In person events have slowly made a comeback as organizations opt for in-person events versus the virtual events we’ve seen for the past few years due to the Covid-19 pandemic. As the number of events increase – nonprofit organizations need a way to sell, keep track-of and report on ticket sales. Ticket Tailor, an event ticketing platform enables businesses and charities to sell tickets to events, galas, auctions, and webinars through their website.

In Use:

Ticket Tailor works by giving organizations a space to sell tickets online to upcoming events both in-person or virtual. With Ticket Tailor – a nonprofit can build a landing page where attendees can register, create re-occurring events (such as workshops or webinars), and accepts major credit card payments as well as direct payment such as PayPal or Stripe.

Many features in the solution are customizable such as the URL, order confirmation page and the checkout form – allowing charities to brand their assets and promote their organization.

On the day of the event – tickets are easy to use on mobile devices and charities get access to a scanning app making check-in seamless. Using an app called Tazotix – a charity can review statistics of those who have checked in while filtering by ticket type.

Pricing won’t break the bank either. Ticket Tailor is committed to nonprofits and charities offering them a 20% discount.  There is also an option to pre-pay credits in advance for $0.26 per ticket. Forgot to purchase pre-paid credits? In that case – users pay just about $0.65 per ticket sold. Funds are deposited into a charity’s account through Stripe or PayPal and registrants have the option to pay by major credit card. Ticket Tailor does not charge a fee if the event itself is free.

Technology Used:

Ticket Tailor integrates with many different technologies that enables it to run smoothly. Attendees can pay online with Apple or Google Pay while charities can take payment using Stripe, PayPal or credit cards.

A feature that the platform offers users is the ability to create a registration page for the event where attendees can purchase tickets. The URL is customizable and integrates with WordPress. There are options to embed the event registration page into the charity’s website and share on social media directly from the platform’s dashboard. Charities can also create customizable links so they know how the attendees heard about the event whether it’s from the charity’s newsletter, an email campaign, or advertising.

After the event – it’s important to collect, digest, and report on the data that the event generated. With Ticket Tailor – users have access to an analytics dashboard that shows how many tickets were sold, how many tickets were redeemed, and total revenue. They also have an integration with MailChimp so they can transfer attendee data into their CRM instance for later use.

Ease of Use:

Ticket Tailor has numerous videos that walks a user step-by-step through the creation of an event.  A user can select the date of the event, input the venue, upload graphics while also setting parameters around the number of tickets sold. There is an option to have types of tickets such as general admission and VIP tickets that differ in prices. Users can also set a ticket limit while having the ability to activate a waitlist or set transaction fees. Charities and nonprofits have the option to allow their attendees to make a donation and/or pay the booking fee. So instead of the charity paying the $.65 platform fee per ticket – donors can incur the cost.

Besides how-to videos, Ticket Tailor offers a free trial, chat features, and email. What they don’t seem to have is a call center.

Recap:

Ticket Tailor is an event ticketing platform that gives charities and nonprofit organizations a 20% discount. The platform is more than just a place to sell tickets and offers users various tools and integrations.

A nonprofit can benefit from the platform from the time the registration page goes live –  all the way to post-event data collection.

Advantages:

• There is no fee for free events
• Charities and nonprofit organizations receive a 20% discount
• Numerous features help keep nonprofits on track throughout the lifecycle of the event
• Easy to use platform with helpful videos and chat features
• Option for donors to give an additional donation or incur the booking costs of each ticket

Disadvantages:

• There doesn’t seem to be an emergency number to call in case there are problems during the event
• Downloading post-event data can be a challenge for some users
• Ticket sales can only be transferred using Stripe or PayPal – and not directly to a bank account

My Opinion:

I would look into Ticket Tailor if I was hosting an event. It seems like many of these features have nonprofits in mind like the ability to have donors donate an additional amount to the charity and/or incur the booking costs for the nonprofits. 

Post-event I like that there is a specific analytical dashboard. While it may not be as robust as its competitors – I think it includes the “must-have” data points.

Over the past few years businesses have begun to consolidate the number of software platforms they use in their security portfolio – conserving time trying to learn the nuances of multiple platforms; saving; money, and alleviating security risk from cyber threats. Nonprofits are no different – searching for a product that meets all of their needs. Combining member management, event organization and engagement all-in-one platform – MemberLeap hopes to be one of the only platforms that their clients need.

In Use:

MemberLeap was established by Vieth Consulting in 2000 and bills themselves as an association management system. They target both large and small not-for-profit organizations such as societies, associations, civic-organizations, charities, and nonprofits. A cloud-based software – MemberLeap has three distinct tools that their users can take advantage of.

MemberLeap is more well known for their member management services competing against other CRMs and association management solutions. Through the platform - users can track their donors through MemberLeap’s CRM, create invoices and automate payments; while also tracking and managing member data.

Users can also take advantage of their event management software capitalizing on their event registration tool, zoom interface, mobile app, and manage event volunteers. They similarly have tools to engage members with web design, newsletters, message boards and a text tool.

Regarding price – MemberLeap has various packages starting at $50 a month depending on a nonprofit’s needs – but considering that clients pay per feature – it could potentially add up. If you’re unsure if you can afford an association software like MemberLeap -try-before-you-buy with a free trial.

Technology Used:

Based in the cloud, the software is perfect for nonprofit organizations who want everything at their fingertips wherever they are. They also have a mobile app for both androids and apple devices that can be used on the go.

Ease of Use:

Association management softwares and CRMs in general aren’t known for being intuitive. Data migration can be a hassle no matter which CRM a nonprofit organization chooses. MemberLeap has email support, phone support and chat features to help their clients better navigate the tool.

To learn more about how to use the software – users can watch videos, download assets and attend webinars.

Recap:

MemberLeap, an association management software helps nonprofit organizations manage, engage and market to their donor base. With various packages this software is great for small to large nonprofit organizations and can work with MemberLeap to pick a package that’s right for them.

Known for their CRM feature, MemberLeap allows users to create invoices, collect payment, send newsletter and even host websites. Other features of MemberLeap include event registration, volunteer management, data tracking, and space to collaborate with other volunteers.

Advantages:

• While CRMs can be hard to navigate – MemberLeap has various ways to ask for help – whether that’s phone support, chat features, trainings, and assets to learn about the program.
• All-in-one software allows nonprofits to save time by automating processes like emails, billing, and calendars.

Disadvantage:

• Like many CRMs there is a learning curve associated with MemberLeap
• Make sure that you look into all of the different add-ons that MemberLeap has – and budget that into the overall cost when making your decision

My Opinion”

Deciding on a CRM shouldn’t be taken lightly. Make sure that before you decide on MemberLeap that they have the ability to migrate your data, and can show you how to navigate their platform. What I do like about the platform is that small to large nonprofits can customize their package to fit their needs so they’re not paying for services they don’t want and are only paying for those that they do.

Before deciding on whether or not to purchase MemberLeap – don’t forget that they offer a free trial.

Large nonprofits should have a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) solution to help them keep track of relationships with donors, volunteers and people who are vital to their organization. While medium and small nonprofits could benefit from a CRM - larger nonprofits such as American Red Cross, Amnesty International, and United Way cannot thrive without one.

While popular nonprofit CRMs like Blackbaud, Kindful, and DonorPerfect are well known within the nonprofit community – Salesforce is gaining momentum within the industry offering their answer to a robust nonprofit CRM – Salesforce.org Nonprofit Cloud – an integrated CRM for nonprofits to expand their impact, from anywhere.

In Use:

Salesforce’s answer to a nonprofit CRM – Nonprofit Cloud gives charities access to products geared towards fundraising, marketing, engagement and grants that scales alongside the nonprofit.

In an interview with Idealist Consulting, Kate Mirkin who at the time was the Director of Product Marketing at Salesforce.org explained Nonprofit Cloud is the complete set of Salesforce technologies that address the technology challenges that nonprofits face.” Mirkin who is now the Director of Strategic Marketing Programs at Salesforce.org goes on to say – “It includes Salesforce products like Sales Cloud, Marketing Cloud, and Communities - as well as products built specifically by Salesforce.org for nonprofits.”

A CRM is supposed to be an “all-in-one” platform for a nonprofit organization. Nonprofit Cloud does a pretty good job of being a “one-stop-shop” for users. Within the platform a charity can utilize an activity dashboard, manage campaigns, communicate to donors and track contributions. But it does come at a cost. One of the most common feedback associated with Salesforce.org’s Nonprofit Cloud is the steep price. With expensive set up costs, and monthly fees – it’s almost impossible for a smaller nonprofit to be able to afford it – and with no free trial or free version a nonprofit can’t try it before they buy in. While the Nonprofit Cloud starts at $60 per month/per user this doesn’t take into account set-up fees and necessary trainings.  

Technology Needed:

As the name suggest, Nonprofit Cloud sits on the cloud so a nonprofit can access their data from anywhere. With mobile apps available – a stakeholder can quickly check metric, send out communication or track their grants from anywhere.

Like with Salesforce – Nonprofit Cloud integrates with Tableau so a charity can have an easier time visualizing their data. The dashboards within Nonprofit Cloud are clean with a wide selection of graphs and charts that makes a nonprofit’s data easy to digest. There are over 70 reports that a nonprofit can use and is fully customizable.

Tableau is not the only integration within Nonprofit Cloud. There are over 3,000 integrations and apps that charities can utilize through Salesforce’s Marketplace. The extensive list includes QuickBooks, Docusign, and DonorSearch.  Please note that some of these apps and integrations do come with a monthly subscription fee while others are free.

Ease of Use:

Because of the sheer size of Salesforce.org Nonprofit Cloud– it can be hard for nonprofits to wrap their heads around how to use it and what’s available to them. While Nonprofit Cloud does offer training assets, phone support and chat – many nonprofits have found it difficult to navigate the platform. On Capterra, a comprehensive software directory website - Brad K., a co-director at a nonprofit organization wrote – “Intuitive is not a word I would use for Salesforce.”

Recap:

Salesforce.org’s Nonprofit Cloud is Salesforce answer to a robust CRM aimed at nonprofits. The CRM allows a charity to do everything they could possibly need to within the confines of the platform. From communication, data analysis, and engagement – Nonprofit Cloud boasts an impressive offering. And what they don’t have – one of their 3,000 apps do have to make a nonprofit’s life easier.

Advantages:

• Tailor the platform to your needs. Software is customizable to fit a nonprofit’s needs
• Robust CRM that embraces the phrase “One-Stop-Shop.”
• Over 3,000 integrations and apps that nonprofits can utilize

Disadvantages:

• The platform is expensive after you add up set up costs, app prices, and monthly subscription fees
• The learning curve for Nonprofit Cloud is vast – taking many hours to set up, train, and navigate through the system

My Opinion:

Nonprofit Cloud is aimed at large nonprofit organizations that run similar to a business i.e United Way, Red Cross, and Amnesty International. Because these nonprofits are huge – they have the capabilities to train employees and possibly hire a Salesforce administrator who specializes in set up, integrations, and navigating through the CRM. In these cases - I do see the benefit of Nonprofit Cloud and the over 3,000 apps that nonprofits can utilize.

I don’t see a case for small-medium nonprofits. It would essentially just cause them a headache and drain them of what little money they do have – once subscription fees and set up fees are factored in. There are cheaper CRMs available that these charities could utilize that don’t break the bank – but still have a decent selection of offerings.

According to MailerLite’s 2021 benchmark statistics, nonprofit emails get 27.52% open rates and 4.52% click rates, which is higher than the average. Readers are also less lightly to opt out of a nonprofit’s communication than their for-profit counterparts.

Email is a great tool to use to drum up donations; grow donor bases; keep donors engaged, and stay in communication with volunteers. MailLite is one of the numerous options that a nonprofit organization has for email automation with capabilities ranging from photo editing, landing pages, and analytics.

In Use:

MailerLite enables nonprofits to create professional and clean email campaigns through their email automation platform. With drag and drop tools, newsletter capabilities, HTML editor, and E-commerce campaigns – a nonprofit has all the tools they need to begin drafting and sending emails.

Charities can start using MailerLite for free with limited functionality. Under the “free” subscription – a nonprofit can send up to 12,000 monthly emails to up to 1,000 subscribers. They also get access to email support, video tutorials, responsive email templates and integrations with WordPress and Zapier among others.

MailerLite does offer pricier options for charities who have over 1,000 users, or wish to have more robust capabilities like customized templates, unlimited domains, or extensive analytics. These add-ons begin at $10 per month and can go up to $100 per month depending on a nonprofit organization’s needs.

While not as healthy as some of their competitors – MailerLite does offer some reporting capabilities. For more vigorous capabilities – nonprofits can upgrade to their premium subscription.

Technology Used:

 With remote working and people on the go, it’s crucial that any business has a responsive website and email capabilities.  If this is important to your charity – both mobile-friendly email newsletters and landing pages are available through the “free” subscription.

Nonprofits have access to over 130 integrations from Shopify to WordPress and Google Form. Wondering if your vendors integrate with MailerLite? You can check out their integration page HERE.

Ease of Use:

What sets MailerLite apart from their competitors is their ease of use. Once set up – it’s easy to navigate and begin creating emails and landing pages. MailerLite received a 4.6 out 5 star rating on Capterra for “Ease of Use” beating out their competitors Hubspot (4.3). MailChimp (4.4), and GetResponse (3.9).

Recap:

There are numerous ways to capitalize on MailerLite’s email automation platform that enables their users to create dynamic emails, grow an audience, and sell their products. Through MailerLite’s platform charities can access many different tools that they can use to grow their donor base, stay connected to their current donors, and create engaging emails, newsletters, and landing pages. With a free subscription available – this would be a great tool for small nonprofits who may not have the money to invest in an expensive automation tool like Hubspot or Marketo.

MailerLite has different tools that are available through their free subscription. In addition, they have a $100 per month plan for lager nonprofits that need more advanced capabilities like priority support, GDPR compliant web forms, and a dedicated manager.

Advantage:

• Free subscription and free trial availability
• Ease of Use – making it easy for nonprofits to set up and begin to create emails and newsletter
• Over 130 integrations
• Mobile responsive landing pages and emails

Disadvantage:

• Lack of sophisticated analytics
• Some users suggest that customer support could be better
• Lack of complex automations and APIs.

My Opinion:
There’s really not many negative things to say about MailerLite. For a free email automation tool – it comes with all of the capabilities you would expect. Small nonprofits can begin to utilize their platform with no cost to begin.

Where MailerLite lacks is their analytics and customer service. With a free platform you can’t expect robust analytics or a customer support that is going to answer the phone 24/7. However – $100 per month is a lot of money. I hope that in the future they improve their analytics and customer support to justify the cost of the subscription.

It Isn't too Early to Plan for Fall Fundraising

It is that time of the year again when great fundraising initiatives take place. With fall here with us, it is about time you start thinking of the fundraising ideas for your organization. As the head of a nonprofit organization, this is the perfect time to cash in all the positive vibes, generosity and coziness that come with fall by organizing an event. As you plan to host events, here are some helpful tips to help you make it worthwhile.

1. Set your fundraising goals

Before thinking of raising funds for your course, you must set your fundraising goals to succeed in your endeavour. Understand the amount of money you are planning to raise, the programs you want to fund and the purpose of those programs. This will make your fundraising easy and effective. It will also be easy to persuade your donors.

2. Partner with local businesses

Fall is a perfect opportunity for many local businesses to drive sales and make new customers. Therefore, collaborating with them at such a time can be perfect if you intend to increase awareness and generate positive publicity. Find local stores to partner with, such as restaurants or clothing boutiques, who will accept to give some of their proceeds on a specific day to charity. Such partnerships can increase cash for your nonprofit while also increasing foot traffic to the restaurant or store.

3. Organize your volunteers

Even after getting support from local businesses, you still need volunteers to make the event a success. These are the people who will donate in cash or those that will help in various activities during your fundraising. Set up a fundraising committee and end-of-the-year giving goals. The committee will help plan the events and guide in the process of fundraising.

4. Set up an online fundraising site

Many people can now access the internet. As a charity, you should take advantage of this by establishing a website with a “Donate Now” button. This will increase your donations and help you incorporate social media and other platforms for your cause. Moreover, being available online makes you trustworthy, and donors will see you as a serious nonprofit.

5. Plan accordingly

While fall can be a great time to host fundraising or donor events, you must start early if you want to experience the potential offered by this season. Know things that will make a difference in your fundraising and plan for them accordingly. Furthermore, identify the kind of event you want to host, the facilities you need and the people to call. Always know that a great event begins with proper planning.

6. Write donor appeal letters

As outdated as they may seem, donor appeal letters still play a crucial role in fundraising, even today. You must know that good gifts come from good asks, so once you have your fundraising strategy in place, ensure you write persuasive appeals ahead of your events or donor meetings. Appealing fundraising letters can change your fortunes and increase the amount of donor funds.

7. Organize Halloween fundraiser

A Halloween fundraiser may be an excellent idea, especially if your nonprofit works with children. Plan a pumpkin patch fundraiser to get your team outdoors and keep them in a holiday spirit. If you want this event to succeed, start planning months before the main event so you can get all the details right.

In short, if you want to succeed in your fundraising this fall, start by getting your organization ready for the funds' drive. The above tips will help you achieve critical success, even as you look for additional approaches.

Nonprofit organizations have increased in number. Each of them is looking for the right strategy to woo donors and get the funds they need to remain on top of the game. As a nonprofit seeking to have a foothold on the donor base, you need to look for creative methods to enable your organization to thrive under limited budgets. One of the areas that can help you perform in this industry is the proper use of media and technology. Here is a useful compilation of promotional ideas for tech and media that will boost the success of your business.

1. Create a website for your nonprofit and update it regularly.

A website plays many roles in an organization, be it a for-profit or a nonprofit. As such, you should never underestimate its capabilities for your charity. It is often the first impression to donors, supporters, volunteers, clients and staff. A website is an important source of accurate information on your cause, your mission and vision and other things such as stories about what you have achieved.

2. Social media

Social media has become an indispensable tool for nonprofits, as it is for other organizations. With a social media presence, you get to know what is going on, trending, and important to the people. Therefore, ensure you have social media accounts like YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, which are some of the platforms that most potential donors use. Ensure you have the right social media management team and post the right stuff regularly.

3. Develop a blog

Even with a website and social media presence, you should create and maintain a blog for your nonprofit. A blog is an effective tool to share recent happenings within your organization or provide more knowledge to the readers on the nonprofit space for those who want to know more about your activities. A blog allows you to write about different topics, including tips and current news, and share your organization's experiences with other people.

4. Write a copy that stands out

Even if you have a good website, it might fail to attract the right people if its copy is not great. Therefore, in addition to developing an attractive website, write an eye-catching copy that visitors can read and get informed. This should also be the case in all your writings on emails, websites and letters or even mechanize. Make a witty, attractive and appealing copy and see the results you get from it.

5. Ensure you have a social presence

Ensure you provide statistics and numbers on your website to showcase your influence and the goals you intend to reach in a specific time. Furthermore, showcasing the achievements that your organization has made during your time. You can also include things like testimonials of the people you have helped.

6. Connect your social media, blog and website

Using backlinks and directories, ensure your website, social media and blog are connected to one network. This will ease the navigation process for the visitors and make it simple for them to explore the ideas suggested. Making your website and online resources easy to navigate gives your visitors a good experience.

7. Use multi-channel marketing

After designing your messaging and schedule, you need to develop an approach to follow up and reach potential donors or people. You can reach them through your social media pages, website, email and phone. Since people are sometimes too busy, a single method of communication may not be enough to get their attention. Therefore, look for as many methods as possible to reach and follow them up. For example, an email can be ignored. Therefore, you can use a phone call to follow up.

Workplace isolation derails productivity by up to 21% and increases the likelihood of pushing employees away. But organizations cannot risk losing valuable employees. Concerns escalated when 4.3 million Americans quit their jobs in January alone.

The solution to improving productivity and retaining employees? Team-building exercises with a charitable twist and board management software helps make mission-driven work a reality.

Team-building makes for satisfied, engaged employees and drives the positive culture of any company. For example, team-building exercises focused on charitable causes spread awareness for the charity’s mission and cultivate work environments rooted in teamwork and positivity.

Organizations taking advantage of these team-building exercises contribute to the greater good, build culture and boost employee satisfaction.

Employees miss out on key work experiences without team-building exercises

Team-building is more important than boards think. Charitable team-building activities include any activity that improves one or more: communication, relationships, loyalty and core skills.

These exercises offer great versatility in format and function while encouraging collaboration and competition. By making a positive impact, employees have more opportunities to enjoy new experiences and social interactions. Whether charitable initiatives take place in-house or externally — or during or after work — they have but one unifying rule: they must be enjoyable. Otherwise, they devolve into just another work task.

Team-building exercises should improve the following:

• Employee morale - When employees feel valued and respected, they work harder for their teams. They’ll also take great strides to maintain the respect they’ve earned.

• Communication - Team-building activities are crucial in developing better communication between co-workers. As many as 86% of workers believe work-related problems stem from a poor communication culture.

• Relationships - Poor work culture creates toxic environments and negatively impacts relationships within the company. But the right team-building activities can help mend damaged relationships since teammates bond over completing tasks. When relationships grow and are authentic, co-workers are more willing to help each other.

• Loyalty - Team-building activities inspire loyalty. The more organizations invest in high-quality team activities, the more invested their team will become —especially with work-related tasks. It’ll result in a cohesive unit working towards common goals instead of just a paycheck.

• Skill-building - Working with charities offers employees another practical way to develop crucial critical thinking skills. Team members collaborating to help an organization create a plan or meet a goal reinforce skills transferrable for the workplace.

Get involved

Every city has charitable causes and organizations that would benefit from extra help. Here are a few ideas:

• Build something for the community - Overcoming adversity is a crucial component of team building. From constructing gardens to homes for the community, building something from the ground up is never easy but rewarding.

• Start recycling - Recycling is an enjoyable charitable activity and allows employees to bask in the great outdoors. There are plenty of opportunities to join a recycling program or initiative. Recycling makes a difference, too. Research shows just 32% of waste in the United States is recycled. Getting teams involved can improve that number, and their charitable initiatives could inspire family and friends to recycle.

• Join or host a running event - Hosting a running event allows companies to raise money or contribute to charitable causes while exercising and leaving the confines of the office. Co-workers also can encourage and cheer for each other, developing support systems within the company. Running events — such as marathons — remain vital in driving donations. For example, last year’s Boston Marathon raised $26.6 million for nonprofits. While most running events are much smaller, the numbers prove people are willing to partake in them.

Building a team that encourages each other to achieve a common goal is often overlooked. Many boards believe too much planning is involved. But the notion that “too much planning is involved” is just an excuse.

Businesses have the highest global trust at 61% compared to other entities. People rely on business leaders to make a positive change. Employee volunteer programs are growing to meet that demand. And by making a positive difference in their community, companies spark positivity within their organization.

Krista Martin, VP of product and growth, has been with Boardable since 2017, starting as a product and marketing manager. During her time with the company as VP of growth, Martin's proven track record includes scaling product usage from 100 users to over 90,000 users and assisting Boardable's growth from 18 customers to 2,000. Leveraging over a decade of experience in product management, Martin leads Boardable's product and growth teams to focus on driving customer and revenue growth.

Strategic compensation of employees is a crucial ingredient of success for any nonprofit. Proper compensation of employees for their hard work and thanking them for a job well done sets a tone for proper employer/employee relationships. It provides the right foundation for the sustainable growth of a nonprofit. This increases employee retention rates and long-term engagement. However, developing an employee compensation strategy for a nonprofit is never easy. Luckily, the payoffs are worth the struggle, especially for nonprofits that seek to retain their staff and keep the morale of their staff high. Balancing all these aspects is easy said than done. However, it may be easy for some organizations.

Developing incentive programs for nonprofits

Every nonprofit works differently. Therefore, the incentive programs also vary from one organization to the other. As such, incentive programs must reflect the unique mission, vision and objectives of a particular organization. Begin with brainstorming ideas of the type of incentive programs that will fit your organization and the employees. Some of the programs that are largely used is are project milestone bonuses, annual performance bonuses, commission-based compensation programs, ad hoc bonus schemes and profit-sharing approaches. Bring on board the right people, including those from human resources, management, finance and staff, to help with this project. While the management can help develop metrics and objectives, the HR team, on the other hand, will help assess the prevailing marketing conditions and develop the salary ranges.

How much should you pay your employees?

Like any other employer, tax-exempt charities must follow the existing federal and state laws on wages. These laws require employers to pay a minimum wage for their staff. The compensation must be reasonable and should never be excessive. Before hiring specific individuals, you need to review their comparability data in the geographical area, including the salary and benefits offered by other nonprofits with similar budgets, mission focus and budgets in the same area.

Minimum wage and overtime

Ensure that your employees are paid the legally stipulated minimum wage. This can differ from one state to the other. However, consider the federal minimum wage rate and ensure you pay your staff accordingly. There can be some overtime payment if staff work for more than 40 hours a week.

Executive compensation best practice

The executive director or CEO’s compensation should be approved annually. This is a critical best practice that a nonprofit’s board of directors should be aware of always. When analyzing the total compensation of an employee, fringe benefits that may include paid leave and development opportunities such as education should be considered.

Understand the desires and interests of employees

Different employees and generations have different desires and interests. This can also be different when it comes to benefits. For example, the younger professionals worry more about student debt, professional development, and the flexibility of their jobs. On the other hand, older workers are concerned about mortgages, college fees for their kids and pension. They also worry about the cost of healthcare for their parents and more. If you are not sure of the right benefits for your employees, consider asking them. You may use a survey to get the right information to incorporate into your organization’s compensation strategy. If you have low budgets to run your operations, look for those who fit into your budgets. Furthermore, look for new hires that have similar values as yours. These are individuals you can easily communicate shared values daily and maximize retention.

Regardless of the direction you take, ensure that you build a strong compensation strategy and long-term programs that will protect your organization against damages caused by employee turnover.

You can now say “Alexa make a donation to_____” and have Alexa use your Amazon pay account to make a donation up to $5,000.  Currently, this program is only available to select charities that have been invited by Amazon. However, it is likely that this program will be a hit with both donors and nonprofits, so it is something that you should have on your radar for the upcoming year. 

Another high tech trend to watch for 2020 is the rise in giving via a blockchain platform. A blockchain platform is  a public ledger relying on globally distributed historical transactions to prevent tampering and fraud. 

Blockchain was designed to offer a higher level of transparency for transactions. Many donors wish to know that their donations are going directly to the charity that they have selected for the express purpose of funding a certain project. A blockchain giving platform can give them that piece of mind. 

BitGive’s GiveTrack is an example of one such platform. BitGive shares detailed real time information about the financial and project status of the charities that they work with that are accepting donations via GiveTrack.

Global Giving is a crowdfunding platform designed to help small nonprofits raise awareness and money. Global Giving is also a nonprofit, which means it understands what nonprofits need to run a successful fundraising campaign. 

Global Giving also understands that small nonprofits don’t have a large budget, so there is no application fee to join the  Global Giving platform. There is no monthly subscription fee, however Global Givings has a 3% transaction fee along with a sliding scale support fee of 5-12% of collected donations. 

The site offers a host of training and support options for nonprofits that join the platform. There are webinars, training libraries, workshops, one on one phone consultations or site visits.  The platform has tools like gamification and incentives to increase donations. 

The platform offers all the standard fundraising campaign tools, including metrics, donor engagement, social media integration. What it also offers is opportunities to partner with large companies for matching grants, or specific giving programs with the company.

know your audience in order to determine if live streaming is right for your nonprofit. The people you want to engage through a live stream have to be savvy enough to access your video feed so that they aren’t overwhelmed or frustrated by the experience. Beyond this point, your decision should come down to value—both to the viewer and to your organization.

If your organization is exploring adding a livestream to your next event there are a few things that you should consider. First, is your event the type of event that makes for a good livestream. 

The purpose of the livestream is to generate enthusiasm and excitement from those who are unable to attend in person. The event you are live streaming has to be visually interesting enough to keep your online viewer engaged. The most successful live streams are based on events that have an element of excitement to them. Is your event a fashion show? Will there be cute animals?--you can never go wrong livestreaming cute animals.  Also, if your event includes a celebrity guest that you know people who were unable to attend in person would love to see, 

After determining if your event is right for a livestream, it’s time to consider if your intended audience is right for a livestream. If your audience is comfortable using Twitch, YouTube or social media, if you chose to livestream via Facebook than live streaming is a good idea. If your audience is not comfortable with those platforms it doesn’t mean that you can’t do a livestream it just means that you may not get a huge return from the event. 

Next, it’s time to plan your livestream events content. Think of your live stream as the modern equivalent to a charity telethon-except instead of broadcasting on TV your using the internet. A telethon doesn’t consist of a single still shot of the action and neither should your livestream. 

Create a content script. If your are doing a fashion show consider doing interviews with the models or designers (or stores that donated the fashion). Have a host roving the audience,anything to spice up the broadcast. Remember you want to keep the excitement going. 

Many livestream apps allow your organization to collect donations directly from the livestream platform, so make sure your call to action is clear. 

EveryAction wants to be everything to every nonprofit. This cloud based platform offers fundraising, advocacy, organizing and digital all in one package. 

For fundraising, you can use the platform to create a simple donation page for your website. You can also use the platform to track major gifts, pledges and other donations. And, you can run an online auction with it as well. 

Get all your advocacy done with social matching and listening which lets you monitor and track influential supporters and it has an advocacy module that makes it easy for you to turn your advocates into donors. 

Organize your supporters with the built in tools to manage your volunteers and coordinate your canvassing or phone bank events. 

The digital portion lets you build multi channel ad campaigns. The platform includes data visualization tools so you can make use of all the various data sets that your organization accumulates. 

Nonprofits can make the most out the remaining giving days in the year, reports The Nonprofit Times. 

You’ve survived Giving Tuesday – and hopefully come out of it with a nice boost of donation revenue for your nonprofit.

Read article on The Nonprofit Times

New Story, a nonprofit that focuses on using tech to build affordable housing, plans on having 50 new homes erected a Mexico community by the end of 2020. 

A giant 3D printer built two houses in an impoverished, rural part of Mexico last week, breaking ground on what will be the first 3D-printed neighborhood in the world.

Read article on Fox 2 Now

According to the Biz Tech Magazine, integrated giving is one of several technology trends that will impact nonprofits in 2020. 

Nonprofits have a lot on their plates. Charitable giving took a hit last year, declining for the first time since the Great Recession, forcing organizations to do more with less.

Read article on Biz Tech Magazine

Mobile friendly devices help contribute to the success of #GivingTuesday, reports Biz Tech Magazine.  

Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday are all behind us, but the long Thanksgiving weekend isn’t over yet. Many will be digging deep into their pockets again today, but not for themselves—this time, it’s for Giving Tuesday. 

Read article on BizTech Magazine