Bonus Day is Coming! – March 13, 2013 at 9 am ET

Posted by ksammons on February 27th, 2013

Bonus Day is just around the corner! Do you know how this Bonus Day is different from the others? Due to popular demand March’s Bonus Day will begin at 9 am ET (what time in your city). Read on for terms and conditions and for helpful tips from October Bonus Day’s fundraising rock star RefugeeOne.

March 13, 2013 Bonus Day Terms & Conditions

  • Bonus Day begins March 13, 2013 at 9 am ET (what time in your city) and ends at 11:59 pm ET (GMT-5) or until matching funds run out.
  • There is $50,000 available in matching funds.
  • Matching is applied at 30%, up to $1,000 per donor per project.
  • Projects must be approved and live on the GlobalGiving.org website by March 11th to be eligible.
  • The project that raises the most funds on Bonus Day will receive an additional $1,000 from GlobalGiving.
  • The project that has the most unique donors on Bonus Day will receive an additional $1,000 from GlobalGiving.
  • Projects participating in Japan Matching are NOT eligible for Bonus Day.
  • Only online donations (credit card or PayPal) are eligible for matching. Donations made by check or text-to-give are not eligible.
  • Donations made on www.globalgiving.co.uk or any GlobalGiving corporate sites (including Nike, Eli Lilly, Global Action Atlas, etc) are NOT eligible for matching.
  • We encourage you to get donations in early because matching funds will likely run out before the end of the day.
  • Please note that GlobalGiving will monitor and review all donations made through this matching offer. GlobalGiving maintains the right to make a final decision on all matters concerning the allocation of matching funds.

Questions? Please contact Katherine Sammons at ksammons@globalgiving.org

Tips and Tricks courtesy of RefugeeOne – October Bonus Day’s Fundraising Rock Star

When talking to Kim Snoddy RegueeOne’s Project Leader it is clear that they had a well thought out strategy for Bonus Day. What did they do that worked so well for them? Below check out an example of their strategy plan.

  • Called their major donors and board members and let them know that on Bonus Day their gifts would be matched. RefugeeOne asked that they consider giving on Bonus Day rather than waiting to give on a later date.
  • Sent a series of emails to their donor network
    • The 1st email was sent the Thursday before Bonus Day. RefugeeOne made it a teaser, not revealing the nature of the match. For example “Keep a look out for an opportunity to make your donation BIG!”
    • The 2nd email was sent the Monday before Bonus Day using campaign language their donors are familiar with. For example, they stuck to a tag line that their donors had already reacted positively to, keeping language consistent. But, they still did not reveal the GlobalGiving Bonus Day match.
    • The 3rd email was sent the Tuesday before Bonus Day. This was the last of the series of teasers. For example, “Tomorrow get ready to make your donation count. Check your inbox tomorrow to see how you can make your donation touch many!”
    • The 4th email was sent the day of Bonus Day revealing the GlobalGiving Bonus Day match and it  included a direct link to their project page. One main reason behind the  day of reveal was to avoid donors giving too early.

    * Don’t forget Bonus Day begins at 9 am ET (what time in your city) *

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Complete our 2013 Partner Survey!

Posted by Alexis Nadin on February 26th, 2013

We’re thrilled that you have chosen to make GlobalGiving  a part of your organization’s fundraising strategy.

Make GlobalGiving a more effective and valuable resource for your organization by completing our annual Partner Survey.

We’re committed to acting on your feedback! Here are some great improvements that we’ve made to GlobalGiving in response to your comments on last year’s survey:

  • You can now schedule the date and time of your project report emails;
  • The rate of recurring donations has doubled on the site because of experiments with various matching offers;
  • We have changed the start time for the first two Bonus Days of the year to 9:00 am EST;
  • The fundraiser tool has been completely revamped, making it easier (and more fun!) for your donors to fundraise for your project;
  • We’ve created more opportunities for you to share your story with the GlobalGiving community including the chance to present to GlobalGiving’s New York City Leadership Council (learn more in the 2013 Calendar);
  • And so much more!

What else can we do to make your experience on GlobalGiving even better?  Let us know here.  This 10-minute survey will help us to be more responsive to your needs and design tools and trainings that are most useful to your organization.

The final deadline for completing the survey is March 31, 2013.  But, if you fill it out early – by March 15 -  you will be entered in a drawing to have your project featured on the GlobalGiving homepage for a full day!  Three winners will be selected. Complete the survey by March 15 to avoid missing out on this great opportunity!

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Redesigning Search on GlobalGiving To Help You Raise More Money

Posted by kconroy on February 25th, 2013

GlobalGiving is constantly working to improve our site and drive more donations to projects and organizations around the world. One of the ways that we do this is by continuously testing and optimizing our website to increase our conversion rate (a term used to describe how many visitors to our website become donors).

As we mentioned a few months ago, we’ve been testing a major redesign of our search pages and today I’m happy to share the results.

Summary

Based on the Money for Good initiative, GlobalGiving designed and tested a new version of our search/find feature. We designed two radically different versions (one providing a comparison view and one providing a visual view) and conducted a multi-celled A/B test to determine which had the biggest impact on conversion rates.

We found that both of the redesigns did better than our existing search design (the control cell), and within each design variation found promising directions for additional refinement.

Our Initial Hypothesis

By providing better visual designs of our search/find feature, we hypothesized that we could increase the conversion rate of donors. Furthermore, by offering better information within these designs we believed we could further increase the conversion rate. “Money for Good II” suggests that a detailed comparison of projects will produce the largest impact on conversion rates.

Design

GlobalGiving designed two new visual designs for our search – one based on a “Consumer Reports” listing to allow for comparison between projects and another with a heavy visual design inspirited by Pinterest.com to leverage donors’ natural propensity to respond to images.

Within each major design direction we identified several sub-variations. In these variations we altered the information that was displayed to visitors to determine what effect this information had on the conversion rate in comparison to the control cell for that group.

Test Cells

Treatment Treatment Description
A 0 Control (current state)
B “Consumer Reports” 0 Control
1 Organization Level (Superstar, Partner, Leader)
2 Project Grade (A, B, C)
3 Project Statistics (Grade, Donations, Reports, Funding Level (raised vs. remaining))
4 Long-Term Impact Qualitative Statement
C “Visual” 0 Control
1 Organization Level (Superstar, Partner, Leader)
2 Project Grade (A, B, C)
3 Funding Level (Amount Raised and Amount Remaining)

 

The organization level is a ranking system that GlobalGiving developed several years ago to incentivize organization and project leader behavior on our website. It rewards projects that report on their progress, raise money regularly, and have a large number of donors. Superstar is the highest ranking and Leader the second highest. Partner is the third highest and the minimum level an organization must obtain to post a project on the website. This is the first time that we have used this ranking direct to attempt to influence donor behavior.

The project grade was designed as a method to provide a clear, easily understood ranking system for donors. The Money for Good research suggests that a simple ranking system could increase donations. After much internal debate, we decide to map the organization status to a letter grade. Superstar organizations got an A, Leader organizations got a B, and Partner organizations got a C. We feel that this is an imperfect system that doesn’t fully reflect the nuances of real world performance and may suggest that a C project is less worthy of donations than an A project, which may not be true. However, for the purposes of testing the effect that a simple grading system would have on donors, we decided to use project grades for this round of testing.

The project statistics were a combination of the grade, the number of donations, number of project reports, and the funding level.

The funding level is a green progress bar indicating the fundraising progress of the project.

 

A – Control

B0 – Comparison (Control)

B1 – Comparison (Org Level Rewards)

B2 – Comparison (Project Grade)

B3 – Comparison (Project Stats)

B4 – Comparison (Long Term Impact)

C0 – Visual (Control)

C1 – Visual (Org Reward Level)

C2 – Visual (Project Grade)

C3 – Visual (Funding Level)

Methodology

We ran this test from November 11, 2012 through January 21, 2013. During this time, each visitor that went to a search/find page on GlobalGiving was randomly assigned to one of the ten test cells. A cookie was placed on the user’s browser indicating which cell they were assigned. If the visitor came back to the site during this test they would see the same cell. Additionally, this cookie was used to track the donations that were made.

Results

Here are the results from the test:

  
Event Label

Visits

Revenue

Transactions

Ecommerce
Conversion
Rate

Delta
A – Control

4,617

$39,878

893

19.34%

0.00%
B0 – Comparison – Control

5,449

$66,076

1,132

20.77%

1.43%
B1/C – Comparison – Org Reward Level

5,573

$55,237

1,149

20.62%

1.28%
B2/D – Comparison – Project Grade

5,458

$55,132

1,255

22.99%

3.65%
B3/E – Comparison – Project Stats

5,516

$67,157

1,123

20.36%

1.02%
B4/F – Comparison – Long Term Impact

5,530

$50,865

1,139

20.60%

1.26%
C0/G – Visual – Control

5,403

$61,027

1,135

21.01%

1.67%
C1/H – Visual – Org Reward Level

5,443

$47,493

1,111

20.41%

1.07%
C2/I – Visual – Project Grade

5,603

$54,976

1,153

20.58%

1.24%
C2/J – Visual – Funding Level

5,638

$64,988

1,167

20.70%

1.36%

 

As you can see, all of the test cells improved the conversion rate over the control cell.

Contrary to our hypothesis, the detailed project comparison test cell (B3) proved to be the least effective of the comparison variations. The most effective variation of the comparison cells was the one using a project grade (B2).

Of the visual designs, the most effective was the control version that simply has the project picture and the name of the project without additional information. The funding level is close behind in terms of conversion rate but was able to garner slightly higher donations on average.

In addition to this raw visit and transaction data, we also got qualitative feedback from users via customer service. Generally users seemed to respond well to the new designs with one major exception – all of our project partners disliked the “project grades.”

Based on these results and the feedback from project partners, we’ve decided to remove project grades from the next round of testing. Although the grades provided a modest boost to conversion rates, we believe that with additional user interface refinement that we can boost the conversion rate by several percentage points without using a grade system.

Conclusions and Next Steps

Based on these results, GlobalGiving has designed a new round of tests that we are currently testing on our site.

Since both of the new design directions out performed the control (old) design, we stopped using the old design and instead focused on refining our two new designs. We will attempt to see if adding donation options to the comparison view has a positive impact. Additionally, we’ll see if the project statistics view performs well without the project grades. We will compare this against the two winning cells in the visual designs – the control and the funding level.

In summary, the test cells for the next round are:

Treatment Treatment Description

A “Consumer Reports”

0

 Control

1

 Donation Options with Project Summary

2

 Donation Options without Project Summary

3

 Project Statistics (Donations, Reports, Funding Level (raised vs. remaining))

B
“Visual”

0

 Control

1

 Funding Level (Amount Raised and Amount Remaining)

2

 Funding Level (Amount Raised and Amount Remaining) + Key Project Statistics

 

Initial results are showing that these test cells are performing very well and may hold the key to an additional boost in conversion rates for all of the projects on our site.

Future Plans

Once the test has concluded and we’ve analyzed the results we’ll share them with you here.

Regardless of the results, we anticipate keeping both the visual and comparison designs on the site. After the test has concluded we will add the ability for donors to toggle between the views. The best performing cell will become the default option for new visitors and the other will be available for users that click the button to toggle to that view. This provides advanced tools for power users and the best conversion for the average visitor.

 

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GlobalGiving’s 2013 Campaign Calendar

Posted by ksammons on February 7th, 2013

Can you believe it is already February? Time is flying, so don’t wait to plan your 2013 fundraising strategy! Before you dive into the calendar give yourself a pat on the back. Why? Because you helped make the 2013 Campaign Calendar by sharing your feedback and suggestions, we thank you!

Did you miss the calendar trainings? Do you want a refresher on what GlobalGiving has in store for 2013? Don’t worry we have you covered. Below you will find a recording and summary of Alexis Nadin’s 2013 Campaign Calendar Training.

Click here to access the recording.

Need help accessing the calendar? You can find it here.

What Campaigns are Right for your Organization?

When reviewing the campaigns offered think about which ones align with your organization’s 2013 fundraising goals. Are you looking to expand your network or do you want to raise a particular funding goal using GlobalGiving’s campaigns? Are you looking to achieve both?

Different campaigns lend themselves more to growing your network and others are better for raising a targeted funding goal. For example, the Photo Contest which will be held July 15-31 is a great way to expand your network. Why? Because you are asking for a vote not money.  You are getting the word out about the work your project does through an engaging photo and all your voters are signed up for your project reports allowing you to create a long-time relationship.

Do you want to engage your advocates? The Fundraising Campaign is great way to do that. Get your advocates excited to help you reach your fundraising goals. Advocates are able to reach out to their network, helping you to grow your own.  Our awesome Tech Team has revamped GlobalGiving’s fundraiser pages and we are excited to show them off. Take a look. The Fundraising Campaign will run September 1-30. Learn more by checking out the calendar.

Are you looking to reach a certain fundraising goal and quickly mobilize your donors? Then, GlobalGiving’s Bonus Days are a great fit! GlobalGiving hosts three Bonus Days a year for current partners. They are a great way to energize your donors. Bonus Days magnify funding urgency and give you an opportunity to express this to your donors.  Bonus Days will be held in March, June and October. Check out the calendar to learn more.

Next Steps

So you have reviewed the calendar,  but now what?

 

Questions? Please send them to ksammons@globalgiving.org

Posted in GlobalGiving, Trainings | Comments Off

We are hosting the 2nd Japan Matching Campaign! March 1-15th

Posted by Britt Lake on January 25th, 2013

GlobalGiving is excited to host the Second Japan Matching Campaign running March 1st – 15th!  Starting at 12:01 am EDT on March 1st (14:01 pm JST on March 1st) GlobalGiving will match online donations at 100% made to projects that are related to earthquake and tsunami recovery activities in Tohoku, Japan.   In the memory of 2nd anniversary of Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, GlobalGiving will match online donations at 200% on  March 10th, 2013 from 11:00:01 PM EDT (March 11th, 00:00:01 PM JST) to March 11th, 2013 23:59:59 PM EDT (March 12th, 12:59:59 PM JST).  Qualifying organizations will receive an email from GlobalGiving with more information about participating. If you are working in the Tohoku region and have not received an invitation to participate, contact Mari Seto at mseto@globalgiving.orgLook up in Salesforce.

  • All donations will be matched 100%, EXCEPT ON 3.11, where donations will be matched 200%

What are the terms for the Matching Campaign?

Terms and Conditions

  • The Japan Matching Campaign will run from March 1, 2013 00:00:01 AM EDT to March 15, 2013 23:59:59 PM EST / (12:59pm JST on March 16).
  • There is $100,000 available in matching funds. Once funds have been depleted, no more donations will be matched.
  • Only organizations that are working on relief or recovery efforts in the Tohoku region of Japan are eligible for these matching funds. GlobalGiving reserves the right to approve all projects included in the campaign ahead of time.
  • Matching is applied at 100% up to $1,000 per donor per project between March 1, 2013 00:00:01 AM EDT to March 15, 2013 23:59:59 PM EST  / (12:59pm JST on March 16) or until matching funds run out.
  • GlobalGiving will match up to $25,000 per project.
  • The project that raises the most funds during the campaign will receive an additional $1,000 bonus grant from GlobalGiving.
  • The project that has the most unique donors during the campaign will receive an additional $1,000 bonus grant from GlobalGiving.
  • Projects must be approved and live on the GlobalGiving.org website by February 26th, 2013 to be eligible.
  • Projects that are located in Japan, but not working on Tohoku-related issues, are not eligible for this matching campaign.
  • Online donations will be accepted through March 15, 2013 23:59:59 PM EST (GMT-4) Checks received by March 10, 2013 will be included in the matching and will count towards the number of unique donors for each project. Checks received after March 10, 2013 will be applied to the indicated project, but will not count towards the matching. Checks should be made payable to the GlobalGiving Foundation and should clearly indicate the project to which the funds should be applied. Unfortunately, we are not able to accept cash donations.
  • Only donations made at www.globalgiving.org are eligible for this match. Donations made on www.globalgiving.co.uk or any GlobalGiving corporate sites (including Nike, Eli Lilly, Global Action Atlas, etc) are NOT eligible for matching.

Unique donors are determined using numerous criteria, including name, email address, credit card number, mailing address, and IP address. We are monitoring these and other parameters in our system to ensure that only unique, distinct donors are counted towards the donor bonus award.

Terms and Conditions for March 11th (200% Match)

  • The 200% Match Day will run on March 10th, 2013 from 11:00:01 PM EDT (March 11th, 00:00:01 PM JST) to March 11th, 2013 23:59:59 PM EDT (March 12th, 12:59:59 PM JST).
  • Matching is applied at 200% up to $1,000 per donor per project between March 10th, 2013 from 11:00:01 PM EDT (March 11th, 00:00:01 PM JST) to March 11th, 2013 23:59:59 PM EDT (March 12th, 12:59:59 PM JST)  or until matching funds run out
  • Only projects that enrolled in Japan Matching can participate.
  • Only online donations (credit card or PayPal) are eligible for matching. Donations made by check or text-to-give are not eligible.
  • Donations made on www.globalgiving.co.uk or any GlobalGiving corporate sites (including Nike, Eli Lilly, Global Action Atlas, etc) are NOT eligible for matching.

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GlobalGiving’s Video Contest: Learn More!

Posted by ksammons on January 18th, 2013

GlobalGiving’s Video Contest is back! Videos are an amazing communication tool. With a short video you can engage and inspire supporters. Videos give donors the chance to know your organization better and give you the chance to promote your projects.

Video Training: Not Your Everyday Webinar

Are you feeling like you don’t  know where to start? Don’t worry because this year we are extremely honored to have help from the talented team at What Took You So Long Foundation (WTYSL). WTYSL is a team of documentary filmmakers dedicated to filming unsung heroes and untold stories. They made an instructional video just for you! It’s filled with tips and tricks for telling your project’s story through film.

You do not want to miss this incredible learning opportunity and eye catching short film, which offers 34 tips and examples for creating short films about non-profit organizations and international projects.

Watch here!

 

Inspired by WTYSL’s work? We are too! Click here to learn more about this incredible team. You can also learn more about What Took You So Long? By:

 

Video Contest Terms and Conditions:

  • Participating organizations must be current Partners, Leaders or Superstars on GlobalGiving.org. Please note that projects that are not featured on GlobalGiving.org are not eligible.
  • Eligible videos must be between 00:30 and 3:00 minutes long. Videos that are longer than 3:00 minutes will be disqualified.
  • Videos must be embedded in the GlobalGiving project page in order to qualify for the Video Contest.
  • The submitted video must focus on the content described in the project.
  • Videos must be high quality and creative.
  • Videos may not contain any copyrighted element. Be sure that you have obtained all necessary legal rights for the content of your video.
  • All video participants must give informed consent of their participation.
  • Videos may not contain vulgar language or inappropriate content. GlobalGiving reserves the right to determine inappropriate content and disqualify a video.
  • Organizations may submit one video per organization
  • Videos must be submitted by 11:59 pm ET (what time in your city) Friday, February 15th in order to be eligible.

Looking for some music to add to your video without worry about copyright issues? Check out the Vimeo Music Store where they sell songs for commercial use and even provide some great songs for free!

How to submit your video:

  • Upload your video to YouTube.
  • Embed your YouTube video into your project page by entering the direct YouTube link to your video under the “Project Video” section of the “Photos & Documents” tab in the project editor in the project entry system.
  • Submit the web address for your project page and video in this entry form.

 See complete step by step instructions here.

How does the contest work?

  • Videos must be uploaded to the project and approved by February 15, 2013 at 11:59pm ET (what time in your city) to be eligible. Keep in mind, project approvals can take between 1-3 business days.
  • All participants must also complete the entry form by February 15, 2013 at 11:59pm ET (what time in your city) to be eligible.
  • Eligible videos will be judged by The Jubilee Project team. Judging will be based on creativity, relevance to the organization’s project, and overall quality.
  • Five videos will be selected by independent judges to be featured on GlobalGiving’s Facebook and Twitter.
  • One grand prize winner will be featured in GlobalGiving’s monthly newsletter, which goes out to 110,000 subscribers!
  • Winners will be announced on February 28, 2013.

Meet our Judges: The Jubilee Project

We are so lucky to have the founders and team of The Jubilee Project judge this year’s Video Contest. The Jubilee Project’s mission is to make videos for a good cause and produce entertaining content that will empower, enable, and inspire others to do good as well.  Jason, Eddie, and Eric, the founders of The Jubilee Project work to get stories like yours heard and get viewers motivated to help make positive change.

To learn more about this amazing trio click here.

 

You can also learn more about The Jubilee Project by:

Prize for the Winners:

  • The five winning videos will each be featured  on GlobalGiving’s Facebook and Twitter
  • One grand prize winner will be featured in GlobalGiving’s monthly newsletter, which goes out to 110,000 subscribers!
  •  Winners will be announced on February 28, 2013.

Questions?

Please email Katherine Sammons, ksammons@globalgiving.org

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Heartfelt thanks for a tremendous year

Posted by Alexis Nadin on January 15th, 2013

It’s been a busy January already. The team at GlobalGiving is gearing up for another fast-paced year packed with fundraising action! In 2013, we’re giving you more occasions to share your organization’s story with GlobalGiving’s supporter and advocates, more opportunities to have donations to your projects matched, and more chances to have your voice heard as we grow and improve the GlobalGiving platform. Learn more about what we have planned in our 2013 Calendar.

But before we plunge into the New Year, we want to pause to say thank you for a tremendous 2012. Last year, your world-changing work—removing landmines in Cambodia, investing in entrepreneurs in Nigeria, training teachers in Peru, and so much more—inspired more than 67,000 donors to give to your projects. Your quarterly reports, openness, and transparency gave 60 corporate partners the confidence to invest $13.8 million in your work. And your feedback and suggestions helped us to dramatically improve our website.

So, from all of us at GlobalGiving, we would like to say a big thank you for making 2012 an incredible success!  To show our appreciation, we’ve put together a short thank you video with the hopes of making you smile. Check it out here!

2012 in Numbers

  • This past year, $19.4 million was donated on GlobalGiving to support projects in 132 countries!
  • 60 companies gave $13.8 million through GlobalGiving in 2012—that’s more companies and more corporate donations than ever before!
  • Our Product and Business Development Teams continued to work hard to drive traffic to the site—we had 2.10 million visitors in 2012!
  • 67,284 individuals made donations on GlobalGiving in 2012. And 50% of donors chose to add-on a portion of GlobalGiving’s fee to their donation—that’s a 3% increase from 2011.
  • Through experiments with various promotions and incentive structures, monthly recurring donation volume on the site increased by 57%–we currently process more than $102,000 in recurring donations a month! (Go Kevin!)
  • Sales of GlobalGiving gift cards continued to rise; we sold close to 10,000 gift cards for more than $1.2 million. (Unredeemed gift cards provide matching funds for GlobalGiving campaigns!)

Incredible, right? The momentum that we experienced in 2012 was no coincidence. The team at GlobalGiving worked hard to attract new donors through media outreach, develop and manage valuable corporate partnerships, and provide you with a better user experience and more opportunities to reach out to your own networks. Here are some highlights:

  • In 2012, GlobalGiving partnered with Microsoft to launch a new giving platform, Give for Youth, which features microprojects (small projects supporting specific individuals or activities) that are providing continuing education, job training, and entrepreneurship opportunities for youth throughout the world. Microsoft gave away $300,000 in matching funds to participating organizations and purchased $125,000 in gift cards to be redeemed on the Give for Youth site. In the three and half months that the site was live in 2012, more than 40 organizations raised $540,491!
  • Our tech team made it possible for you to: schedule project report emails that go out to your donors; duplicate existing projects and microprojects to streamline the project posting process; and submit your due diligence renewal (due every two years) online through an automated system. In addition, drawing on inspiration from the Money for Good initiative, the tech team began a search design experiment to increase donor conversion rates on the website and to optimize the look and feel of GlobalGiving.
  • We launched our first-ever Project Leader Leadership Council, a small advisory committee made up of individuals representing our partner organizations, and the new Ambassador Program, which identified two GlobalGiving project leaders to represent GlobalGiving in their countries throughout the year. We also continued to expand and improve the services we offer to our partner organizations, including monthly trainings by experts, one-on-one fundraising consultations, in-person visits and workshops through the U.S. and the world, and volunteer listings.

Ok, so 2012 was amazing but 2013 is going to be even better!

We have already announced our 2013 fundraising calendar with the dates for upcoming matching and fundraising campaigns (including brand new promotions and fundraising opportunities!). Take some time to explore and identify promotions that are right for your organization.

Want to learn more about our 2013 calendar?

Join us for a webinar on Wednesday, January 30th at 12:00 pm EST (This time in your city) for an overview of our fundraising campaigns and promotions taking place in 2013. We’ll equip you with strategies for successful fundraising in the New Year.

Sign up for the webinar here.

Help us make GlobalGiving better – join the Leadership Council!

The Council will also act as an ad hoc advisory committee, providing regular feedback and engaging in discussions about new features on the site and ideas for future campaigns via the new Leadership Council Facebook Group and email. Learn more about the Council here. Apply online by Friday, February 8th. 

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Be a GlobalGiving Ambassador in 2013!

Posted by Alexis Nadin on January 11th, 2013

Would you like to represent GlobalGiving in your country or city? Apply to be a GlobalGiving Ambassador! Selected individuals will help to foster non-profit community in their country or city by hosting workshops and information sessions, meet-ups of local GlobalGiving partners, and conducting visits and meetings. Apply online by February 8th to be a Country Ambassador or U.S. City Ambassador.

Last night, I had the pleasure of participating in a meet-up of GlobalGiving partner organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area. The group met to learn more about GlobalGiving’s 2013 Calendar and share their experiences participating in various GlobalGiving promotions and campaigns. This was one of a few unique events that have taken place over the last few years, in which GlobalGiving partners have come together to share best practices, learn from one another, and explore opportunities for collaboration.

Khalifa and Carol, GlobalGiving’s 2012 Ambassadors, with Brian Walsh, New York City Leadership Council Member

We are so thrilled to see this emerging community of GlobalGiving partners around the world and we are committed to providing the resources and support to grow and cultivate this network.

That is why, this year, GlobalGiving is making an even greater effort to support GlobalGiving ambassadors—individuals who are hosting workshops to teach organizations in their community about online fundraising; providing one-on-one fundraising support to other organizations; and organizing informal meet-ups and opportunities for networking and collaboration.For the second year in a row, we will be continuing our Country Ambassador program, which thanks to the hard work of Carol Mondragon and Khalifa M. Lawan, our first-ever Country Ambassadors, was a tremendous success in 2012.We will also be launching a new initiative this year, U.S. City Ambassadors! See below for more details.

—————————————————————————————————————————————————-

What is the Country Ambassador Program? – Apply online here!

This program will identify and train two Ambassadors to represent GlobalGiving in their country for one year. Selected individuals will have the opportunity to participate in a one-week training in Washington, DC in April or May 2013, where they will learn everything they need to answer frequently asked questions about GlobalGiving’s project entry system, campaigns, corporate partnerships, and more.

Program Description

Selected individuals will:

  • Commit to act as GlobalGiving’s Ambassador in their country for one year. We will provide regular check-ins and support throughout the year.
  • Be available to come to DC for a week of training in April or May. GlobalGiving will reimburse flight, lodging, and food expenses for this one week stay.
  • Visit GlobalGiving’s partner organizations in the country to verify the projects and reports posted on the site and to offer support to current partners. GlobalGiving will provide a small monthly travel and communications stipend to make these visits and relevant communications possible.
  • Host at least four workshops throughout the country about the value and principles of online fundraising and to support organizations interested in learning more about GlobalGiving.  GlobalGiving will provide a workshop budget. Ambassadors will be eligible for reimbursement for costs directly associated with the workshops.
  • Organize and host at least two meet-ups of existing GlobalGiving partners in your country. Ambassadors will be eligible for reimbursement for costs directly associated with the workshops.
  • Provide feedback about organizations from the same country that are applying to GlobalGiving for the first time. GlobalGiving uses a rigorous due diligence process to vet organizations that are new to the site. On occasion, questions arise about specific organizations. We will seek Ambassadors’ advice when relevant.
  • Help GlobalGiving understand the local non-profit sector in your country as well as any regulations or restrictions that might inhibit organizations from applying to join GlobalGiving.

To be eligible for the Ambassador Program, you must:

  • Live and work in a country other than the United States. The main objective of this program is to extend GlobalGiving’s representation outside of the U.S, where GlobalGiving’s office is based.
  • Work for an organization that has been successfully using GlobalGiving’s site for AT LEAST six months.

Preference will be given to individuals who have been active and engaged on GlobalGiving and who have experience working with non-profit networks in their country.

GlobalGiving Country Ambassadors will benefit from:

  • An all-expense paid trip to GlobalGiving’s office in Washington, DC to meet GlobalGiving’s team and take part in a one-week training.
  • In depth training about online fundraising and GlobalGiving. During the one-week training, we will go over the principles of online fundraising—calling on experts in the office and from the DC area to share their suggestions for utilizing online tools to raise money for non-profit organizations. We will also offer an in depth training in fundraising on GlobalGiving—including how to use the project entry system, attract new donors, benefit from corporate partnerships, and more.
  • Networking opportunities while in the United States. GlobalGiving will organize meetings with strategic partners and potential collaborative organizations during the one-week stay.
  • A modest travel and communications stipend for in-country visits to other GlobalGiving partners.
  • Funding to host workshops for other organizations in your country. The Ambassador Program gives organizations the chance to contribute to the growth of local non-profit networks by providing networking opportunities at workshops and offering information and support for online fundraising.
  • The opportunity to build relationships with and learn best practices from other GlobalGiving partners through site visits and meetings.

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What is the U.S. City Ambassador Program? – Apply online here!

This program will identify and train Ambassadors to represent GlobalGiving in their city for one year. Selected individuals will receive personal training from the GlobalGiving, during which they will learn everything they need to answer frequently asked questions about GlobalGiving’s project entry system, campaigns, corporate partnerships, and more.

Program Description

Selected individuals will:

  • Commit to act as GlobalGiving’s Ambassador in their city for one year. We will provide regular check-ins and support throughout the year.
  • Be available to participate in personal training with GlobalGiving staff in March or April.
  • Organize and host at least four meet-ups of existing GlobalGiving partners in your city. GlobalGiving will provide reimbursement for relevant meet-up expenses and provide support in reaching out to organizations in your city.
  • Organize and host at least two information sessions for organizations that are interested in learning more about GlobalGiving. We will provide reimbursement for relevant expenses.
  • Act as a resource for organizations in your city. This may include organizing occasional one-on-one meetings with organizations in your city to provide support with due diligence, project reports, fundraising planning, among other things. We will provide reimbursement for relevant expenses.
  • Conduct site visits of specific organizations that GlobalGiving flags or prioritizes to verify the projects and reports posted on the site. We will provide reimbursement for relevant expenses.
  • Provide feedback about organizations from the same city that are applying to GlobalGiving for the first time. GlobalGiving uses a rigorous due diligence process to vet organizations that are new to the site. On occasion, questions arise about specific organizations. We will seek Ambassadors’ advice when relevant.

To be eligible for the Ambassador Program, you must:

  • Live and/or work in the American city for which you are applying. The main objective of this program is to foster GlobalGiving community in major cities throughout the U.S.
  • Work for an organization that has been successfully using GlobalGiving’s site for AT LEAST six months.

Preference will be given to individuals who have been active and engaged on GlobalGiving and who have experience working with non-profit networks in their city.

GlobalGiving City Ambassadors will benefit from:

  • In depth training about online fundraising and GlobalGiving. Selected Ambassadors will learn about the principles of online fundraising—calling on experts on and off the GlobalGiving team. We will also offer an in depth training in fundraising on GlobalGiving—including how to use the project entry system, attract new donors, benefit from corporate partnerships, and more.
  • The opportunity to network with, build relationships with and learn best practices from other GlobalGiving partners.
  • A modest budget for visits and meetings with other GlobalGiving partners.
  • Funding to host meet-ups and information sessions for other organizations in your city. The Ambassador Program gives organizations the chance to contribute to the growth of local non-profit networks by providing networking opportunities at meet-ups and information sessions and offering information and support for online fundraising.
  • Favorable consideration for opportunities to interact with GlobalGiving’s donors, supporters, and staff and be promoted within the GlobalGiving community. 

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Now accepting applications for the 2013 Leadership Council!

Posted by Alexis Nadin on January 11th, 2013

Would you like a larger say in developing GlobalGiving’s campaigns? Would you like to be the first to see new tools and features before they are rolled out on the site? Apply now for GlobalGiving’s Leadership Council, an advisory committee made up of representatives from our non-profit partners (like you!).  Applications are due Friday, February 8th.

If there is one thing that we want you to know about GlobalGIving, it is that we really value and appreciate your feedback and input.

Over the years, so many features and promotions have come about because of your ideas:

  • we built a Donation Manager, where you can view all donations made to your projects on GlobalGiving;
  • we created a volunteers page and gave our partners the opportunity to share their volunteer needs with our network;
  • we made it possible for you to manage your disbursement preferences and reports in the project entry system;
  • and so much more!

In fact, we feel so passionately about feedback that we actually made it one of our organization’s four values:  Listen. Act. Learn. Repeat.! (We even wrote it on the wall.)

What is the Leadership Council?

The Leadership Council is one way that organizations share feedback with us. It is a committee of representatives from our non-profit partners around the world. In 2012, the Leadership Council was made up of eight fantastic members, who committed to share feedback and ideas regularly via conference call and email. To date, the Council has been asked to review and comment on GlobalGiving’s new microproject feature, our impact framework and the role that impact should play in GlobalGiving’s project ranking, our Online Fundraising Academy design, and more.

A special thanks for our inaugural Council!

What will the Leadership Council be in 2013?

This year, we are looking to identify up to 20 representatives from a range of organizations: long-time GlobalGiving partners, who have seen how GlobalGiving has changed over the years, as well as some of GlobalGiving’s newest community members, who can bring fresh ideas and new perspectives to the group. Ideally, the Council will be made up of representatives from organizations around the globe—representing GlobalGiving’s diverse base of non-profit partners in the U.S. and over 100 other countries—who have varying access to the internet, experience with online fundraising, etc.

The Council will meet via skype or conference call twice a year for about two hours to discuss important issues related to GlobalGiving—campaigns, pricing, new experiments, project ranking, and more.

The Council will also act as an ad hoc advisory committee, providing regular feedback and engaging in discussions about new features on the site and ideas for future campaigns via the new Leadership Council Facebook Group and email.

Members may also receive specific questions or requests from GlobalGiving staff relevant to their country or area or expertise. For example, if you are selected, you may receive infrequent requests for feedback on other organizations in your country or identifying potential guest hosts for monthly trainings. Council members may also be intermittently asked to act as a reference for other GlobalGiving partners in your country or sector who have questions or require some assistance with their GlobalGiving account.

2012 Leadership Council members are invited to remain part of the Council in 2013.

What are the responsibilities of Leadership Council members?

Leadership Council members will be expected to:

  • Participate in two 2 hour conference calls via skype or phone throughout the year. Because the Council will be made up of representatives from all over the world, Council members are expected to be flexible with timing (calls may be at night or early in the morning in your country) and accommodating when possible.
  • Come to each conference call prepared, having reviewed any material sent out by GlobalGiving staff in preparation for the call. Participants should be prepared to speak knowledgeably about the topic and to share ideas and new suggestions.
  • Engage in group discussions about new features on the site and ideas for future campaigns via the new Leadership Council Facebook Group and email.
  • Provide advice on new GlobalGiving applicants based in your country and/or on rules and regulations specific to charitable organizations in your country.

What are the benefits of being a Leadership Council member?

As a Council member, you will receive sneak peeks of our newest features and the opportunity to make suggestions on upcoming campaigns, trainings, and more. This is a great way to have a larger say in GlobalGiving’s programming and to help make GlobalGiving an even more valuable and effective tool for organizations like yours around the world!

Interested? Please apply online here by Friday, February 8th.  We will review your application and get back to you by March 1st to let you know if you have been selected for the Leadership Council!

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New Feature for Leaders and Superstars: Microprojects!

Posted by ksammons on December 10th, 2012

GlobalGiving is excited to announce a new feature, microprojects! Do you have a student you want to provide with a scholarship or do you need to  fund a piece of equipment needed to implement your project? Well, microprojects can help you with that.

We have been anxiously awaiting this feature at GlobalGiving and we are happy to say microprojects will exclusively be available to GlobalGiving’s Superstars and Leaders!  Our Business Development team has been hard at work and this new feature comes courtesy of Microsoft.

You may now be asking yourself, what is a microproject and how is it different from projects I currently have on GlobalGiving?

  • A microproject is a one-time fundraising effort to help achieve a specific activity or outcome.
  • Microprojects can either benefit specific people or an activity with a reasonably small amount of funding.
  • A microproject has 90 days to become funded. After the 90 day period it will expire.
  • Microproject budgets are limited to $250-$10,000.
  • Unlike projects on GlobalGiving’s website, microprojects do not have donation options. Donors will fill in the amount they would like to donate (GlobalGiving’s $10 minimum still applies).
  • Microprojects are tied to a parent projects (parent projects are like projects you currently have on the site and your parent project can be a project you already have up).
  • A parent project must be uploaded and approved before entering microprojects.
  • Organizations may have 25 microprojects active on the GlobalGiving.org site at anytime.
  • Reporting is different as well. Microprojects require one report either after funding or after 90 days of expiration, whichever comes first.

Microprojects are meant to help your projects receive funding for specific activities or for specific beneficiaries. They are meant to be funded quickly and give donors a chance to see what or to whom their donation is directly benefiting. Microprojects will all go through the same approval process as projects, so not all microprojects will be approved if they do not fit within the criteria.

 That is a lot of information! So, what are examples of microprojects and parent projects?

–”$500 will send Grace to school for a year.”

•Parent Project: Scholarships for 100 girls in Liberia

–”$200 will buy Deepti a new goat.”

•Parent Project: Improving the Livelihoods of women in India

–”$400 will provide Oscar with job training.”

•Parent Project: Vocational training for Youth in Argentina

Want to get started right away? Here is how to enter microprojects:

Entering microprojects is very similar to entering projects on GlobalGiving.

  •  Sign-in to Project Entry
  • Once on your dashboard click the orange button “”+add a project”"
  • One you are on “”Add a New Project”" you will be able to choose “”Project Type”"
  • Click “”Microproject”"
  • Once you have chosen microproject you can choose which parent project you would like to be tied to your microproject
  • Fill out the information on your microproject and submit for approval. Approval takes about 1-3 business days.

 

Questions about microprojects?

Please feel free to send questions to Katherine Sammons, ksammons@globalgiving.org

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