I don’t know if you know this but I have my Master’s degree in non-profit management. In addition to working at the largest PR firms in the country, I also worked at two large New York City based non-profit organizations and was the director of Public Relations and Development. If the technology existed back then that is available today, it would have made my life so much easier.
The book, Mobile for Good – A How-To Fundraising Guide for Nonprofits by Heather Mansfield, is the perfect tool for any and every director of PR and development!
What I like about Mobile for Good is that it’s a great guide for beginners. There are still so many people out there who don’t believe in social media or don’t use the current tools to their advantage. Mansfield even says many believe that mobile and social hinder fundraising efforts. This book is a step-by-step guide that takes the non-profit executive out of the dark and into the social age of fundraising. It also offers some advanced knowledge as well.
Mansfield says the first step is to conduct an audit of your agency. Next she talks about the website and how it is the foundation of an organization. In each chapter, Mansfield gives a bulleted list of how to’s for the organization. It is followed by examples of non-profit organizations that are doing it right.
She then discusses social fundraising. Mansfield says there are two types of social fundraising campaigns – walks/runs/etc. where donors solicit their family and friends and the other is when a supporter reaches out to his/her community and fund raises for a cause or an anniversary/wedding or birthday. Mansfield also goes over how to effectively conduct campaigns for both.
There’s a whole section on mobile giving through text messages and she even offers up suggestions on tools to use including mGive, MobileCause, Connect2Give, among others. She provides information on why people give through these types of resources including the impulsive donor, which is 73% of the donors give that same day!
Mansfield offers real hands-on advice including what types of blog posts to write, what types of videos to make, how to embed link backs, what to do on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and more. At the end of the book, she provides a checklist for the nonprofit executive.
If you’re looking for creative ways to engage your donors, this book is for you.
