Online fundraising in UK "18 months behind the US" says Alan Clayton
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Alan Clayton, Director of Innovation at The Good Agency, has claimed that UK fundraisers have fallen behind their US counterparts by at least 18 months. The claim was made during a recent presentation of the interim report of an ongoing research project, combining research into donor values and motivations and online behaviour.
Clayton said: "People behave differently online than in the world of traditional fundraising. The Americans have worked this out and cracked the secret of turning traffic into donations. 85% of UK online fundraisers have still not discovered this secret.
"Simply applying direct mail methodology to the digital world does not work. People are more honest and more real online. They let their subconscious rule behind the anonymity of their keyboard. The broadcast ask is not as powerful as the peer-to-peer approach, and old fashioned brand-stamps are not as effective as genuine, passionate user-generated content.
"We need to behave more like the Americans – their cultural directness, open expression of emotion and advanced understanding of technology are all characteristics the UK fundraiser needs to intuitively develop."
The interim report was presented at the end of the first phase of a two year research project. One of the consultants working on phase two is Ted Hart, online fundraising expert from the US, who has been studying UK Internet fundraising since 2005.
Hart said: "In the last 18 months, charities in the UK have been making good progress using the Internet to maximise their fundraising potential. However, charities in the UK still lag behind the United States in key areas required for the integration of online and offline techniques. Social networking sites everywhere have made a big impact on the way organisations are communicating. The UK needs to learn more about how to turn these communications into funds."
Hart and Clayton will be presenting ten key outcomes of their research and experience at Digital Leap, the conference for online fundraisers and communicators which is taking place in London on 15 June.
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Controversial Stuff
So I think this is pretty controversial stuff and anytime someone says we are behind the Americans it feels like a national dig. We really need to get away from that and take the best bits from them and make them better.
I think there is a lot to be learned from the American model but I don't agree with the idea that applying DM techniques will not work. I think they will work to a degree but we need to tweak the work for online. Online is just another way to interact. However before we do that there is a lot of prep work to be done.
Currently some orgs are doing very little to test ROI or even usage online (49% don't track ROI and 12% don't even track usage!(source: Virtual Promise 2008-NFPSYnergy)). I think we need to get this stuff right first then move to the next level. If people aren't tracking anything whatsoever that is happening online how can we then move straight onto optimising content, targeting information etc?
We've still got a lot of work to do and I also agree that folks give because they love but we have to make sure we let them know that we represent what they love!
Robert McAllen is the Programme Manager for Blackbaud’s European operation.
Being more culturally like the Americans
Alan Clayton is quoted as saying;
"We need to behave more like the Americans – their cultural directness, open expression of emotion and advanced understanding of technology are all characteristics the UK fundraiser needs to intuitively develop."
Why? I like sincerity, courtesy, subtlety and respect for others' views. As Ben Brabyn also comments, we support the charities we love and which love us in return. OK, our model might not generate maximum £ in the immediate term but can't we just accept for a minute that not everything the Americans do is the right answer for everyone? (that doesn't mean it's wrong, by the way, just tailored to American tastes)
Globalisation does not have to mean cultural homogenisation. If you want fries with your donation, enjoy. Personally, I'd rather have an engagement with the causes I support.
Kevin Baughen is the founder of Bottom Line Ideas (www.bottomlineideas.com) and a volunteer speaker for Cancer Research UK
Money follows love - and the statistics prove it
Even as the recession bites, we are seeing average donation values increasing as more and more charities use Bmycharity's editable fundraising pages to engage with supporters, rather than just asking them for money.
Since April 2008, average donations have increased by 8% to just under £38.90.
By treating every fundraising page as an opportunity to inspire potential supporters, rather than just a money collection mechanism, charities are starting to reap the rewards of developing relationships, rather than provoking transactions.
The key lesson is that we give more to causes we love, and we love causes that do more than just ask us to give.
Check out our blog article for more detail