Planning for digital donor journeys
With more donors choosing to give online, the donor journey exists on two plains: the physical and the digital. Magnified by the events of recent months, the world has shut its doors and gone virtual - a reality that makes the digital donor experience more important than ever before. No doubt your charity has a handle on the digital world of its donors, but are you really making the most of this virtual experience?
Before you move forward with your digital donor journey, it is important that you take some time to understand your digital touch-points. This doesn’t just mean your website. Digital journeys travel multiple channels – so your plan will need to encompass the likes of social media, apps, text, emails and virtual events. Every time your donor connects with your digital self, you need to be ready to respond. And of course, you’ve got to build a plan that inspires those connections in the first place!
There is just so much potential. One of the truly good things to have come out of the COVID-19 crisis, is the new-found bravery of organisations to try out different types of digital technology. There are so many weird and wonderful virtual events going on, it’s hard not to be inspired. Granted, not all of them will take off – but for those that do, don’t forget about them after the lockdown. Keep them on your calendar.
Once you’ve got your touch-points in place, you will need to consider your messaging. Digital transformation expert and consultant, Ian Patterson, supports the idea of a single customer view, and so do we. When you’re talking to people online it’s important to recognise that not all visits are unique – in fact, it is highly likely that you are talking to a number of the same people, albeit through different channels (i.e. someone who follows you on LinkedIn may also follow you on Twitter and visit your website). This means you need to plan your messaging around the idea of a single person, of single a ‘truth’. Don’t just parrot the same material across each channel. Make a plan for what, when and how you want people to absorb your message and tailor content accordingly.
Of course, a good donor experience isn’t just about sending messages or event invites out. It’s about receiving – so use your digital platforms to respond and engage. There are lots of technologies to help with this, with chatbots and artificial intelligent (AI) two of the more popular. We don’t suggest that you remove the human element completely, but don’t be afraid to invest in the tools that will make technology work for you! Keeping track of all this activity can be tricky, so it’s good to integrate systems and processes where you can. Access Charity CRM for example, is designed to integrate with your website, MailChimp, JustGiving and Microsoft Office – amongst others. This makes it easy to capture action as it happens, giving you the data and information you need to monitor, evaluate and evolve your digital donor journey.
Finally, if you really want your donor’s digital experience to be a good one, you need to make sure your technology works. There is no use holding a virtual event if your chosen technology isn’t up to it, or running a website with a donate function that’s long and laborious. Don’t try and do everything at once. Plan your journey and invest your time and money into doing a few things well, rather than lots of things not very well. The smoother, more personal and engaging your donor’s experience, the more likely they are to come back for more!
