Episode 144: Leveraging Personas for Fundraising During COVID-19

Many things have changed in response to COVID-19, but the missions and purposes of social good organizations remain the same even if their methods must adjust to meet the current situation.

In today’s episode, Melissa Bank Stepno, Director of Analytics Consulting at Blackbaud joins the podcast to talk with Steve MacLaughlin about using personas for fundraising during COVID-19. Listen in to hear what Melissa has to say about the value of continued engagement, what organizations should be focusing on right now, and how personas can help their messaging.

Topics Discussed in This Episode:

• What Melissa is hearing from organizations right now about fundraising during COVID-19
• The importance of continued engagement
• What organizations should focus on right now
• The importance of data health
• How organizations can use personas to fine-tune messages for their audiences
• Examples of personas and how they work
• How the imagery can match the message
• How organizations can learn more about personas

Resources:

Melissa Bank Stepno

Blackbaud Institute Report: "Supporters in Sight: A Look at Peer-to-Peer Personas"

Blackbaud Institute Report: "Supporters in Sight: An Introduction to Personas"

Article: Harnessing Big Data to Sustain Peer-to-Peer Revenue Throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic

Quotes: 

“Every nonprofit in the country, in the world, exists for a purpose and for a reason, and those missions are all still valid today.”

“The health of the addresses on your file, the phone numbers on your file, the emails on your file is more critical than ever as we’re thinking about how we can reach people where they are.”

“How can you meet somebody where they are at their point in time in life, and what they’re most interested in?”