QR codes Archives - FundraisingForce

Stephen Mally 2015, BPay, Cause Related Marketing, Challenge gifts, Data cleansing, Data hygiene, Donation Tin, Donor care, FundraisingForce, Give Jar, Giving Tuesday, Goal setting, Ice Bucket Challenge, Matching gifts, New Year, Passwords, Personal Brand, PostPay, Professional development, QR codes, thank you notes, Year in Review

FundraisingForce – A Year in Review

For FundraisingForce’s year-end blog, we thought it was appropriate to take a look back at our blog posts over this past year and to do a bit of a year in review. We launched the Website for FundraisingForce in early June and what a year (6 months, actually) it has been! This last year, FundraisingForce…

…challenged you to think about the last time you sent something handwritten to someone, including thank you notes.
…suggested preparations for the end of the financial year on 30 June 2014.
…suggested each charity needed to be prepared to respond to customer service issues via Twitter, just as airlines, hotels, retail stores and others have to be prepared.
…offered an overview of how some organisations handle opt-outs.
…highlighted the fact most organisations in Australia do not offer BPay and PostPay as an option for giving for their donors.
…questioned why charities do not appear to utilise QR Codes in appeals and in other marketing.
…asked whether you have an elevator pitch to describe your charity and what you do for the charity.
…discussed collaborative goal setting.
…suggested customer service is the most import deliverable.
…spotlighted the good donor care provided by Zoos Victoria Foundation.
…discussed the importance of good data hygiene.
…highlighted the importance of matching gifts and how rare they are in Australia.
…offered four steps to donor care.
…gave ideas for professional development.
…asked whether donor welcome packs are a thing of the past.
…offered the opinion that cause related marketing is also rare in Australia.
…applauded the Ice Bucket Challenge.
…also applauded an August telemarketing call.
…suggested your charity test an ask in your donor acknowledgement/thank you letters.
…gave training options for your team.
…highlighted why gifts in honour or memory of someone are really sensitive gifts.
…introduced the DipJar to potentially replace donation tins.
…showed you how to find hot prospects for spring.
…offered advice to prepare for a disaster.
…gave additional suggestions and advice on staff training.
…offered advice to set passwords and not store them on Post-it Notes!
…suggested challenge gifts to motivate your donors to give.
…introduced the concept of personal brand.
…highlighted charities offering holiday cards.
…promoted GivingTuesday and its success a multitude of times.
…and, we highlighted selfless acts on behalf of charities, including those of MaryRose Mazzola of Massachusetts.

FundraisingForce sincerely hopes the various topics we have blogged have been of interest and benefit to you and others in your organisation.

Special thanks to RamtinWorld for designing a terrific Website and a platform for FundraisingForce to be able to communicate with all of you worldwide.

FundraisingForce wishes you all best wishes for 2015. Happy New Year!

Stephen Mally Bobby Goldsmith Foundation, Charities, HI, HIV/AIDS, Non-Profit organisation, QR codes, Quick Response Code, Smart phone

Charities behind the 8 ball with QR Codes? Or, are QR Codes something to ignore?

Charities use of QR codes appear to be either late to the game or, perhaps, charities are approaching the game a bit cautiously. I am not sure. Let me tell you what has caused me to as the question.

When on a recent business trip to New Zealand, I was faced with QR codes repeatedly. QR codes are literally everywhere – at the Auckland airport, on political signage, on tourist brochures, in tourism ads in magazines, and on billboards. New Zealand has awakened to the use of QR codes! Yet, I have asked myself whether charity usage of QR codes is non-existent? I was on the hunt for them on charity content and I could not seem to find an example where charities are using QR codes, including in organisational materials, on fundraising brochures, on appeals to get bikers to do a multi-day bike ride, and the like. I have come up empty handed searching the charity material in New Zealand and Australia.

QR code (Quick Response Code) is a two dimensional barcode that has storage capacity behind the code, which allows organisations to create marketing campaigns to take the reader elsewhere (think donation form, video, website, and beyond). All it takes is a smart phone (camera-enabled device) for the donor or prospective donor to read the QR code and you can immediately drive the reader to some sort of call to action.

I recently received a piece of mail from Bobby Goldsmith Foundation commemorating the 30th anniversary of the passing of Bobby Goldsmith. The piece was a tribute to Bobby and all his life meant and the 30 years of work BGF has done to fight HIV/AIDS and to care for those with HIV. A brochure was enclosed and featured a QR Code. When one scans the QR Code, a video launches to educate the reader more about BGF.

With over 8.8 million Australians estimated to carry a smart phone, unless charities create QR codes and drive the reader to associated content, the charities are leaving the reader to respond using other devices – phone, email, Website or…mail!

Is your non-profit organisation using QR codes? How do you use them and are your constituents finding value in their use?