A Twitter Account of AFP Congress 2012

Last week I wrote about the The Social Media & Digital Marketing Impact from the Association of Fundraising Professional (AFP) Congress 2012 in Toronto. For a second consecutive year Twitter was integrated into the event so that information could be shared amongst attendees and those who were unable to attend but were following from the comfort of their own home or office. With so many informative sessions and even more professional fundraisers, the collaboration theme played out in the Twitterverse brilliantly in 140 characters or less.

The Opening Plenary by Don Tapscott, Author, Speaker and Advisor on Media Technology and Innovation, set the tone of the three day event and inspired fellow fundraisers to raise the bar in their fundraising activity, to focus on the evolution of fundraising and how it can be pushed to the next level. Some words of advice included:

• @jennapettinato “We’re not in an Information Age, we’re in an age of intelligence and collaboration.” @dtapscott #afpcongress
• @ShehreenL New model of philanthropy- charities can build deep relationships with donors because of the Internet- don tappscott. #afpcongress
• @SuzanneDuncan Stop thinking of your donors as external-they are internal resources, they are partners. @dtapscott #afpcongress
• @emdaw22 “fundraisers should undress to impress” in this age of transparency. Wisdom from @dtapscott. #AFPCongress
• @jennapettinato “Leadership can come from anywhere. From the CEO to the secretary. It needs to come from everywhere.” @dtapscott #afpcongress
• @jennapettinato  Moral of the story: Collaboration & some risk-taking can help your organization create something beautiful. @dtapscott #afpcongress #jazz

Another inspiring speaker, Tony Elishcher renowned for his 29 year expertise in the nonprofit sector fundraising and marketing presented a powerful workshop on “Stories, Emotions and Connections” and some of his advice to fellow fundraisers included:

• @jennapettinato  “There is no better place than the non-profit sector for storytelling.” A great session happening now w/ @tonyelischer #afpcongress
• @j_olee  “Storytelling is not just the words you tell your donors; it is the totality of what you do as an organization.” #TonyElisher #afpcongress
• @claremcdowall “Great stories happen to those who can tell them”. @tonyelischer #AFPCongress
• @cheriewhiteman “Characters, imagination and channels – these are what make up your stories” @tonyelischer #AFPcongress
• @cheriewhiteman “People give to people, ideas and values” @tonyelischer #AFPcongress
• @jennapettinato “Your Non-Profit brand is how you embed into people’s hearts and minds what you do.” @tonyelischer #afpcongress

Two full days of sessions produced a lot of timely and beneficial information for fundraisers to keep in mind while they are working towards their fundraising goals. They were varied in many areas including:

On the Fundraising Industry

• @PinkSheepTO Fundraising is not rocket science but it is neuroscience. Maryann Kerr #AFPCongress
• @HavaGoldberg “Our job is to inspire donors to do something extraordinary.”-Karen Osborne #afpcongress
• @PinkSheepTO  “We are not measured in this industry by a thermometer but by a moral compass.” Maryann Kerr speaking truth! #AFPCongress #twitterteam
• @FifeHouse Philanthropic trends: solicitation fatigue, multi targeted campaigns, mid donor programs… #afpcongress
• @pathammavong Fundraising is not about money. It is about relationship based in shared values. #AFPcongress
• @ashleyricher @TonyMyersCan @jonduschinsky Be the change! “The individual has never had a greater opportunity to change the world” #afpcongress
• @aliceferris Cynthia Armour: “If it costs $1.25-1.50 to acquire a donor, what are you doing to renew?” #afpcongress #afpmeet
• @amandasnow323 “Build a community first, fundraise later” – @fiorino #socialmediaskills #afpcongress thanks for the tips!
• @JessicaRawn “We are good but not great (at fundraising) and to fix the problems in the world we must be great!” @bernardrossmc #AFPcongress
• @nimbyist “You have to work hard every day to figure out how you show your donors that you love them.” Tracey Bailey #AFPcongress
• @HavaGoldberg  7 building blocks of passion capital: creed, culture, courage, brand, resources, strategy, persistence -Paul Alofs #afpcongress
• @purnirahman “Fundraising is a team sport” @alofs #afpcongress

On Donor Communication:

• @etwells_ Charities need to stop talking about themselves and start talking about their donors needs/wants @Markyphillips #afpcongress
• @LeahEustace “When you’re writing, think happy thoughts” (via Tracey Bailey) #afpcongress
• @amandasnow323 That person who answers the phone or greets potential donors? They should be called the director of first impressions. #afpcongress
• @nimbyist People are less likely to donate if increasing awareness is listed as one of your #nonprofit goals. @FraserGreen cc @mcahalane #AFPcongress
• @EmmaLewzey Donors want you to: have a plan (91%), work collaboratively (86%), update them on progress (79%). #afpcongress
• @RSFlood “Find out how the donor would like to be communicated with” great reminders about donor centred fudraising with Terry Smith!! #afpcongress
• @E_Ferns “4 things to do to convert online leads: be creative, frequency, timing, and choosing right medium to communicate” – @Ryann #afpcongress
• @BigMacGuinness “Just because you acquire a donor online, doesn’t mean you can only talk to a donor online.” Grow the relationship! #AFPCongress
• @samanthalrogers Relationship management 101: take your relationship offline. Say thank you in person. #afpcongress
• @EmmaLewzey On-line is good for some stuff – but phone and mail crucial for building human relationships. @Ryann #afpcongress
• @thattomahern Thank you is NOT the end of the transaction.
• @PinkSheepTO Asking your donors to share w their friends when they give works 50% of the time. No brainier! @beatesorum #AFPCongress
• @TDGAndrea There are only 9 ways to say no and only one means ‘piss off’. The rest mean ask me another way. @bernardrossmc #afpcongress #afpmeet
• @thpcheng “Say only what needs to be said” Tracey Bailey #afpcongress
• @thpcheng “Nothing beats a handwritten note! More handwritten notes reinforces the relationship with the donor.” Tracey Bailey #afpcongress
• @thpcheng “If it’s a thank you call, say thank you. Trust that there will be another phone call.” Tracey Bailey #afpcongress

Congress 2012 proved to be a great source of information that nonprofit fundraising professionals can apply immediately in the end-of-year fundraising push and can equally be applied throughout 2013. Fundraising will continue to evolve and be more focused on the individual donor and how we communicate with them. If you attended Congress 2012 and have feedback not mentioned here, please share in the comments.

Feel free to browse through posts in our Social Media Series for nonprofits which includes a series on Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and Pinterest along with other related topics.

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Miratel Solutions is a Toronto call centre, eBusiness, and letter shop mail house specializing in professional fundraising services including telephone fundraising, online fundraising, lottery services, donation caging, donation processing and other donor management services. We are committed to our CSR business values in all contact centre services and mail house operations and advancing the missions of the nonprofits we proudly serve.