June 29, 2006 | Read Time: 1 minute
For the past 17 years, the Target Analysis Group has analyzed and compared direct-mail fund-raising data for charities to show them how they fared relative to other organizations. Now, the Cambridge, Mass., company is incorporating online fund-raising into its analysis.
Target expects 12 to 15 organizations to participate in the pilot year of the service, which it is running jointly with Donordigital, a consulting company in San Francisco that provides online fund-raising and advocacy advice.
The companies hope that in time the service will help charities better understand the behavior of donors who give only in response to direct mail, those who give only online, and supporters who make both online and traditional gifts, and the implications of those differences for long-term giving.
“Our focus in this isn’t so much on response rates of e-mail sent for advocacy or for fund raising or the clickthrough rates,” says Rob Harris, a vice president at Target. “It’s more on how online giving is affecting overall donor value.”
Customers will receive an analysis of their data in the early fall, and come together for a forum to discuss online fund-raising strategies in November. The cost to participate in the first year is $3,500.
For more information: Go to http://www.targetanalysis.com.
