Wednesday, May 22, 2013

The Wilson Nonprofit Report for Wednesday, May 22, 2013

New Book: I am working on a soon to be published book. The working title is “The Digital Nonprofit: A Manifesto”. Here are some excerpts from the introduction (with links to the full draft). I would love any input, thoughts or suggestions you might have.

Are our nonprofit constituent experiences intentional? What does the future of your nonprofit look like? Is it focused on your mission AND design?


The premise of this manifesto is all about being intentional about the experiences our constituents are having.


How many programs, products and services do you have? How many channels (Web, Social, Mobile, Call Center, Direct Mail, etc.) are you focused on? Do they all have a unified design and experience?


Mission + Design = Intentional experiences.


We are clear about our mission. Are we clear about our design? More


Our nonprofit constituents are empowered and we can’t control that: Consumers are absolutely empowered through technology now. That means our constituents are as well. It has happened and it is a fact. We can’t control that. Sorry to point that out but that is our starting reality.


Our constituents are empowered. They know it. Do we?


They know they have influence. Do we?


Our constituents know they have voice that is powerful. They know they have more power than ever before. Do we know that and act that way? More


Are we creating heartfelt experiences at our nonprofit or not? Is that experience stunning? There comes a time where we have to make a decision. What will we invest in? It is a serious question and not a budget exercise. If we are going to be intentional and proactive, we need to make an investment. At first that may be just time. Eventually it will be about people, our processes, our strategies and our technology. If we don’t become intentional in our approach to our digital constituent experiences we will continue to be haphazard in our approach; reacting, responding, solving toxic experiences in real time. This intention however must be about heartfelt experiences. It must create a passion for our mission. More


Relevance is defined by how relevant the experience is: The constituent journey is evolving (albeit very, very fast). That shouldn’t surprise you but it is good news. You haven’t been left behind completely. Your constituents are changing though. Their experience of you and your mission may not be what any of us would want. In this case, relevance is defined by how relevant the experience is. Passion for the mission is contingent on amazing experiences.


How you personally decide to react or lead is up to you. It, of course, is not about technology. What is the journey of getting closer to constituents and staying relevant really about? Here are some ideas:




  • Creating a culture built around the constituent and their experience being the focus of all you do.

  • Empowering employees to do what it takes to create amazing experiences.

  • Opening up the floodgates of innovation.


Saying we want to get closer to constituent won’t get senior management on board. While a constituent revolution is at the C-Suite doors, someone (meaning you) needs to convince the top that change is imperative. Without that we will fail. More


Again, any feedback on “The Digital Nonprofit: A Manifesto” would be greatly appreciated.

 

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