Network for Good

Download Network for Good's free e-mail outreach guide — 7 Steps to Better Email Fundraising & Communications  — to learn strategies to improve your relationship-building and fundraising results.

MCLEAN, Va., June 2, 2009 — Today, Capital One Financial Corporation (NYSE:COF) announces the launch of Card Lab Connect, a credit card affinity program that helps nonprofits expand their giving channels, while providing their supporters with a convenient and meaningful way to donate to charity programs. Unlike most affinity card programs which generally cater to larger, national organizations, Capital One Card Lab Connect is available for nonprofits of all sizes.

Ah, the Internet. The easy access. The openness. The freedom. And … the total lack of control. The way anyone can say anything about you and post it anywhere.

In a Network for Good webinar last month, "Campaigns in Nine Steps: How to Succeed With 'Just Enough' Planning," presenter Kristen Grimm, founder and president of communications solutions firm Spitfire Strategies, discussed some of the key steps outlined in "The Just Enough Planning Guide," created by her firm and the Communication Leadership Institute.

WASHINGTON, DC, April 14, 2009 — The Alliance for Effective Social Investing, a network of nonprofit leaders, which includes the CEOs of GuideStar, Charity Navigator, BBB Wise Giving Alliance and Network For Good met in Washington, D.C. and agreed to work together to drive more funds to high-performing nonprofits.

How are you feeling about that headline? What if I went on to say, “And I wrote a really good book about nonprofit marketing that you should definitely buy. It’s a work of staggering genius.”

In a free webinar last month titled "It's All About the List! How to Grow and Cultivate Your Most Valuable Online Asset" sponsored by Network for Good, Justin Perkins, director of nonprofit marketing strategy at Care2, an online community that allows people to sign and send petitions and take a variety of actions on behalf of nonprofit organizations, offered advice to charities interested in building their e-mail lists.

Facebook recently revamped and relaunched its Marketplace as a "social classifieds" application, thanks to help from Oodle, an online classifieds startup founded by former eBay and Excite executives.

For many fundraising organizations, the first step to becoming digital is to create a Web site. Think of this Web site as the public lobby to your digital organization. A few questions: Is it tidy? Is it inviting? Is there a friendly receptionist?

The Web offers ever-increasing ways for nonprofit organizations to educate, engage and raise funds from prospects and constituents. But just because it might seem easier to connect with people online than, say, via direct mail or the telephone, that doesn't mean it's easy or that you don't need a strategy.