Gauging Nonprofits Mobile Marketing App-etite

“The National Breast Cancer Foundation uses in-app ads to drive awareness,”….“UN Foundation leverages mobile to drive philanthropy,”….“National Geographic drives consumer engagement, revenues via mobile.”

The above headlines represent a recent snapshot of the goings on when it comes to nonprofits and their effective use of mobile marketing. From literally all corners of the nonprofit world, it seems, charities – and their supporters – are signing in, turning on and hitting “send.” So universal has the arena of mobile campaigns become – the US cell phone penetration rate was 91 percent in 2010 – that charities, especially smaller ones, can sometimes overlook the expenses and pitfalls when launching a text or app-driven donations initiative.

When launching a mobile campaign –regardless of size— nonprofits should take some simple advice offered by DIOSA Communications, a company that specializes in social media and web technology for nonprofits. Here are some tips for text, mobile website, text-to-give, and Smartphone Apps drives:

• Start small: In order to avoid some of the financial risks Harmon highlights. A donations campaign doesn’t have to be months long. Start with a few weeks. That way, even if your mobile campaign ends in the red, your nonprofit isn’t in deep red. Add a “mobile” subscriber field to your mailing list pitch on your website. That way, organization fans can “opt-in” (a formal consent to receive messages from your organization via text) setting the groundwork for future mobile events.
• Mix Up Your Message: At first glance, that piece of advice may cause a double take. Don’t worry. It simply means not to bore your supporters. Mix up your messages and send different ones to different sub groups.
• Less is More: Keep your text messages to no more than 140-160 characters and don’t bombard people’s inboxes at odd hours, particularly at night. Be particularly aware of different time zones. It’s always 5 p.m. somewhere, but it’s always 2 a.m. somewhere else.
• Apps in Caps: If going the Smartphone route, make certain your app is featured front and center on your web page and blog, complete with engaging screen shots and a “download here” button.
• Show the Money: Few things aggravate nonprofit supporters more than if a part of the technology behind your mobile campaign doesn’t work. Make sure the “donate button” inside the mobile webpage or app actually goes through.

Of course, to some extent, size does matter. Jacelyn Harmon, in her Marketing for Nonprofits blog, rightly points out some of those issues. From setup fees to monthly maintenance costs, to the two to three-month time it takes for cell phone companies to hand over donation earnings, smaller nonprofits with fewer resources, could find themselves in difficult financial straits. But none of that should deter those efforts. Nonprofits can go from fledgling to famous in a very short amount of time.

While no doubt true to some extent, it also sounds suspiciously like a catch-22. If mobile campaigns are all about reaching and connecting with more people, why must you already be in the nonprofit Major League in order to take advantage of it? In a perfect world, size –or lack of size—shouldn’t be a determinant in launching a successful mobile campaign.

In the last year and a half, texting and mobile donations campaigns have really come into their own. Many attribute that coming of age to the Haiti earthquake where in just days after the disaster, the American Red Cross received some $22 million via text. By January 21, 2010 –nine days after the crisis – text donations had surged to $30 million, representing 14 percent of all donations made to the charity.

This March, a combined human-natural disaster shocked the world as Japan was sent reeling from a catastrophic earthquake-tsunami duo followed by a partial melt down of its Fukushima nuclear power plant. Once again mobile donations proved an effective giving medium. In just three days the Red Cross raised $1 million through text donations.

And just two months later, the residents of Joplin, Missouri, like their Japanese and Haitian counterparts, were thankful for mobile donations’ growing reach. On May 22, a powerful tornado ripped through the city. Two days later Verizon Wireless had already launched a mobile campaign. Unlike previous examples, Verizon customers were not limited to a single charity. Instead people could send their $10 donations to a number of organizations including: the Salvation Army, United Way, and Convoy of Hope, among others.

Whether your nonprofit is a burgeoning behemoth like The Red Cross, or just starting out on its own smaller campaign, mobile initiatives –in their various formats, can be the way forward.

When it comes to your organization’s mobile and texting app-etite, just don’t bite off more than you can chew.