compelling supporters to join your fight

The New York Times' Nicholas Kristof has been on a roll lately with his columns about the right — and the wrong — way for charitable organizations to compel supporters to join them in the fight to meet their mission.

Earlier this week he argued, as he had in 2007, that the public is more compelled to get involved if they see themselves as saving one person — one cute kid, one mother who has persevered — versus the millions who may find themselves in the same situation.

"There’s growing evidence that jumping up and down about millions of lives at stake can even be counterproductive. A number of studies have found that we are much more willing to donate to one needy person than to several. In one experiment, researchers solicited donations for a $300,000 fund that in one version would save the life of one child, and in another the lives of eight children. People contributed more when the fund would save only one life."

People want to feel good. They don't want to think about the enormity of a problem that they can never truly solve. They want to write a check and believe they have had an impact.

Quite a few well-meaning people who see themselves as experts in issues marketing did not take too kindly to Kristof's comments. They'll have to get over themselves.

Yesterday, Kristof praised the marketing efforts of Scott Harrison, the founder of charity:water, an organization that has raised $10 million in the past three years from 50,000 individual donors and has provided clean water to one million people in Asia and Africa.

Why does Kristof think Harrison been successful?

1. He can assure new donors that every sent they send will make it to the field. He can do this due to the support of 500 of his "most committed" supporters, who pay to cover all administrative costs.
2. Donors can see the impact of their work. They can name wells and get the GPS coordinates to identify their wells on Google Maps.
3. Finally, charity:water has, creatively, embraced social media.

Assure your donors they're money is being spent effectively, allow them to see how they have made a difference and use social media to help facilitate building relationships with your supporters and tapping into their networks.

del.icio.us tags: politics

The Pew Internet and American Life Project released their report yesterday on The Internet and the 2008 Election. Not surprisingly, more Americans than ever — 46 percent — have used the Internet, email or text messaging to get information about the campaign and to share it with others. Are there ANY surprises? Actually, the big shock for me was that SO FEW Americans have made online political donations — 6 percent. Read it for yourself.

two out of three

Does this ad make me laugh?

Yes.

Does this ad make me want to share it with others?

Yep.

Does it make me want to take action to address deforestation?

No.

Two out of three . . . is bad.

del.icio.us tags: global poverty

"Access doesn't last long if you have nothing to say,"
Jamie Drummond on the role of 'celebrity' in the success of the global poverty movement.

There are a great deal of rock stars working to alleviate global poverty. The most prominent is, of course, Bono. But while Bono can fill stadiums, one of the greatest of the global poverty rock stars is Jamie Drummond, who was profiled today in the UK's Guardian Observer.

Drummond is the Executive Director of DATA (aka One.org in the United States) and is the man behind the scenes who can claim responsibility for mobilizing G8 leaders to make historic commitments to provide aid to Africa at the Gleneagles summit in 2005 (getting them to live up to those commitments is the current task on his plate).

The article is definitely worth a read if you're interested in hearing how the debt relief movement "started" more than a decade ago, about Drummond's role in the Bush Administration's historic commitment to fighting the HIV/AIDS pandemic or how Drummond has embraced mobile technology and the Internet from the very beginning as a integral tool for mobilizing for global policy change.

del.icio.us tags: mobile

Calder Strategies has an amazingly extensive post about the do's and don't's of mobile advocacy. (Hats off to them.) Some of the best:

• Area of growth = The mobile fundraising market is bound to rapidly expand in the next 12 months.
• Be realistic = "The total numbers are still small but effect is beginning to show."
• It's a generational thing = Young people are more receptive to mobile marketing campaigns.
• Pay attention, Senators = Text messages increase the likelihood that voters will make it to the polls.
• Be scrupulous = This is your brand. Don't be annoying.
• Don't push it = Mobile is about interaction. It's not the same thing as direct mail/push emails.
• Integrate = Mobile is not something to tack on as just another tactic. It needs to make sense and it needs to touch each aspect of the campaign.

trojan, what are you doing with my name?

This morning, while reading The Washington Post, I saw a 3/4 page ad from Trojan about the recent report from the CDC that 1 in 4 teenage girls has a sexually transmitted disease. The condom maker is responding by collecting signatures on a petition which calls for "greater access to accurate sexual health information, options, services and products, such as condoms. This includes comprehensive sex education in schools."

The petition is part of Trojan's Evolve campaign, which launched nearly a year ago in June 2007. The campaign, apparently developed by Edelman Public Relations (their name is on the press release for the campaign's launch) is "a wake up call to change attitudes about condoms and, on a larger scale, the way we think and talk about sexual health in this country."

I support the message of the petition and, while it's obviously within Trojan's self interests to promote condom use, I think they warrant a seat at the table as a corporate citizen.

But there IS a problem — that can be solved.

It's not clear what they are going to do with the petition signatures — policies regarding curriculum are decided at the state, county and school district levels, for example. For AT LEAST a couple of reasons, it would benefit Trojan to be more transparent about what they plan to do with the signatures.

1. To be effective as an advocacy campaign, providing this information would be more empowering: "If you sign this, your simple action will contribute to this outcome." Signing a petition so that Trojan can do a press conference a few months down the road doesn't actually lead to any real social or policy change. Sincerity works wonders. If Trojan actually DOES have a plan that will lead to change, share it with us.
2. Many — if not most — folks (including myself) are hesitant to provide their contact information to potential marketers and the site's privacy policy makes it clear that they will indeed contact consumers with marketing information.

Come on, Trojan (and Edelman), add this information. Talking about sexual health requires people to be honest and transparent and effective digital advocacy requires the same.

Update: Good morning, Edelman NY. Great idea. Take it further. We know you can.

not on my watch

To the folks at Not on Our Watch Darfur:

You might already have someone working on this, but if you don't, can you let me know if I can be of help in doing something about your Web site?

You've got a worthy cause and quite an impressive group of supporters, but I think you could be doing more with your online real estate to help you to achieve your mission of generating "lifesaving humanitarian assistance and protection for the vulnerable, marginalized and displaced."

I'm not suggesting investing hundreds of thousands of dollars -- and diverting money away from the people and programs that really need it. I AM suggesting that limiting others' engagement in your efforts to clicking on a Donate Now button is not going to enable you to raise the kind of money you should be raising and create the political change that will need to happen to generate REAL public funds beyond the dollars and cents garnered from a few really well-meaning individuals.

Seriously, let's talk.

Thanks,

Alison

del.icio.us tags: politics

Colin at e.politics posted yesterday about the growing trend for political activists to use the comments section on mainstream media news sites to voice their opinions and, as Colin writes, "reach the news organizations’ readers directly" and "bypass the editorial approval process." One more reason why I find media relations to be such a snore. Who wants to spend their time begging for coverage from reporters? Jump in to the conversation on your own terms.

del.icio.us tags 03.13.08

Politics
I've heard a few Republicans smirk and make the comment that Democrats only stay Democrats until they grow up -- and become a Republican. Not so fast, kiddies. LiveScience reports (via The Huffington Post) that a new longitudinal study says that people become more liberal as they grow older.

Digital Advocacy
From late January, here's an article in The Chronicle of Philanthropy about how nonprofits are using social media to engage supporters, promote their issue and raise money to meet their mission. Gone are the days (hopefully) when these organizations need to build expensive -- or crappy -- web sites to achieve these goals OR try to figure out how the hell to drive traffic to these sites, adding one more unvisited destination on the "information highway." As should be expected, the success of these efforts can be attributed to word of mouth. Gather.com's Tom Gerace knows what he is talking about when he says, "If you get contacted by a friend or colleague who points out a group doing great work, that can be (IS, Tom, IS) much more effective than trying to reach people with a random mailer that doesn't have the same trust factor."

If you don't believe ME that the promise of the future is NOT building more web sites, listen to Steve Rubel at MicroPersuasion who proselytizes about "the promise of small content that can go anywhere."

Word of Mouth
Spike at Brains on Fire makes the argument that it's quality -- and not quantity -- that makes all the difference in word of mouth. Those few are willing to do some heavy lifting for your brand, your issue. Reward them, recognize them, help them to be the evangelists that will take the conversation -- and the love -- further.

del.icio.us tags 03.07.08

Word of Mouth
Robbin at Brains on Fire can't figure out why folks in the C-suite are so freaked out about "loud and proud customers taking co-ownership of (their) success." As she says, "It requires letting go of control," something that the Barack Obama campaign, she points out (as well as Ron Paul, I point out) have been willing to do, to their benefit. In this election cycle, voter generated contact has increased the profile of candidates with minimal name recognition and have helped to turn out record numbers of voters at the polls. "Why," Robbin asks, "should a company care if its customers create art with your product or express their love in a song?"

Digital Advocacy
Katya at Katya's Non-Profit Marketing Blog has a list of 15 reasons why people make donations to organizations. Note, she says, that "'Because I loved the organization's brochure,' is not on there." What is? Word of mouth, great storytelling, a belief that they can have an impact, tax deductions, personal values, it's the cool/right thing to do. Check out the full list and consider adding a few of your own.

Fan Brands
Dave Armano is such a rock star. I would love to be able to think in terms of visuals and tell such simple yet fascinating stories through infographics in the way he does. This time it's the "Novelty Curve": the path from "I can't live without this" to "what was I thinking?"

del.icio.us tags 03.05.08

Pete Blackshaw, blogger, Ohio resident and new daddy, has spent some time looking at the interactive strategies of the Democratic presidential candidates and is impressed.

He's posted the the 10 Interactive Marketing Tips from Barack and Hillary on ClickZ and here is some of my favorite stuff from the list:

• The candidates' web sites are giving visitors plenty to do. They're not just asking for your vote; they are asking for your time, your money and more, effectively engaging voters and creating a movement. This is something that too many folks forget to do.

• The candidates understand the power of word of mouth and are ensuring that they are providing their supporters with tools to act as evangelists -- including embeddable video, the "B roll" of social media, and other "currency" to "drive buzz."
• The candidates' web sites are letting others speak on their behalf by pulling in consumer/voter generated content to their sites. Others should be so brave.

Thanks, Pete.

del.icio.us tags: environment

The Weather Channel wants to know what you are doing to help save the planet. In the period leading up to Earth Day (April 22), the channel will collect user generated content (video, photo and text) to be shared both via the web site and on-air (via 901am).

Wal-Mart is working with CleanTech to gather solutions that will enable the company -- the world's largest retailer -- to achieve the ambitious goals of its company-wide sustainability initiative: 1) generate zero waste, 2) supplied by 100 percent renewable energy, and 3) sell products that sustain resources and the environment. This doesn't appear to be just a PR stunt -- engaging consumers to come up with feel good ideas. They are looking for folks who have real solutions that can be put into action and for which the company will pay (via Los Angeles Times).

del.icio.us tags: politics

In a post on TechPresident, Isaac Garcia has a great analysis about how Senator Obama's campaign is an illustration of how the Long Tail theory is coming to life in politics. Essentially, just as technology has provided the opportunity for marketers to reach the most narrow niches of consumers, it has also enabled candidates to tailor their messages and engage those who may have felt left out of the process in the past - as donors, as ambassadors and as voters.

The Kaiser Family Foundation's health08.org has pulled together an "issue spotlight" on global health and HIV/AIDS, providing an analysis of Clinton, Huckabee, McCain and Obama's positions on what they will do as President to wipe out poverty-related disease in the developing world. You may have made your decision or cast your vote already, but if this issue matters to you as much as it does to me, we still need to be prepared to hold the new administration accountable to their promises when the dust finally settles.

Update: Matthew Kavanaugh is asking a valid question at The Huffington Post about the current crop of candidates' commitment to the global HIV/AIDS pandemic. In the midst of reauthorization of the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), where are their voices?

del.icio.us tags 02.06.08

NPR's Michele Norris interviews Andrew Rasiej from TechPresident about "bottom up politics": the candidates' supporters are generating the best — and most impactful — political advertising in this year's campaign.

del.icio.us tags 02.03.08

At e.politics, Colin gives Obama's team their due: they are managing to bring online and offline organizing together to raise money and deliver votes. It seems obvious, but it didn't happen for Dean in 2004 and Obama is kicking ass and taking names. As Colin says, "These folks are really using the web rather than just throwing things online."

John Bell manages to ruffle a few folks feathers with this post about the need to measure word of mouth with quantitative metrics. I'm with you, John, we can keep flapping our lips about the value of word of mouth, but until we can explain it to the guy with a check book in a language he understands, we're just a bunch of dreamers. I get the ad equivalency model (BzzAgent does it), particularly if you're thinking about trying to make it clear to marketing folks who are turning over part of their ADVERTISING budget to pay for a word of mouth program, but John's "attention factor" sounds a little too mushy at this stage. I agree with what is at the core, but I'm not convinced it won't fall flat when the budgets are being divvied up.

del.icio.us tags 01.28.08

I remember trying fruitlessly to find data on Internet use among Asian Americans a year or so ago, so I was pretty thrilled to see this recent research from eMarketer. You only get a taste, unless you want to cough up $695.

The Center for Digital Future has put out their 2008 report. One of the highlights is that, while just 15 percent of people use social networks (that number seems low to me, what do you think?), 94 percent of those folks believe the Internet has helped them to understand more about social issues and 75 percent are members of communities that have come together around social causes.

del.icio.us tags 01.27.08

Some people do things just to be nice (not me). techPresident wraps up the year in political video. Consumers won't dismiss your company as using "green" as a marketing ploy if you're honest with them about what you're doing right -- and wrong. And a couple of things just for fun: Sesame Street and whiny white people.

Word of Mouth

It clearly says something about me that I presumed most people wrote online reviews to stick it to a company that's done them wrong. According to Keller Fay, it's just the opposite. The majority of folks who write online reviews have something nice to say and and want to share their good news to benefit other customers. They're also motivated by the desire to reward a company who makes them happy or to help that company get better at what they do.

Politics

techPresident has posted the best political videos of 2007 -- both "voter-generated" and videos from the candidates.

I love the SwiftKids

"My mother baked me this cookie."

Citizen Journalism
Download An Introduction to Citizen Media from Rising Voices for a non-techie guide to the "fundamentals of citizen media." Comes via PBS's MediaShift Idea Lab.

CSR

Consumers are growing skeptical of companies who claim to be "green," dismissing such rumblings as being mere "marketing gimmicks." According to Linda Passante at The Halo Effect, some of the companies that are doing the best work are making the least noise. Her words of wisdom? (And they are, indeed, very wise.)

"If you firmly believe that your company is committed to the environment, to workers’ rights, to fighting heart disease, or to even just excellent customer service, then you can’t just talk about it in some altruistic tone using vague corporate language. You need to show how you will do it, do it, and then provide details as to what you learned and how you’ll work to improve. Because, in the end, we all know that no one or no corporation is perfect, but consumers will respond to an authentic and transparent commitment."

Cool Stuff

Get ready to regress into your childhood: Sesame Workshop has launched the Sesame Street video player with hundreds of videos, searchable by keyword or character. The site is in beta. Will the "real" launch include the capacity to embed content? Please?


White Whine has a new "white person complaint" every week (“I really wish the Wings DVD’s would get here . . . I’m almost done with Mad About You.”) I'm sure they could come up with more . . .

del.icio.us tags 01.16.08

OpenCongress announced the launch of MyOpenCongress yesterday. The new feature allows users to track bills, members of Congress or issues and to develop connections with others within the network. OpenCongress is a project of the Sunlight Foundation and the Participatory Politics Foundation, both of which are dedicated to using technology to increase citizen engagement in politics and government.

Sure, you love Firefox, but that doesn't mean everyone does -- or uses it. Check out these browser stats from W3 Schools, "the largest web developer's site on the net."

del.icio.us tags 01.13.08

According to Omnicom's Brodeur, more than 75 percent of American journalists look to blogs for story ideas, to get a new angle on an existing story or to gain a better understanding of a story's context. Just under 70 percent read blogs on a regular basis, with more than 20 percent spending more than an hour each day doing so. Nearly 28 percent have their own blogs.

Micah Sifry is not impressed with the Clinton's campaign boast of a 1 million person mailing list because "the conversation is all one way." In a nod to the Obama campaign, Sifry thinks it is more powerful for a campaign to develop a network that will reach out to their own contacts -- moving away from an "impersonal mass email" to a "personal appeal from a friend."

politics online conference

I am hoping to make it to the Politics Online Conference in March here in DC. Despite the fact that the organizers are still identifying speakers, the agenda looks strong and the political and advocacy world, in my opinion, has been the true pioneer in using social media, so there will inevitably (hopefully) be something new -- and useful -- to take away from the event.

Discounted early registration has already come and gone, but advanced tickets for the two day event are available through until the end of February if you want to come along.

The conference is being organized by the Institute for Democracy, Politics and the Internet.

Now if I could only remember which blog I read was offering a $50 dollar discount to its regular readers . . .