Convio Speaks to Internet Technology Expert Nick Allen

By Tania Tolstoshev

Nick Allen is CEO of donordigital.com, a digital direct marketing company that helps nonprofits develop Internet strategies for online marketing, fundraising, e-commerce and advocacy. He is also the former director of the Internet Solutions Group at Mal Warwick & Associates, Inc., a direct mail fundraising firm with more than twenty years of experience working with nonprofits. A frequent speaker at nonprofit conferences and direct marketing events, and co-editor of the first book about online fundraising, Fundraising on the Internet (Strathmoor Press, 1996), Nick is a recognized thought-leader in the nonprofit community. The all-new second edition of the book will be published in November by Jossey-Bass. Convio recently spoke with Nick about the challenges and opportunties that nonprofits face as they begin to embrace Internet technology.

Convio: What are some of the challenges facing nonprofits as they begin to use the Internet as a tool to further their missions? Should Internet strategy vary by organizational size?

NA: Virtually every U.S. nonprofit should invest in some sort of Internet strategy. The Internet has become a primary means for people to get information and take action. It's a way to reach out via email or over the Web and deal with a lot of people who want the information or action opportunities that nonprofits have. If you don't give them information, your competitors for dollars and support will.

Convio: Can you give examples of some simple ways that nonprofits can use Internet technology and email communication for marketing and promotion?

NA: The Web gets a lot of glory, but really, email is the workhorse of the Internet. If you build an e-list, you can send a monthly newsletter and other messages that will draw people to your site and let them take advocacy action, learn the latest news from your organization, or make a donation. People will respond to an email, but very few will visit your site often, even if it's a good site - there's a lot of competition for people's time online. Nonprofits can't afford to just wait for supporters to come to their sites. So all nonprofits with a web presence should start a regular monthy email newsletter. It's great if a nonprofit has the capacity to segment their newsletters by interest, but even the smallest nonprofit should have the ability to create a basic newsletter, using some of the free services offered on the Web.

Convio: How does a nonprofit prioritize and keep from getting overwhelmed by all of the opportunities the Web presents?

NA: Nonprofits should adapt these opportunities to fit their needs. A small regional social service organization will want to do different things than a large national nonprofit, but if an organization is able to gather email addresses, then it should definitely produce a newsletter. It delivers a huge bang for the buck. Nonprofits are already gathering information, statistics and results from their work, so it's a simple matter to turn that into an email. People like to receive email, and it drives them back to the website to get involved.

Convio: There has been a lot of talk about integrating online and offline marketing efforts. What does that actually mean?

NA: This is tough for a lot of organizations. Most nonprofits have small email housefiles. Even national organizations with hundreds of thousands of direct mail donors often have collected email addresses for only five or ten percent of them, so they can only integrate email in a very limited way into their marketing efforts to their direct mail or event donors - so far. But it's really the same as integrating phone calls with a direct mail campaign. Just as you would call to remind someone of a direct mail appeal they received, you can send an email to remind them of a direct mail piece, or a campaign taking place on your website. These efforts will become more and more effective as your email house file grows. But the most important thing to remember is that there should be a synchronicity of messaging throughout the different media you are using.