Finding the Right Target Audience

At Convio, we recently developed Convio Advanced QueryTM - a feature designed to help nonprofits effectively analyze constituent data and then use the results to create tailored, personalized e-mails or web pages that speak to the interests of key groups.

by Fred Waugh, Vice President Product Management

Use your fundraising database to learn more about your constituent's online interactions.

E-mail enables you to target your communication to the right group of constituents. But before you start to customize messages to board members, volunteers, or donors, you first need to think about your target audience. Perhaps, you want to find all of your supporters who live in Massachusetts. But this kind of query is still very broad and barely scratches the surface of what you can do with the power of Internet technology.

Let's say that you wanted to find everyone who gave at least $100 online last year, lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and attended last year's Cambridge Gala. This kind of advanced query enables you to fine tune your message on the basis of specific search criteria. You find that 20 percent of your constituent database falls into this category. From this sophisticated inquiry, you can uncover patterns and trends in your constituent database that can help you tailor specific campaigns with strong appeal to the 20 percent segment of your supporter base.

Why it matters

This kind of information can impact the tone and feel of the e-mail (e.g., written to include last year's gift), in addition to the correct timing of the e-mail campaign (e.g., day of the week). Most importantly, it can create a more tailored communication with your constituent. For example, personalize the e-mail with: "Thanks for giving $100 in last year's campaign, and attending last year's Cambridge Gala." Online marketing includes the ability to customize your message for different groups of constituents and a develop a more accurate understanding of the patterns in your constituent data, including giving history, interests, geography and more.

More about Convio Advanced Query

Convio Advanced Query provides a simple, point-and-click way to quickly run your query. You can build and run sophisticated queries using "and/or" statements. Once you've found the group of constituents you're looking for, send them e-mail, export the address fields for use in a mail-merge, print the list or save them as a group in your Convio system for ongoing online marketing. Convio Advanced Query leverages the wealth of online data that your web site can collect from constituents. The integrated suite of Convio tools includes Convio Data SyncTM, which allows you to exchange data between your Convio-powered web site and offline fundraising or membership databases.

Advanced Query is one of the newest additions to the Convio suite of products. Convio provides a complete solution for nonprofit and membership organizations to market, fundraise, and manage relationships with constituents online in a highly personalized manner. The solution includes modules for Content, Campaigns, E-Mail Marketing, Advocacy, Events, TeamRaiser, Surveys, Contacts and Directory.

For more information on Convio Advanced Query, please send an e-mail to info@convio.com.