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Thursday Buzz: Nonprofits Hit Fundraising Jackpot Online

Nonprofits are raking in fundraising dollars from their online efforts, and their efforts hit a new high last year. Plus: An event-planning life can be hectic—but a work-life balance remains possible.

Nonprofits are banking it from by fundraising via the internet.

The nonprofit industry raised almost $413 million online last year, an annual study from the Nonprofit Technology Network (NTEN) and M+R found.

The 2015 M+R Benchmarks Study specifically looked at nonprofit activity online, seeing a 13 percent increase in online revenue and a 13 percent increase in the number of gifts between 2013 and 2014.

The study, which evaluated information from 84 organizations, found that an average of $612 was raised for every 1,000 website visitors. The groups in the study include the American Red Cross, Human Rights Campaign, and the International Fund for Animal Welfare.

What does the data show? Online efforts work. The research found the average one-time gift was $82 last year, and the average monthly gift was $22.

Also, social media activity pays off. Nonprofits saw a 42 percent increase in Facebook fans and a 37 percent jump in Twitter followers overall.

The study looked at more than 2 billion emails from 37 million subscribers that brought more than 6 million online gifts to nonprofits and resulted in more than 7 million advocacy actions—even though response rates were down from the previous year.

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Do your own benchmark: Beyond the study, NTEN and M+R are offering an online resource for organizations to plug in their own numbers and see how they compare. Throw the numbers in, and out comes an infographic specific to your needs.

Want to learn more? The groups have a webinar on the study coming up May 6.

Tackle a Chaotic Event-Planning Lifestyle

Event planning isn’t really a 9-to-5 gig. There are crazy hours and loads of clients, as well as a lot of specific details to nail down. But with enough dedication, there’s plenty of room for a work-life balance.

On the Event Manager Blog, meetings consultant Kelli White shared five rules that may help planners accomplish a such balance. They include some tough standards, including “create strict work hours,” “learn to unplug,” and even “take a vacation.”

Other Links of Note

Get a promotion? Congratulations! But now … there are a few things you should and should not do. Elizabeth Grace Saunders at Fast Company shares just what they are.

Teamwork is bigger than ever in this day and age. It is imperative with organizational changes and increased collaboration across industries. Noreen Seebacher has more at CMSWire.

Be you. According to research, “pretending to be someone you’re not at work not only reduces job satisfaction, but also harms your health,” Jessica Stillman writes at Inc.com.

(iStock/Thinkstock)

Patrick deHahn

By Patrick deHahn

Patrick deHahn is a contributor to Associations Now. MORE

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