Person1: You do, right? Have a mobile strategy?
Person 2: Sure
Person 1: What is it?
Person 2: Our IT department makes sure all of the areas on our website can be opened on mobile devices.
End scene. Fade to black.
"Why Mobile Matters in the 'Era of You,'" a Huffington Post article written by Kristen Lauria, vice president of marketing, IBM Mobile Enterprise for IBM's Software Group, really caught my attention on two fronts — "mobile" and "era of you." I've talked a lot about the shifting sands in the marketing arena and how nonprofits are reaching out to constituents — or perhaps not reaching out to them — through emerging and evolving channels and actually missing significant opportunities.
Lauria has a powerful opening to her article....
"No matter what country you live in or how old you are, one thing is abundantly clear: We're in the middle of a mobile revolution that is changing the way we shop, travel and manage our finances. Mobile is also presenting Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs) with new platforms to connect with customers as individuals. Marketing as we know it, geared to demographic segments, is being replaced by the "era of you." Just as the Internet shifted the way we shop, mobile computing is revolutionizing how businesses are reaching out to customers. The explosion of mobile, social networks and location-based services are providing millions of clues as to what consumers crave. People are leaving digital breadcrumbs as they communicate with brands, compare prices and post opinions about their latest purchases."
I love everything about what she says. But, if I'm honest, I'm worried about how the nonprofit industry is evolving in this area. I've been talking to organizations recently about their mobile strategies. Many of them are of the belief that this means the ability for someone to access their website on a mobile device. Some of them go as far as saying "text -to-give" has not been successful for them because they aren't disaster- or urgent-issue-based charities.
You all know that one of my favorite things to talk about is the experience we are serving up for our donors, volunteers, members, advocates, etc. So, it will not surprise anyone when I say we've got to think through the "mobile experience." It's not just about getting things rendered on a smaller screen — it's much bigger than that. And it's certainly not just an IT decision — it's one the marketers and fundraisers need to be thinking through very clearly (not to mention quickly).
Lately, there have been some great stats about online giving. The Chronicle of Philanthropy shared with the industry these findings from two studies.
- Online donations rose 14 percent in 2012 to $2.1 billion, according to a study of 115,000 nonprofits.
- Web contributions to the nation's biggest charities also grew 14 percent to $785 million, according to a study of 149 large nonprofits.
- Online giving saw far greater growth than the overall rise in donations in 2012 (which Giving USA reported at 3.5 percent).
- Nearly three quarters of the groups surveyed say their goal is for online donations to account for more than 10 percent of their overall fundraising efforts in the next few years. Twenty percent of nonprofits expect Internet gifts to account for as much as 20 percent of their overall donations in the next few years.
So, we all know that online engagement is here to sta. But when you look at figures like those above, what does it mean when Forrester Research anticipates mobile commerce will exceed $31 billion by 2016? And by 2020 there will be 10 billion-plus devices in the pockets and palms of consumers?
What that tells me is that we need to get busy because, like it or not, the mobile experience is going to play a role in successful fundraising and marketing plans. But how does one think outside of just website and basic text-to-give?
There are lots of opportunities to engage with consumers — but make sure you have your marketing hat on first and your fundraising hat on underneath it. In other words, it's not all about the money on the first engagement. Also, there are two rules of thumb: 1) Make sure it can all be done on the device, and 2) include other channels in the engagement pathway as options. Does that sound like I'm talking out of both sides of my mouth? Well, I'm not trying to do that so let me explain.
Many people are spending much of their social-networking, research and activity time only on their mobile devices. What this means is that they don't want to be made to use another channel to complete their transactions. So, at minimum, if you're running a mobile campaign with a specific call to action, make sure they can easily do all that is needed within a mobile environment that is easy to use and understand. Plus, yes, the screen is smaller and everyone knows that but you need to cull down the steps to only what is needed for the transaction and perhaps what benefits future marketing. Don't have lots of steps to complete — no one wants to do it on a desktop, and certainly no one wants to do it on a mobile device.
Now, relative to the other channels: Don't be afraid to incorporate them, but don't make them mandatory. As an example, text-to-call is an option for specific types of transactions. If you have a captive audience, you must create an environment where they can complete their transactions in the same space, but you can also offer options for someone to simply click on a button and that will result in someone from the organization returning their call. This is not something that is going to work for all transactions due to the cost to the organizations, but don't hesitate to leverage other channels to provide additional options for your constituent. The key word here is "additional."
And, don't forget to consider driving people to a mobile environment through the use of QR codes. But, get ready because if you want someone to click on a QR code but you drive him to a site that is not optimized for that mobile device, you will lose that opportunity.
Need more proof?
As I dig deeper into this topic, it becomes alarmingly clear that mobile strategies are going to be critical. Here are a few mind-twisters for you all who need more proof:
- 15 percent of Web traffic is mobile: The recent Mary Meeker trend report showed that 15 percent of Internet traffic is mobile traffic (does not include tablet). This percentage is growing at a tremendous clip and is predicted to surpass 20 percent by the end of the year.
- Mobile users access the web 25 times a day: Mobile users are purpose-driven, start early and access the Web on average in over 25 short spurts throughout the day. On mobile, 40 percent of searches happen between 6pm-midnight, which is notably different from PC behavior.
- According to "Mobile Search Moments: Understanding How Mobile Drives Conversions" by Google and Nielsen, 77 percent of mobile searches are made at home or work — a place where a PC also could have been used. This displacement should continue as mobile data plans expand.
- Comcast analysts predict that mobile Web surfing will overtake desktop surfing by 2014.
Let's talk strategies
Don't fall into the trap that it is only about fundraising. Here are just a few ideas where mobile strategies can complement an organization's primary focus areas:
- Fundraising: Yes, this is the obvious one. It's simple yet complicated. There are a ton of rules for text-to-give, and the realization of money is often months down the road simply due to the process of receiving the donations through the text services. But it is still something that should be looked at for major events, issues and time-sensitive strategies. Due to the limitations, I would suggest that text-to-give be used with a sense of urgency but that mobile fundraising platforms or mobile giving pages are used as just another way to collect donations from the everyday donor. And don't forget the opportunities to use search and display advertising as a way to drive people to your brand. But keep in mind the stats above, because if they are searching or active on their mobile devices they expect a mobile experience if they click on an ad.
- Advocacy: Another obvious one — and we can thank disasters and politics for this one — involves egaging a mobile audience in mass around a specific issue, to take a poll, to provide feedback, to invite to an event, etc. It's basic but important and, trust me, it can be done wrong. Think through your strategy around urgent issues or urgent calls to action.
- Volunteering in general: Mobile communication for many people is about texting and quick, short conversations. Don't lose sight of the fact that volunteer sign-ups and cultivation can be done quite easily through text and click-through to a site prepared to take name and contact information. Need someone to come to a local event and help at registration? Need to get people to rally for a particulate issue? With the appropriate geographic targeting, a mobile strategy to engage volunteers can be very effective.
- Awareness and cultivation: Don't forget that it really is OK to not always ask for something. Part of the engagement pathway is about providing information —it could be about progress in the mission, a reminder about a prior commitment or anniversary, an update on a specific issue, and it could be to simply let someone know you appreciate her support. Sending several text messages a month with information designed to cement the relationship further is highly recommended. And, don't forget visual opportunities — a photo related to your mission or even a link to a video (granted it needs to load quickly) to show progress in a particular area or tell someone's story.
Long story short — mobile must be a part of your strategy.
- Companies:
- Comcast
- People Magazine