-chairing the Technology Track with Michael Stein. We've programmed sessions on online fundraising with Madeline Stanionis, social media with Jeff Patrick, database selection with Eric Leland, and an open discussion session with me and Michael on whatever tech topics the attendees bring. Early bird rates end on April 15, so sign up at www.afp-ggc.org/frd2010

Converting Fresh Leads into Donors

Robert — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 08:59:02 +0000

CARE2 is holding a webinar on strategies for successfully welcoming, cultivating, and converting new leads into donors. Holly Ross of NTEN will moderate a panel with Heidi Hess of Children's Defense Fund and Greg Zelder of the California State Parks Foundation. They will review data about nonprofits' speed and type of responses to newly acquired email subscribers, then focus on specific online engagement and conversion strategies that have worked for them — as well as approaches that have failed (and why).

What: While They're Hot! Converting Fresh Leads into Donors

When: Thursday, October 1, 2009 at 2 p.m. Eastern

Email Bounce Codes Decoded

Robert — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 03:59:03 +0000

If you send mass email messages, you probably see a lot of bouncebacks that look like this:

Remote host said: 550 SC-004 Mail rejected by Windows Live Hotmail for policy reasons.

So what the heck does bounce code "550 SC-004" mean? The Email Experience Council's Deliverability Roundtable (Chris Wheeler of Bronto Software, Jack Sinclair of Return Path, and Josh Baer of OtherInbox) has put together a list of common email bounce codes to help decode why your emails might not be making it to their intended recipients.

Photo: Balakov

Early-Bird Discount on the Nonprofit Technology Conference Ends 1/31

Robert — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 03:59:02 +0000

The early-bird registration period for NTEN's 2009 Nonprofit Technology Conference ends January 31. I love the NTC. Here's what the NTEN folks have to say about it:

In addition to the scores of breakout sessions, the networking, camaraderie, and general nptech-related good times, noted author Clay Shirky will be the keynote speaker at the 2009 NTC, coming up in San Francisco, April 26-28. Clay's recent book, Here Comes Everybody, discusses how Web2.0 is revolutionizing the social order. Author Stephen Johnson says, "Clay Shirky may be the finest thinker we have on the Internet revolution, but Here Comes Everybody is more than just a technology book; it's an absorbing guide to the future of society itself. Anyone interested in the vitality and influence of groups of human beings--from knitting circles, to political movements, to multinational corporations--needs to read this book."

NTEN Conference Early-Bird Registration Discount

Robert — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 23:22:23 +0000

I'm a member of NTEN and a huge fan. I'm thrilled that their 2009 Nonprofit Technology Conference will be held at the San Francisco Hilton this year, April 26-28. The Early Bird rate expires after January 31st, so it's time to stop procrastinating.

Here's what the NTEN folks have to say:

The 2009 NTC will be THE place to engage around the technology issues that face the nonprofit sector. Nearly 1,200 people will come together from across the country and around the world to connect with their peers, learn from their heroes, and change the world. And we'll have a good time doing it.

You can learn more and register at http://nten.org/ntc

There's much more to come, so you'll want to keep up with all the action on our website, where you can already:

* Browse the list of breakout sessions, where you'll hone the knowledge you need to help your organization meet its mission: http://nten.org/ntc-agenda

* See who's exhibiting and learn how to demo your own particular brand of awesomeness: http://nten.org/ntc-science-fair

* Find out more about our upcoming book, Managing Technology to Meet Your Mission. (Oh, the book relates to the NTC -- but you'll have to visit our website to find out how.)

When: April 26-28, 2009

Where: The San Francisco Hilton

Cost: $349 for NTEN Members, $549 for non-members (Until January 31st)

Fundraising Survival Guide

Robert — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 22:21:53 +0000

Network for Good recently published The 2008 Online Fundraising Survival Guide: 12 Winning Strategies to Survive & Thrive in a Down Economy. This 45-page guide includes sections on avoiding "the four most common fundraising mistakes," answering the four questions required to get a donation (Why Me? Why Now? What For? and Who Says?), optimizing your web site and donation page, building your email list, and writing effective email appeals.

New Book: Managing Technology to Meet Your Mission

Robert — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 03:59:03 +0000

You can place your order now for Managing Technology to Meet Your Mission: A Strategic Guide for Nonprofit Leaders, which will be published in March 2009. The book was edited by NTEN's Executive Director, Holly Ross, former ED Katrin Verclas, and Special Projects Fellow Allison Levine. The authors are NTEN members (with one chapter contributed by regular bloggers and TechSoup staff, Kevin Lo and Willow Cook).

The book looks to be filled with useful and insightful information from leading experts, consultants, nonprofit managers, and technology strategists who work with nonprofits and social benefit organizations. I imagine it will be a staple on the bookshelves of nonprofit technologists, accidental techies, and IT managers for years to come.

Here's a preview of what's to come from the table of contents:

What do nonprofits want to know about email marketing?

Robert — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 01:58:17 +0000

ANSWR (Aggregated Nonprofit Software Resources), a project of Aspiration and TechSoup, aims to "provide a unified marketplace of knowledge, resources, and services, designed to meet the specific technology demands of nonprofit organizations" -- a one-stop shop for learning about how nonprofits can use technology. They're building a site that will combine "user-contributed content, democratic rating and peer-driven categorization."

One of their first projects is aimed at answering the question, "What would nonprofit folks want to know about email?" Their initial list of questions includes:

We want to send an email newsletter - how do we do that?
My open rate is only 25% - what should I do?
What's the best tool to send an action alert?
Where do we get the email addresses?
Should I send plain text or HTML emails?
How do I do fundraising emails from Outlook?
How do I embed an animated gif in an email?
Are there laws about emailing in Bulgaria?
My emails look funky after I send them - why?
I hear Constant Contact is bad - is that true?
How do I create an action box with a button like in those MoveOn emails?
How do I get more people to open my emails?
People aren't receiving the emails we send - why?
We're in Nigeria - what of all this emailing stuff applies to us?

They're still collecting questions through an online survey at http://tinyurl.com/6dsrzn but that is scheduled to end on 11/21. You can also leave comments about this project at http://answr.net/?p=18

So, what do you want to know about using email for mass marketing and fundraising?

Free Idealware Webinar: Online Communications on a Shoestring

Robert — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 03:59:03 +0000

I've always found Idealware's webinars to be high-quality and informative. They're offering a free one on October 29 that they describe as follows:

Wednesday, Oct 29th, 1:00 - 2:30 EST

Web sites, email blasting, and social media can provide a small organization with big benefits without a huge investment. In this special FREE online seminar, we'll talk through the best practices and the low cost tools that can help you take advantage of the Internet to better serve your mission — without breaking your budget.

Free, interesting, and good: what's not to like?