Assisted Conversions: Storytelling at Its Best
Most nonprofits are marketing via their website, Google Grants, Google paid media, Bing, Yahoo, Facebook, Instagram, etc. And yes — most nonprofits can easily quote how much they are spending on these individual channels, as well as respective revenue increases.
But there is much more to the story. Let’s keep this short and simple: In Google Analytics you can access some great “storytelling power” to show your organization how its digital marketing is driving even more impact to the bottom line.
You should absolutely be measuring assisted conversions. As defined by Google, assisted conversions are:
“… the number (and monetary value) of sales and conversions the channel assisted. If a channel appears anywhere — except as the final interaction — on a conversion path, it is considered an assist for that conversion. The higher these numbers, the more important the assist role of the channel.”
In any type of donation, many people do not make the decision based on the first visit — especially if the person is new to the organization. This is especially true if someone is coming to the website. The first visit could be information gathering steps before they make their final decision.
And in the world of digital marketing, a person may also see a Facebook ad, an email or a search ad along their decision-making path. Most people are tracking these channels by final transaction. What is important to understand is how other channels are helping along the way.
Below is a visual that shows actual conversions for a period of time (light blue line). What is impressive is that the dark blue line is how this channel is participating along the way. Specifically, this visual is showing activity for a period of 30 days prior to the actual conversion (donation). As you can see, the “assist” is significant.
The net is that your channel marketing is contributing significantly to the success, but they are not accounted for within the normal conversion numbers. Assisted conversions help develop the complete picture.
Make sure you are talking to your agency and/or your internal digital team and asking for your assisted conversion metrics to add to the storytelling of your marketing.
Vice President, Strategy & Development
Eleventy Marketing Group
Angie is ridiculously passionate about EVERYTHING she’s involved in — including the future and success of our nonprofit industry.
Angie is a senior exec with 25 years of experience in direct and relationship marketing. She is a C-suite consultant with experience over the years at both nonprofits and agencies. She currently leads strategy and development for marketing intelligence agency Eleventy Marketing Group. Previously she has worked at the innovative startup DonorVoice and as general manager of Merkle’s Nonprofit Group, as well as serving as that firm’s CRM officer charged with driving change within the industry. She also spent more 14 years leading the marketing, fundraising and CRM areas for two nationwide charities, The Arthritis Foundation and the American Cancer Society. Angie is a thought leader in the industry and is frequent speaker at events, and author of articles and whitepapers on the nonprofit industry. She also has received recognition for innovation and influence over the years.
