Non-Profits ...our passion ...at Humanflow

What new volunteer and donor demographics can we reach?

There is a new definition for this tech savvy generation called Net-Generation or Net-Gen.  This generation is made up of people born since 1980, and is the first generation to grow up with digital technology.

This generation is very large, surpassing even the numbers of Baby Boomers,  Baby Boomers are numbered 78 million people and the Net-Gen generation is 79 million people strong. Net-Gen's dislike and tune out traditional news media. They are more likely to use their internet enabled cell phones, social websites, blogs, and twitter than to watch the network news. They want two-way communication, not the old one-way communication of advertising and traditional media. They wish to be engaged, not talked at. They are also not brand loyal, but align themselves with organizations within a particular context and then move on to others when their interests and needs change.

Can social media increase donations?

To discover how non-profit websites could encourage more donations, Jacob Nielsen looked at  user behavior on 23 websites of large and small non-profit groups representing a wide range of causes from animal welfare to museums, to youth programs, to international development.

Topping the list of “donation killers,” Nielsen reports, were content issues (53%) and  usability issues (47%), the latter including a confusing workflow and cluttered pages.  (On 17% of the sites, users couldn’t find where to make a donation!)  Further, there’s commonly a  gap between the information provided by many non-profit websites and what the prospective donors actually wanted in the way of information to help them make the decision to donate: “What are you trying to achieve, and how will you spend my money?”

See , Increasing Online Giving to Non-profits and Charities, for Nielsen’s detailed recommendations for how non-profit websites can be improved to get more online donations.

 

Our organization is controversial will social media create more negative publicity?

Social media is a medium that facilitates communications, connections and opinions. Use it to the best of your ability and you will see a amazing set of results when a search is conducted for your name. But be patient - as these listings are organic and not paid for it will take time.

Hints on responding:

Use the opportunity to spark up conversation and convince any negative blogger/commenter to see your side of the argument.

You only have so much time, you don’t have to respond to every comment about your organization.

Respond only, when you think it’s productive or important.

Don't respond if the commenter is clearly baiting, being antagonistic, or trying to incite a fight.

Be transparent; say who you are and for whom you work for.

At the same time, stress that you’re speaking as an individual.

Don’t speak negatively about another organization or individual.

Answer thoughtfully, ask questions, your goal is to learn and inform.

Provide a link to relevant content on your website

Don’t pretend to be someone else and try to change opinions or praise your own brand.

Don’t try and censor a commenter. Community participants really don’t like this, and this could end up in an all-out war.

Stand up for yourself, but never lose your cool and/or retaliate… Never.

 

Call to learn how Humanflow can propel your non-profit forward using social media 866.471.2883