SMS / Mobile giving case study

(from my original post at Marts & Lundy)

In a recent discussion at the CASE Social Media & Community conference, the discussion entitled Future Trends in Social Media identified mobile/text/SMS giving was identified as the topic likely to gain the most in attention and importance before next year’s conference. In the course of the discussion, ideas were considered for how this might work within higher education, but actual examples are difficult to find.

In order to provide a concrete example, I contacted my colleague Howard Heevner at the University of California, Santa Cruz, with whom I have worked on numerous occasions. This past February, while Howard was director of annual giving there, Penn State embarked on its first SMS campaign for its Dance Marathon event. “THON” is the world’s largest student-run philanthropy and raises significant funds to fight pediatric cancer and support those impacted by the disease. The 2011 edition generated over $9.5M in gifts.

So how did the SMS portion of the fundraising perform? Download the full report in our special reports section.

The Best Nonprofit Fundraising App Ever...

...is no app at all. Fundraising apps are pointless - you need to engage and inform if you feel like you must have an app.

Sorry to pull a bit of a bait-and-switch on you, but I am surprised how many nonprofits are focused on the creation of a fundraising app for their organization.

This is one of the areas where I believe consumers have different expectations of for-profit and nonprofit organizations. Here are some data eMarketer compiled from mobile app users:

There are some compelling points for the for-profit organizations to create an engaging mobile app, but let's look at it Through Nonprofit Eyes:

What would a potential donor gain from your mobile app if it is only for fundraising?

1) A way to give? Sounds great... but do you have a lot of folks telling you "I was going to give, but there wasn't an app for that?" I may be wrong, but I don't think this is the primary reason folks would install an app, when they could make a gift online via the same phone without jumping through as many hoops;

2) A way for you to pester them about giving? Hmm...

3) Anything else?

I am not claiming there isn't a place for apps in the nonprofit world, but they should be based around the services and expertise provided by the organizations, not strictly making gifts. These type of apps will further inform and engage, which can build a foundation for gifts... but I bet they don't come through an app.

All of this being said, there are some nonprofits doing a nice job engaging folks with apps. Here you go:

Capital Area Food Bank (Austin, Texas) - iPheedaNeed:

Great, engaging app with games, events and impact news. Their president, Debbie Bresette, was kind enough to be a guest of the blog in July. This is easily the most-cited example of a good nonprofit app.

National Public Radio:

An easy way for NPR supporters and listeners to keep up with NPR programs and news. Just another way for folks to be engaged by NPR and - hopefully - be more likely to give when the ask comes.