To measure the effectiveness of a brand based on a single channel or a single campaign strategy is a terrible mistake. And, honestly, I'd like to see the media report on what matters — not just something that has a shock factor.
Independent Sector and eight other groups asked a powerful congressional committee Tuesday to preserve discount postage rates for nonprofits as it drafts legislation to change how the U.S. Postal Service works.
The Postal Reform Act of 2011 had proposed eliminating the nonprofit discount, which cost the postal service about $1.3-billion in 2011. The provision was removed last year during congressional negotiations, but the comprehensive postal bill died. It is expected to be considered again this year by the new Congress.
A new report delves into the Facebook activity of 37 large and medium-size nonprofits, including Earthjustice, Easter Seals and Oxfam America. The organizations in the study had a median of 31,473 Facebook fans, which represented 103 fan-page users for every 1,000 people on their e-mail lists.
The report, which is a follow-up to the 2012 eNonprofit Benchmarks Study, was published by M+R Strategic Services, a fundraising consulting company, and the Nonprofit Technology Network.
Charleston, S.C. (May 7, 2012) - Blackbaud today announced that it has completed its acquisition of Convio, a leading provider of on-demand constituent engagement solutions. Under the terms of the merger agreement, Blackbaud paid an aggregate purchase price of approximately $325 million. Blackbaud financed the deal through a combination of cash and borrowings from its credit facility.
Facing growing pressure to improve their impact and effectiveness, nonprofit networks that consist of multiple affiliates are pursuing a range of strategies to identify, connect and support their affiliates, a new study says.
"Networks, with multiple sites often operating similar programs, are increasingly expected to provide donors and supporters with a higher level of evidence that their work is effective and delivered consistently across the board," says Growing Network Impact: How Nonprofit Networks are Raising the Bar on Results, a report by the Bridgespan Group.
Customer relationship agency Merkle has named Will Stansbury as vice president of technology solutions for nonprofit practice. The new addition to Merkle's team of 140 experts in nonprofit marketing and fundraising emphasizes the company's commitment to solving the technological needs of clients who engage with constituents via multiple offline and digital touchpoints. With more than 20 years of technology experience in the nonprofit space, Stansbury was a co-founder of Target Software, which became a Blackbaud company in 2007.
Five fundraising professionals offered ideas for success and growth for this year and beyond to wrap up day 1 of the DMA Nonprofit Federation's 2011 Washington Nonprofit Conference.
First Hawaiian Bank, which began its Kokua Mai employee-giving program in 2007 to give back to the community, is pledging to donate $2.5 million to Hawaii nonprofits in 2011, raising its total contribution to charities to more than $5 million over a two-year period.
The state's largest bank and its 2,200 employees gave more than $2.5 million to more than 400 local charities in 2010, with employees and retirees raising more than $560,000 of that amount for 38 designated charities during its Kokua Mai fund drive in October.
Hawaii’s people and businesses are as generous as ever, despite the economic slump.
But how local people and businesses give is rapidly changing and that transformation has some nonprofit leaders heartened, while others are worried. Optimists welcome the decay of what they saw as paternalistic philanthropy. These optimists see the rise of a new philanthropy in which individual donors are more empowered, and nonprofit success is rewarded with recognition and more donations.
In spite of the economic swoon of 2008-9, the consultants who serve charities and foundations have seen a huge boom in demand for their services over the past decade, in part because of the accompanying boom in new nonprofit organizations—and increasing pressure from donors, government, and the public to show results in exchange for support.
The consulting field is evolving as well as growing, with more specialists and more independent operators presenting a wealth of new options and challenges to nonprofit leaders looking for affordable outside help.
