Fundraisers track marketing best practices because fundraising success relies on superb marketing. They track consumer trends because consumer habit changes affect donation habits. Higher consumer/donor expectations require an evolution of the Four Ps of Marketing to Pervasive, Participatory, Personalized, and Prescriptive from Product, Placement, Price and Promotion. We’ve adapted these four Ps to help you engage and develop a deeper relationship with more donors and to increase and reactivate alumni participation. 
This post was inspired by The New “Four Ps”: Everything You Need to Know About Your Customers, an article written by McKinsey & Company digital, multichannel and marketing experts. Although the authors acknowledge the universal and timeless truths of the traditional four Ps of marketing, they recommend focusing on the new four Ps. So, here’s our fundraising take on Pervasive, Participatory, Personalized, and Prescriptive.
Pervasive. “Let me donate from anywhere.” Online-acquired donors who give to and share your mission across many channels have the highest lifetime value. So, it’s wise to provide multiple channels to engage these best supporters. These statistics validate the importance of optimizing online channels.
- 33%, the percentage of online donations some nonprofits receive via mobile devices
- 80% of people with smartphones use them for reading email
- 43% of people over the age of 65 use social media
- 113-183, the number of Facebook friends per user over the age of 45
- 4 straight years of double-digit growth in online donations
Engagement and retention now requires integrated fundraising plans and programs that leverage the unique strengths of each channel. It should be developed and executed consistently across channels – not in channel silos. Also, each direct mail, email, mobile and DRTV appeal, landing page donation form, and social media and Pledge2Give campaign needs to have consistent messaging as well as compelling, relevant content.
Participatory. “I have a voice, and I’m going to use it.” Donation requests from supporters are 90% more effective than direct requests from an organization. Harness your supporters’ voice and networks.
- Make sure every call-to-action is easily shareable
- Enable participants and donors with easy-to-use online tools such as easily embeddable fundraising widgets (like the ones Kimbia provides with Peer-to-Peer and Teams) that can be posted on personal blogs
- Create and share some introductory material, such as a five-step guide for using the tools
- Coach and help them with what to say on their social feeds and give them useful content so they will feel confident sharing their commitment and your message
Personalized. “Make it relevant to me.” The Cicero Principle, named after Marcus Julius Cicero says, “If you wish to persuade me, you must think my thoughts, feel my feelings and speak my words.” Are you focusing enough time on post-donation/participation information gathering, such as performing supporter surveys to see how often, in which channels, and on what topics they prefer to engage with your organization, why they gave in the first place and why they continue to give? If so, you can show your supporters that you listened by providing the information they requested exactly how they want it. A steady stream of new and relevant content motivates them to make your mission their mission and then to share it with friends and family.
Prescriptive. “I’m in control of the donation process.” A donor’s decision to support you is a very personal and emotional act, and they expect personalized communication and participation options in return. With more information at their fingertips than ever before, they can continually evaluate how to share their time, money and networks. Nonprofits who enable supporters to donate or participate exactly how they want are the ones who will keep their supporters.
Summary
Fundraising, brandraising, friendraising (peer-to-peer/class agent) campaigns – it’s all marketing. And donor expectations are constantly changing. The new year is a great time to evaluate what’s working for you, why and where you should go next. It’s also a great time to consider a new paradigm.