bryanmiller's blog

As use of online social networks continues to grow worldwide, one of the most important questions to ask is how the user profile of different sites differs - to give an indication as to whether the type of consumers you want to engage with are actually spending time there in significant numbers. In particular, fundraisers tend to be watching for growth in older user groups (at least 45+) as these tend to best match with their traditional supporter profile.

With this in mind, I spotted a handy application today that helps answer this question, at least for Facebook users.

Click here to read-on at Giving in a Digital World...

Some interesting research undertaken by online fundraising specialists Justgiving has been shared by Jonathan Waddington, their Charity Champion, in this month’s issue of Professional Fundraising Magazine.

Carried-out during the summer 2008, the research is based on responses from 656 charities who use the Justgiving online fundraising platform and was undertaken to help better understand the current state of online fundraising in the UK.

Click here to read-on at Giving in a Digital World...

I first heard about the Donation Dashboard, created as part of a research project by the Berkeley Centre for New Media, through my US-based former colleague Jeff Brookes’ Donor Power blog, and I’ve been meaning to mention it for a while. Then it struck me that it could be of particular interest to any American donors (or donors anywhere I guess, but the organisations included are all US non-profits) wanting to get the new year off to a good start by refreshing the portfolio of charities they support.

Click here to read-on at Giving in a Digital World...

Earlier this week Robin Goad, Research Director at Internet research company Hitwise, released data that revealed a new high in terms of online social media usage in the UK over Christmas. Naturally enough, Christmas is typically the busiest time of year for social networks, but Christmas 2008 saw several new highs which reaffirm (were it needed) the scale of online social networking amongst UK internet users.

Click here to read-on at Giving in a Digital World...

Play It Forward is a Dutch start-up that plans to launch a new online giving platform next month, offering individuals or groups of individuals the opportunity to fund specific projects around the world.

At first this sounds just like another Global Giving. However, Play It Forward looks like it’s going to have some special aspects to it that could make it stand-out as a distinctive player in the online nonprofit project crowdfunding world.

Click here to read-on at Giving in a Digital World...

I just came across Discover Scholars when I was taking a look at the finalists in this year’s Open Web Awards, where they have been shortlisted in the Non-profit Causes category.

They’re an interesting non-profit organisation that awards scholarships to students across the US – but with all their funding coming from individual donors who use the Discover Scholars website to select the type of student they want to help with their education.

Click here to read-on at Giving in a Digital World...

I must admit that when I first trialled the microblogging service Twitter a couple of years back, it was at a time when new Web 2.0 things were appearing so fast that unless an initial bit of play revealed an application for them beyond technical interest or geeky chic then I let them pass - and so it was for me with Twitter.

However, over the last year I've seen more and more examples of Twitter being used by nonprofits - and I even got twittered myself (not sure that's the correct term) when speaking at the IFC over in Holland earlier this year. So I was wondering, perhaps it is time for those fundraisers who have to-date left the tweets to the early adopters with time on their hands to take twitter seriously as a potential addition to their digital toolkit?

Click here to read on at Giving in a Digital World...

Last week saw announcement of the winners of the 2008 Forrester Groundswell Awards, crediting some the year's most effective corporate and nonprofit users of social media and providing a rich source of ideas for anyone considering using social media to engage with supporters.

Read on at Giving in a Digital World...

This month marks the third birthday of the fantastic person-to-person, micro-lending website Kiva - and what a three years it has been since their launch. From raising $1million in its first year, to $10million by year two, and an amazing $40million by the end of year 3! It just goes to show what incredible things can be achieved when visionary fundraisers embrace the benefits of the internet to enable donors to support life-changing projects in a truly engaging and personal way.

Read on at Giving in a Digital World...

I recently came across a very interesting 'open source' project initiated by folks from the RSA and NCVO Third Sector Foresight Unit - exploring how networked society consumers may engage with membership-based non-profits in the future.

Co-ordinated through a multi-user blog at commonspace.org.uk, anyone with an active interest in the subject can share their thinking on such questions as what the impact on membership subscriptions might be now that Web 2.0-savvy consumers can get information and share ideas without the need for a traditional mediating organisation.

Read on at Giving in a Digital World...