December 13, 2010 |

To Know Them Is To Love Them: Social Media and Fundraising Research

Where Does Social Media Fit into Fundraising Development?

One of the biggest challenges to today’s professional fundraising operation is fitting social media into the development mix.

It is not enough to just “friendraise” or even just to ask people to click a link and give.  We must also obtain their contact data, acknowledge their support, determine their level of interest and capacity and then make staff assignments so potential major donors will get proper stewardship.

Fundraising research is a critical component here.  But fundraising researchers, already in limited supply, under-resourced and focused on investigating qualified opportunities, have been reluctant to invest time in social media since it can often seem both so tangential to development and also because it provides information which often cannot be independently confirmed.

Social Media: Distraction or Gold Mine for Nonprofits?

The editors of “The Networker,” the publication of the Association of Professional Researchers for Advancement – Minnesota, recently asked me how to counter the perception that “non-professional social media (e.g. Twitter) is providing ever-increasing levels of distraction and reductions in productivity”.

My response?

First, we should acknowledge that social media channels are in fact disruptive.  They interrupt the usual trajectory of development work and have their own increasing demands, not to mention a certain addictive quality.

So why spend time on social media?  Quite simply, these channels provide access to a much deeper reservoir of current and pertinent information on a much wider universe of individuals than any resource we have encountered in the past.

The databases of insider securities ownership, biography, real estate and business ownership researchers have traditionally used are dwarfed by the rapidly growing datasets of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other social networks.

Do Social Networks Provide TOO MUCH Information For Nonprofits?

How much of this information is relevant?  That depends on our definition of relevancy.

One thing is certain: the information is highly relevant to those who are producing it.  It showcases their identity as they see it and want it to be seen, including their passions, peeves and peccadilloes, and even catalogs their circle of friends and influence.

In short, social media is providing us an unexpurgated view of what is important to our market, the donors.

If we are nimble and efficient, an investment of time in social media by fundraising researchers need not result in a loss of productivity.  Rather, it can accelerate the retrieval of information and bring fundraisers closer to its source.