E-Philanthropy: is it a fundraiser's dream? - written on the web

Matrix: The Magazine for Leaders in Education, April, 2001 by Odvard Egil Dyrli

Although fundraising on the Internet is still in its infancy, it is touted by professionals as one of the most powerful higher-education fundraising vehicles ever developed--a fundraiser's dream, according to one consultant.

Since a large percentage of Internet users are college graduates and their parents who might consider online donations to support higher education, your reach can extend throughout the world. Furthermore, a fundraising Web site allows your staff to deliver easy-to-update information about your college or university to people any where anytime without answering the phone or opening the mail. You can also make multiple types of appeals simultaneously, send immediate electronic responses to donors, and maintain continuing targeted relationships with your giving communities.

If you look for Web sites containing the words "college fundraising" or "university fundraising" using a search engine you will find approximately 50,000 entries, including links to all sorts of fundraising groups and resources.

Growing numbers of these links are also Web sites hosted by colleges, universities, and two-year schools to promote and raise funds online. At the University of Connecticut (www.uconn.edu), the UConn Foundation is in the final stages of preparing a Web site for receiving donations, with easy access from a "Giving to UConn" button added to the university homepage. These new features are part of a major fundraising effort called "Campaign for UConn."

Despite the growing numbers, most higher-education institutions are not taking maximum advantage of the opportunities fundraising on the Internet provides.

Your school therefore needs to evaluate, initiate, or expand your presence in this emerging arena. "I'm confident that electronic giving will emerge as the dominant mode of charitable giving," said Mal Warwick of the Mal Warwick & Associates, Inc. (www.malwarwick.com) fundraising organization.

Power and Reach of the Web

Nielsen/NetRatings (www.nielsen-netratings.com) reported recently that in one week more than 67 million people in the United States surfed the Web from home and more than 33 million did so from work. In addition, more than 40 million people have purchased something on the Web--last Christmas more books were sold online than off--and the GuideStar Directory (www.guidestar.org) lists more than 700,000 non-profit organizations with Web sites, many of which are used to solicit donations. For example, the American Red Cross (www.redcross.org) indicated that 30,000 online donors gave average gifts of $100.

"We have received high marks from our alumni about our campaign Web site, particularly because we have an extraordinarily high percentage of our alumni who are connected to the Internet and this is how they like to conduct their business" said Brian Sischo, director of development at Clarkson University in New York. "We have seen a marked increase in the number of online pledges and numbers of inquiries from our capaign Web site, and our dedicating an increasing amount of dollars to solicit funds online."

Additional reasons to do Web-based fundraising include presenting needs through interactive online multimedia such as audio and video clips--ranging from interviews with students and faculty, to excerpts from music and sports events--live camera views, and virtual campus tours (see matrix, June 2000). And since users can go directly to the information that interests them in any sequence, unlike "linear" phone and mail appeals, the content is non-threatening. This might include news and funding appeals from specific departments, academic programs, or student organizations. It is also possible to track choices made by visitors, and make adjustments in areas of the site that do not work well. "[Online fundraising] is interesting in terms of the privacy issue," said Dorothy Blaney, president of Cedar Crest College in Pennsylvania, a school that has been using the Internet for fundraising for the past two years.

"Now that so many people have caller ID and so many people are screening their calls, it's a respectful way, a preferred way, to have contact and it's less formal. You can do it at 3 in the morning or 4 in the afternoon. The convenience of it is appreciated in terms of fundraising."

Developing a Fundraising Web Site

The cost of developing a fundraising Web site linked to a school's homepage varies enormously. A freelance designer working from home might charge as little as $500 or $1,000 for a simple site, and a design studio might reasonably charge $20,000 or more. While much or all of the talent you need may be available at your school, there are growing numbers of consultants who specialize in Web-based fundraising and software products for adding design features to sites including visual effects. It is also important to review fundraising sites at other institutions, such as the ones that follow, before developing or expanding your own. The Advantage site (www.advantageconsulting.com), for example, links to multiple higher-education clients.