I posted previously on testing e-marketing. Is it ever ok to “break the rules” and go against best practices? Rather than going with my company name in the Sender line of my last e-newsletter, I went with “Clover, nonprofit marketing network” in my Sender line upon suggestion from one of my readers.

I’m glad I tested it because my open rate went from 32% to 36%. That may not seem like a lot but based on the size of my list, that’s an extra 20 people from one easy fix. (As a point of reference, the average open rate is only 10-20% among all e-marketing depending on the industry.)

This doesn’t mean that the same change will work for you – matter of fact, it probably won’t unless most of your email list knows you personally.

But there are other things you can test on your email marketing. Test the time of day you send it. Test the day of the week. Test subject lines (Article title vs. Newsletter #3).

Let me know how it works out for you!

Marketing is teachable. If a person devotes themselves to education on an ongoing basis, even a nonprofit staff member wearing finance and program hats can be good at marketing. But there are times when do-it-yourself marketing isn’t the best choice for your organization.

When your organization is in need of serious marketing planning, you should consider hiring a consultant or expert in the field. Just as you might handle your bookkeeping in-house but pay for professional audits or tax advice, you should consider professional marketing in certain situations.

• Private donations have fallen or are stagnant and you don’t know what to do about it
• Your usual supporters are no longer coming to your events (or you need a new idea for a great event).
• You are a new organization with few supporters and practically no recognition in the community.
• Your organization recently went through a crisis situation.
• Your organization went through restructuring.
• You have a media budget but you don’t know how to properly spend it.
• You feel that your marketing would be better and easier if you just had a plan.
• You want to venture into social media but are not sure how.

Most of us are also willing to pay a professional to cut our hair. I’m a big believer in hiring professionals for any marketing need that uses technical skills. While I COULD cut my own hair to save money, it would take me longer and I wouldn’t be happy with the results. The same applies to:

• Graphic design
• Web design
• Web development

So tell me….what marketing duties do you handle in house and when have you found it to be beneficial to hire outside services?

NOTE: About a month ago, I promised a blog post on when hiring an expert is appropriate. One lesson from my  two months of blogging ….never promise what blog post will be next because other ideas are sometimes more timely!

I love to preach marketing best practices but once in a while, I learn that a best practice won’t work for a particular organization. This time, that organization is my own.

According to best marketing practices laid out by leading experts in the field of marketing and digital communications, email send lines (the From: line) should be from the organization, not from a person. While a person’s name seems more friendly, they are actually scary spam if the receiver doesn’t know that person by name.  Your brand, though, is trusted therefore your company name should be in the sender line.

But what about me? Testing…Testing…1..2… (Or, how to test your e-marketing) – continue reading

After months of planning, I’m excited to sit and learn from some amazing speakers at Cause Camp on Thursday. Last Friday, little sitting occurred when we had the unfortunate email from our keynote speaker, Hannah Brazee Gregory of Shoestring Creative. She had to cancel because she is the primary press contact for a nonprofit client who lost many children in the Haiti earthquake. Of course, I understood completely but was then posed with the seemingly insurmountable task of finding a replacement. Speaker Preview: Anxious for Cause Camp – continue reading

First of all, Facebook has no intention to ever make users pay for Facebook. The entire platform is based on a free model, according to Brad Keown, Facebook’s Midwest Director of Sales, referring to a book entitled “Free: The Future of a Radical Price” by Chris Anderson. As long as businesses and nonprofits like ours are willing to pay for advertising on Facebook (which is totally INexpensive, by the way), it will continue to be free to users.

I had a chance, along with other board members for the Lincoln Chapter of the American Marketing Association, to chat with Brad after his luncheon presentation on Thursday, January 14. Here are some of the things I already knew that Brad confirmed: 3 things I learned from the “Facebook Guy” – continue reading

I get fidgety if I don’t have a plan. Sometimes the plan is a spiral bound and flashy marketing plan. Sometimes it is a task list for a client’s marketing tactics in Outlook and sometimes it is a mental checklist of the things I want to get accomplished around the house on a Saturday morning.

Marketing plans are important. But it isn’t too late for those of you who find themselves several days into January without a marketing plan for 2010.

“Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.”           Abraham Lincoln

Now I’m not recommending spending 2/3 of the year planning for the last third, but I am recommending that you spend some time preparing for the marketing tasks ahead. So I’ve gathered a few simple steps to help you get prepared:

 Clover’s 5 Steps to Quick Marketing Planning: Too late to plan for 2010? Nope. – continue reading

My daughter has always been a giver. The first time I explained to her that there are people less fortunate than her and that it is our responsibility to help them, she immediately wanted to donate some of her clothes and toys. She has received kudos from her school principal for suggesting book drives and before Thanksgiving informed me that she wanted to use her allowance to buy a Christmas gift for a poor child.

Am I bragging? Absolutely! She makes me so proud.

But it also makes me consider the implications of the phenomenon of “charitable children” in regards to our nonprofit marketing.

Charitable Children – continue reading

Santa Claus is coming to town in December. FACEBOOK is coming to town in January!

 And, boy do I have a wish list for Facebook!

 Brad Keown, Facebook’s Midwest Director of Sales in Chicago, will be speaking on Thursday, January 14 at the Embassy Suites in Lincoln, NE. Hosted by the Lincoln Chapter of the American Marketing Association, Brad’s presentation will enlighten attendees to how companies have used Facebook to build online communities.

Many of the local nonprofits have a Facebook presence but haven’t taken that leap to really build an online community with this important social media tool.

Just like my children question Santa, I have a few questions for Facebook. How does Santa get down the chimney? How does Facebook’s fancy algorithm decide which of our fan page’s status updates will show up in our fan’s news feed? How do Santa’s reindeer fly? What’s the difference between the news feed and the live feed and why the heck do we need two feeds?

I can’t wait to hear how Santa (or Facebook) explains those questions!

Not just Santa….Facebook is Coming to Town! – continue reading

Frequently, nonprofits get caught up in touting their own statistics. How many people received services? How low are our administrative costs? How many volunteers do we have?

But research has shown over and over again that donors (small donors to big donors, donors of time and donors of treasure) simply need to know that lives are being changed.

BUT WE CAN’T TELL OUR CLIENT’S STORY!!!! I hear it daily and I hear it in all caps! The truth is – you CAN tell your client’s story without breeching confidentiality, without putting her at risk and without exploiting him.

Here are some ways:

Storytelling: What’s in your client’s thought bubble? – continue reading

I believe that social media is here to stay. I preach what I believe to nonprofits. I preach best practices like having dynamic websites and using consistent branding elements on everything from printed materials to e-newsletters.

What I haven’t done is “practice what I preach.” Until now! I am pleased to welcome you to the new nonprofit marketing network website. Created in a blog format (using Wordpress), you will find nonprofit-specific marketing advice on a regular basis. Now that you’re here, I encourage you to sign up for your preferred method of communication (email, facebook, linked-in or twitter) so you can hear about new posts, events and seminars.

Let me know what you think and I’ll keep you informed on nonprofit marketing at its best. Click on the title of this article to leave a comment!