|
Fundamental Factors in Online Giving Continue to Improve
While overall economic conditions remain uncertain in the near term (mostly because no one can understand what Alan Greenspan is saying) the long-term factors that are fundamental to growth in online giving continue to be encouraging. Two more such pieces of data were recently announced. If your nonprofit is not fully prepared to enable and encourage online fundraising to its maximum potential, contact npadvisors.com for an online fundraising review. The Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce announced today that the estimate of U.S. retail e-commerce sales for the first quarter of 2005 grew to 2.2 percent of total sales. This is a slight increase from the 2.1 percent figure in the fourth quarter of 2004, yet shows continued growth from the 0.7 percent in 1999, when the government first started compiling the data on e-commerce. (More information is available from the US Commerce Department at: http://www.census.gov/mrts/www/data/html/05Q1.html.) Of more direct importance to nonprofits, is the rapid embracing of online banking. A recent Pew research report revealed that "Fifty-three million people, or 44% of internet users and one-quarter of all adults, now say they use online banking. Those figures amount to an increase of 47% over the number of Americans who were performing online banking in late 2002. Of all the major internet activities tracked by the Project since its inaugural survey in March 2000, online banking has grown the fastest. Internet users with high-speed connections, those with six or more years of experience, and those between 28-39 years old are the most likely to bank online." (More information on this report is available from Pew at: http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/149/report_display.asp.) The growth of the internet as an engine of commerce and banking is clear. Recent major events such as the US Elections last fall and the Tsunami Relief since December indicate that Americans turn to the internet to take action, including making donations. Therefore, it is essential that your communications strategy not only allow, but encourage, online donations as a more immediate and cost-effective method of helping to achieve your mission. Far too many nonprofits hide their donation button, limit the choices of online donors, and complicate their online donation forms. If you want a review of your organization's online fundraising and donation processing, along with recommendations to increase your online fundraising effectiveness within 90 days, contact npadvisors.com . May 2005 | |
|
|
|
