What is Twitter? How does one tweet, or join a twibe?  Where is your town’s next tweet-up? If you have no idea what I’m talking about, here are the details: Twitter is a social media platform that allows users to communicate with each other in short updates, or “tweets,” of 140 characters or less. It is an online phenomenon, with over 21 million unique users in June, 2009—compared to only one million a year prior (according to The Nielsen Company). Users segment themselves into large groups, or “twibes,” by industry, interests, or any number of distinguishing features. It’s easy to find other tweeters in your line of work, or who share hobbies or an interest in the same cause—like charities. And often these folks get together to network or socialize face-to-face, at “tweet-ups.”

Studies show that more and more non profits are turning to Twitter as a way to spread their message, raise funds, and recruit volunteers. The American Cancer Society twitters. So does Lance Armstrong’s LIVESTRONG Foundation. In fact, Lance announced the recent birth of his son via Twitter.

In Santa Barbara, CA, an executive with the local American Red Cross chapter met resistance when she suggested the group should have a Twitter presence. She was allowed to test it for two months, in the middle of which a major wild fire broke out. She was able to send out instant information about the location of the fire, evacuation plans, and locations of shelters. The number of Twitter users following the Red Cross rose quickly—and kept climbing—from under 200 to over 700.

People expect quick answers these days—and in the case of an emergency such as a wildfire, they expect an organization like the Red Cross to provide it.

Other non profit organizations with a presence on Twitter include the World Wildlife Fund, PETA, the Nature Conservancy, UNICEF, and Save The Children. The Humane Society of the United States engages their followers by asking for feedback and commentary on news items involving animal rights and animal cruelty, while The National Wildlife Federation offers energy conservation tips and facts about animals.

Twitter is an easy and effective way for non profit organizations to expand their support base, engage with their donors and meet new ones, recruit volunteers, and even raise funds as they raise awareness. Plus, there is so much information and advice out there, just for the asking. Where else can you have the ears and expertise of thousands of plugged in people at once? Even more important, you can gain valuable insight by listening to your followers and building relationships. Learn how to get started on Twitter, then sign up for an account and start tweeting!

According to the Philanthropic Giving Index (PGI), a report by the Center on Philanthropy, the climate for fundraising in the US has declined almost 9 percent for the first half of 2009, continuing the downward trend from 2008. In fact, positive fundraising attitudes among the professionals polled for the report has declined by 29 percent since one year ago.

The report reveals that 86 percent of fundraising professionals say the U.S. economy is having a negative or very negative impact on fundraising now—a gain, when compared to the 93 percent who believed so in December of 2008. 60 percent expect the negativity to continue over the next six months, while 23 percent say the economy will have a positive affect on fundraising.

The PGI is similar to the Consumer Confidence Index, which is used by economists and forecasters to measure Americans’ buying habits. The Center polls nonprofit fundraising professionals to compile the report, which also shows that the current giving environment fell to the lowest level ever since the study began in 1998.

Fundraisers for arts, culture and humanities organizations and human services nonprofits feel they will have a more difficult road ahead, while educational and religious fundraising professionals are more optimistic about the current situation.

Donors are still giving, although the pace and amount has slowed. Nonprofit managers need to continue with consistent, focused messaging and marketing efforts to stay top-of-mind in their supporters’ and donors’ minds. Building relationships with prospective donors is also extremely important—as is finding creative ways to make it easy for donors to give.

Fundraisers report that Internet and email fundraising, along with direct mail, are the most successful venues for getting donations. Foundation grants and major gifts are falling, 23 percent and 39 percent, respectively since December 2007.

The good news is that expectations for the next six months are better, while still short of true optimism. Nonprofit organizations (NPOs) will likely face continued difficulties in raising funds. But, it’s difficult to predict how the recession will impact charity giving—because the only thing predictable is uncertainty!

A report by the Corporation for National and Community Service’s Volunteering in America shows that about a million more people volunteered in 2008 than in the previous year.

What accounts for the surge in volunteering? Teens and young adults! The study shows that young people are increasingly interested in serving their communities and making a difference. Of the one million new volunteers, 441,000—almost half—were between the ages of 16 and 24. This age group makes up 21.9 percent of all volunteers, with a total of 8.24 million young people volunteering in 2008.

Teens and young adults are increasingly interested in assisting others. Among first-year college students, nearly 70 percent (the highest rate since 1970) believe it is essential or very important to help other people in need. President Barack Obama’s call to volunteerism, as well as an increase in service requirements in US middle and high schools, may have contributed to the uptick.

If your nonprofit organization (NPO) needs additional volunteers, consider reaching out to the teen and young adult group. They are likely more aware of volunteer opportunities and needs as growing numbers of their peers communicate their involvement.

And if you already enjoy the help of young people in your NPO, ask them to reach out to their friends. The Volunteering in America study shows that people who do not currently volunteer are more likely to do so if asked by a trusted friend.

You will enjoy a much greater rate of success promoting your cause to this age group if you utilize the same social networking communities that they do—such as Facebook and Twitter. It’s easy to create a fan page on Facebook and set up a Twitter account. With a small time investment, you can communicate with thousands of potential volunteers at once, while they learn more about your cause and your need for volunteers.

The rate of volunteerism in America has not declined, despite the challenging economy. Now is a great time to recruit new volunteers—and teens and young adults are a great group to target!

Ideas and suggestions around fundraising abound—if non profit managers had a dollar for each one, they probably wouldn’t need to fund raise! But if you’re like us, you agree that there is no such thing as too many good ideas. So here’s another one: when asking donors for money, tell a single story.

In his book, “The Life You Can Save,” Peter Singer of Princeton University gives examples of human beings going to great effort to save the lives of others—one-on-one. But in the larger picture, millions die from starvation, disease, and malnutrition—when the rest of us have the resources to save them.

The example points to how human nature works at its basic level. When we’re presented with the choice to rescue a single person who is right in front of us, most would do the right thing and help. When the need becomes too big, or faceless—as in the problems of lack of clean water, medicine, and food among poor populations on the other side of the globe—we tend to think we can’t do anything about it.

Telling the single story is a powerful tool for non profit organization (NPO) marketers and managers. How are you approaching your fundraising efforts? Are you presenting a problem that seems just too big to solve to your prospective donors?

Try featuring a single effort, challenge, group, or person when communicating your NPO’s funding needs. Tell a success story—how your organization improved the life of one person, or one dog, or one neighborhood. Tell a story about what happens to a single bird in the forest when its habitat is destroyed. Focus on the people in one family who lost a treasured home in a tornado.

Remember how human nature seems to work: while individuals are willing to save the person who’s drowning right in front of them, they are apparently unwilling to donate money to save one who’s dying half a world away.

A recent report examined the brand value of non profit organizations in the United States. It was the first to rank charities by a combination of revenue, brand awareness, and potential for growth, rather than just financial performance.

The report was compiled by Cone, a branding agency, together with Intangible Business, a valuation consultancy, to help NPOs understand how their branding efforts are related to raising funds.  According to the report, non profit brands must be protected and evolved in order to generate the most revenue.

So, who came out on top? YMCA of the USA, with a brand value of $6.4 billion. Here are the top ten Nonprofit Power Brands:

1. YMCA of the USA

2. The Salvation Army

3. United Way of America

4. American Red Cross

5. Goodwill Industries International

6. Catholic Charities

7. Habitat for Humanity International

8. American Cancer Society

9. The Arc of the United States

10. Boys & Girls Clubs of America

What does branding mean to your organization? Often, nonprofits have a purpose, mission, and vision that are clear to everyone within the organization, but fall flat in its communications.  Do you have a difficult time explaining what it is your organization does or whom it serves?  Does everyone associated with your NPO tell a different story?  Have you had difficulty communicating a consistent message? If so, you have a branding problem.

Branding is more than a logo and a tagline—although both are very important to every organization!  Branding is the message, the promise, the core of your organization. The brand establishes your NPO as a worthy and valuable institution that donors can feel good about supporting—and volunteers want to work for. And it must be conveyed consistently in every touch point with your service population, community, staff, volunteers, and supporters.

Check out the websites of the top 10 Nonprofits and see for yourself how important a consistent brand effort is to each of them. Then think about your NPO’s brand message—or lack of one—so you can start improving it. You might even improve your bottom line, too!

In our last post, we discussed the merits of starting a blog for your nonprofit organization (NPO). Blogs are a great way to keep in touch with and engage your supporters. You can also gain permission to update them on your NPO through email blasts and newsletters.

In this age of digital communication, it’s vital that you regularly engage the people interested in your organization. But you can’t do it without a healthy mailing list. How can you expand a wimpy mailing list to make your efforts pay off?

Make the ask: Provide a sign-up sheet at business events, health fairs, farmers markets, and community events so interested attendees can provide their email address. Make it clear that they are agreeing to receive news from your NPO. You could even provide a small incentive, like a bumper sticker or key chain with your organization’s logo, to everyone who signs up.

Utilize your website: Along with a form for in-person events, your website should have a newsletter sign-up form on every page. Make it easy for supporters to find it, and they’ll fill it out. Be sure to make it a quick and easy process. Test it often to make sure the form functions properly.

Leverage fundraising events: When people sign up online or purchase tickets for fundraising events, capture their email address at the same time—and let them know they’ll be receiving occasional correspondence.

Don’t miss opportunities in your office: Allow people to sign up for your newsletter at your reception desk.

Speaking events: If a member of your NPO’s board of directors or management team is speaking to a group, provide a sign-in or guest book to capture the names and email addresses of interested attendees.

Ensure privacy: Include language such as “Your privacy is important to us. We will never sell or disclose the information you provide us with.” This helps you overcome a great hurdle to obtaining email addresses. People want that assurance.

Finally, ask your newsletter recipients to pass it along to their friends and families who might be interested in your organization. You’ll find many signups will occur as a result of receiving the recommendation of a trusted friend or colleague.

Keeping in touch with your donor base, volunteers, and supporters is an ongoing job for nonprofit directors. It seems that just a few years ago, printed and mailed newsletters were the mainstay communication method for nonprofit organizations (NPOs). These days, we’re more likely to see emailed newsletters or shorter email “blasts” that keep interested folks informed.

But what about keeping your supporters engaged?  Marketing has migrated from making numerous impressions to creating ongoing dialogs. To do this successfully, you need to rethink your strategy and method of communication.

Have you considered writing a blog? Blogs are not only easy to keep updated with fresh content and event listings, they also provide a way for your donors and supporters to communicate with you.  By allowing your audience to follow, subscribe to, and comment on blog posts, you’re giving them the opportunity to make a deeper connection. After all, if they’re on your mailing list, they are already supporting the cause, and likely to engage even further.

Here are some tips to get started with a blog:

Be Consistent: Check in with your NPO’s marketing team or graphic designer before you start. They may want to be help you set up the blog to ensure it stays within the established standards for your organization’s brand, logo, colors, etc.

Do a Little Research: There are thousands of articles on the web that will show you how to start a blog. WordPress and Blogger are two popular platforms that make it easy, with templates and customizable plug-ins that can have you up and blogging in minutes.

Check Out the Competition: Look around on the web to see how other nonprofit organizations handle their blogs. You may get some great ideas about what to do—and what NOT to do—with yours.

Write to Your Audience:  Blogs can be as formal or casual as you want. Using a standard newsletter format is a good way to get started. Include items of interest, news updates, and reminders of upcoming events. You can even add surveys, photos, book reviews, and lots of other features that your readers may find helpful.

Post Often: Don’t have a “dead” blog. People want to hear from you. But how often is enough? How much is too much? You’ll find your rhythm, but for starting out, one post per week is the minimum frequency you should aim for.

Be Patient: It takes time for a blog to gather steam. You might feel that nobody is reading your posts, but check the statistics and you’ll likely see a growing audience. Just stick with it, promote it to your donors and supporters, and your readership will grow!

2008 was not a good year for charitable donations. Giving declined by 2 percent last year in the US, according to a report released this week by Giving USA Foundation^TM. The decline in donations was the first since 1987, and the largest since these records have been kept.

While nearly every sector saw big decreases in giving in 2008, human services and foundations were hardest hit, down 13 and 19 percent respectively. The declines stem from decreases in individual giving, but fewer foundation endowments and grants had a big impact as well.

Nobody knows for sure when the economy will turn around, or when charitable donations will rise again. But things could change rapidly if the economy strengthens and people regain confidence in their employment and financial situations.

In the meantime, there are still ways you can encourage your donors to give as much as they can—but you might need to mix up your approach a bit. Try these ideas for reminding your supporters that your nonprofit organization still needs their help:

1. Ask. It’s that simple. Don’t be afraid to ask for donations.

2. Write clearly and concisely. When communicating with your support base, state your NPO’s needs clearly, and include a call to action (see #1, above). Assume they will give and thank them for their contribution.

3. Be consistent. Don’t make the mistake of reaching out often for six months, then not at all for the next six, only to follow with a flurry of communication again! Set up a regular schedule so your donors know what to expect.

4. Report results. Donors want to know their contributions are changing things. Be sure to tell them how you’re doing on a regular basis. They will look forward to hearing from you.

5. Timing is everything. Make your outreach pay by avoiding July and August, when summer activities keep giving to a minimum anyway. Four to seven times per year is about right for most organizations.

6. Ask for feedback. Once per year, ask your donors if your outreach efforts are in line with their expectations. Are they hearing from you too often? Not enough? Do your donors prefer phone, mail or email? You’ll get plenty of valuable suggestions if you just ask for them!

Even though the foreseeable future is not a completely rosy one for nonprofits, the good news is that people are still giving—and this bad economy cannot last forever!

All Nonprofit Organizations (NPOs) rely on their volunteers. But some NPOs, by the nature of their work, sometimes put their volunteers in harm’s way. You want to know you’re doing everything you can to keep your volunteers safe—and not only because it’s the right thing to do. It’s important to the financial health of your NPO to minimize all risks, including risks to volunteers’ safety.

Share these tips with your volunteers. Then, enforce them every day.

Don’t be a target. Regardless of the area your volunteers are working in, it’s important not to draw attention. Have volunteers leave their jewelry at home, and their purses or backpacks in locked storage at the office. They should carry only a driver’s license or other ID, plus the keys they need to operate the vehicle they are driving.

Buddy up. Have your volunteers work in pairs at minimum. Partner older or frail individuals with someone younger and stronger.

Be aware of surroundings. It’s important to keep looking around when walking down unfamiliar streets. Warn volunteers not to walk with eyes focused on the sidewalk or they’ll be easy to sneak up on. Help them identify safe havens like stores, fire stations, or service stations in the neighborhood they’ll be working where they can seek help if necessary.

Avoid walking, driving, and stopping on poorly-lit streets. If they must stop, your volunteers should do so in a well-lighted parking lot at a busy place, such as a department or grocery store.

Cop an attitude. Tell your volunteers to walk with heads held high, to look like they mean business, and to maintain a healthy degree of mistrust. It may be against their nature to be rude, but it could be important to their safety in certain situations.

Parking safety:  No leaving keys in the ignition. Try to park under a streetlight on a busy street, or even better, in staffed parking lots or garages. Don’t park next to large trucks or RVs. Check the back seat before entering the car. Do not leave valuables in the vehicle.

Check-ins are a must. Everyone must call into the office at regular intervals when working in the field. Record your volunteers’ cell numbers so you can call them if they miss a check in. Consider having a couple of extra cell phones added to the organizational account to give to cellular-free volunteers. Everyone should have the means to make emergency phone calls at all times. If a volunteer is working in an area with no cell coverage, have them call from a landline and then record that number.

These basic safety tips can keep your volunteers from becoming targets or victims of crime when working on behalf of your organization. By practicing caution each time they are in the field, it becomes second nature. And don’t anyone slack off on safety; remember that minimizing your NPOs financial risk is part of good management. And for an even higher level of protection, screen potential volunteers before you allow them to work with your clients, volunteers or staff.

Good volunteer coordinators see their nonprofit organization’s (NPO) volunteers as more than just bodies filling positions. Knowing names and personal histories is the first step in fostering good relationships when managing people. It’s also important to know what motivates your volunteers, so you can keep them engaged and enjoying their service to your organization. It’s far easier to keep happy volunteers than to replace burned-out or disinterested ones!

So, what makes people volunteer their time and energy to service and charity organizations?

1. People like to make a difference. Whether focused on their street, their neighborhood, community or the world, people want to know that their efforts are actually making a difference to another human being. Remind your volunteers of the changes they are bringing about through their work. They may be changing one life or making the entire world a better place to live—and they should know it.

2. Volunteering makes people feel better. Giving to others without expecting anything in return is reward enough for many volunteers. Many report feeling their mood brighten by seeing how others are affected by their work. Some volunteers get “addicted” to these good feelings—a real bonus for their chosen organizations. Do what you can to help make your volunteers feel good, and they’re more likely to stick around.

3. People like to learn. Many folks look to volunteering as an opportunity to learn new skills, or do something completely different than their profession. Keep this in mind as you assign tasks to your volunteers; don’t assume they’d like to perform the same tasks they’ve been doing for years! Switch things up when you can to keep people fresh.

4. Volunteers are “people people.” Many volunteers report their love of meeting new people as a big reason they offer their help to service organizations. If you have extroverts among your volunteers who are not getting enough people contact, you could lose them.

5. People love to support their favorite causes. Step inside an animal shelter and you’ll see animal lovers volunteering their time. Look no farther than the Boys and Girls clubs and you’ll find volunteers who relish the idea of turning around the life of a kid. If you need more volunteers, a great place to start looking is at your donor base. After all, these people have already demonstrated and interest in your cause!

6. Volunteers love to be active. Most volunteers aren’t good at the couch potato thing. These folks love to be out and about in the community, knowing what’s going on, and contributing to society. Keep your volunteers busy before they get bored and move on.

7. Everyone like perks. Some people are ushering at the local theater because they want to see plays for free. Others volunteer at art museums to get their fill of paintings and sculptures. Still others just like to be included in the annual volunteer appreciation luncheon. Bear in mind any perks you can offer your volunteers to keep them happy and show your thanks.

8. Some folks love seeing how things work. Certain volunteers get a kick out of seeing how a food bank or health clinic works. Others are more event-oriented and love working on parade floats, or setting up food booths and music. These behind-the-scenes people are vital to many NPOs’ success stories. Remember that not all your volunteers want to be on the front lines.