The Wild Apricot Blog mentions an interesting US research finding:

… In 2007, the Internet adoption rate for American adults aged 50 and over, with a post-secondary education and household income of $75,000 or more, was up by 20% over 2006, according to the Pew Internet & American Life Project.

…Further, online donors appear to be more generous in the size of their gifts than donors who contribute through other methods — in 2006, for example, the median revenue per donor was $114 for online donors and $82 for non-online donors. Online donors tend to be well-educated and well-heeled, and although all age groups are represented, those who give through online appeals are generally younger than the 65+ age group that responds most strongly to direct mail.

While I haven’t seen statistics for New Zealand, I would think they’d at least be similar. Community groups need to keep ‘online’ in mind for more and more of their activities — raising funds, recruiting volunteers and supporters, reaching out to potential clients and members. As Simon Hendery says in If it’s not on the web then it’s out of the loop:

If it’s not on the web then it’s out of the loop … New Zealand businesses spent around $2 billion last year advertising in print and over the TV and radio airwaves.

When the precise ad-spend figures for 2007 are totted up, however, they are certain to show the traditional heavyweight mediums’ share of advertisers’ budgets slipped while an upstart alternative - online advertising - grew rapidly.

There is a clear and distinct move online in countries such as New Zealand and the US.

Katya Andresen continues with the importance of capturing useful information:

… Noble and Weiner address the How of online fundraising, with a discussion of best practices for building a mailing list and reaching out to prospective donors by email. “Collect email addresses constantly,” the authors advise. “Ask for email addresses in all communications — direct mail, surveys, at events, on website,” making it easy to register and offering incentives to do so. It is vital to make it equally easy for people to opt out of email communications, however — and a clearly-stated privacy policy is essential.

Meanwhile Hendery offers six ways local businesses can get the most out of online advertising and marketing. Community groups should take note too:

1. Don’t ignore the shift online
2. Search engine optimisation
3. Search engine marketing
4. Business blogging
5. The power of YouTube
6. Public relations 2.0

While I don’t think that search engine optimisation and marketing are the be-all and end-all of an online ‘presence’, it’s certainly worth noting this particular point:

Media releases are now often written in language aimed at achieving a prominent placement on news aggregation websites and search result listings. At the same time, the PR industry is grappling with how best to get messages out to not just the traditional mainstream media outlets, but also the myriad of less accessible bloggers who can now also influence the public’s perception of their clients.

At the very absolute least every single community organisation should have a web page with contact details, a few words explaining what the group is about and a contact email address inviting interested parties to contact them and perhaps join a mailing list.

Even the tiniest and least-funded group can easily achieve this with a free website.

Online is where things are going.

[Via : Wild Apricot Blog : Online Fundraising 101, and If it's not on the web then it's out of the loop - 30 Jan 2008 - NZ Herald: Technology News and reviews from New Zealand and the World.]

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