May 2017

May 30, 2017

A Nonprofit’s Guide to Running a Successful Data Engagement: Get the Right People on the Bus

Part two of this 6-part series is written by Mark Daigle and Eric White, members of the WealthEngine Professional Services Consulting team.

In our previous post we discussed how using evidence-based metrics can improve your fundraising efforts. The first part in our blog series about setting up a successful data engagement covers getting the right people involved.

Who are the people that need to be on board from the very beginning? Make sure to include executive leadership, development leadership, and the IT or database administrators. Everyone plays key roles at various points in the engagement. Having buy-in from everyone from the beginning is key. It will also help managing expectations. Key stakeholders should fully understand the scope, milestones, and expectations of the project. This will pay dividends later.

Executive leadership needs to take a 30,000-foot view about what is necessary to make this process a success. They will be responsible for strategic oversight. It is important that the key decision maker supports the project and they understand the scope in terms of timeline and expectations. Cross-departmental cooperation is critical, and executives who understand the need for continued communication will help keep the entire team on task.

Development leadership will help frame the purpose of a data engagement. They provide tactical decision making. Typically, the development or advancement team will be the end-user of the data to move fundraising efforts forward. Clarifying the specific goals of the project ensures that the right data and variables are included in the data file. For instance, a university might be trying to increase donations from their alumni. It would be beneficial to know things like when did they graduate, what majors did they study, and what (if any) extracurricular activities did they participate in? These elements may provide meaningful insight.

Involve your IT department in your data project, since they may be responsible for pulling files. Pulling a file from your CRM can often be a longer process than people expect. For example, you may have to merge information that comes from separate databases. The specific variables involved in your project may necessitate a special custom data pull. Your IT professional may have to perform some database cleanup prior to pulling data. The data managers often are the source for a data dictionary that will explain custom client attributes in the file.

Every engagement is unique. The roles described above are performed by the same person or by many individuals. It is important to have all three roles on the bus as you kick off your data engagement project.

Join us for our next post which focuses on working backward to establish key deadlines.

May 23, 2017

Take Personalization Beyond Email

Personalization in email marketing, and the positive ROI that can result, is frequently discussed. It’s been proven that personalized emails result in 6x higher transaction rates. However, personalization should not stop at email marketing. Emails are just one component of the whole customer experience.

Real-time personalization across all channels is key. The speed at which you can customize your messages and offerings to your customers can dramatically impact your revenue, boosting total sales by 15 to 20 percent.

Imagine instantly knowing key demographic and wealth information of an individual who calls into your customer service department. Within seconds your representative would be able to determine what approach to take with the customer and who to route them to, whether it is rolling out the red carpet, inviting them to a preferred customer program, or pointing them to goods and services that match the individual’s spending capacity.

You could also utilize this consumer information to tailor and enhance a hotel guest’s experience upon check-in. For example – upgrade their room to a suite or sign them up for a guest experience that closely aligns with their interests and wealth bracket. The personalization shouldn’t stop once your guest checks out. You should send emails with specific packages that would appeal to their interests and lifestyle, or ask them to sign up for a rewards program.

While the majority of marketers agree that personalization has improved their customer experience, only a little more than half believe they are doing it correctly. If you’re not building personalization into your marketing and sales strategies, you are missing out on revenue opportunities.

Take the time now to gather your company’s stakeholders and discuss the need for personalization in the customer experience. By making it a priority, you will better understand your customers, which will result in increased brand loyalty and higher lifetime customer value.

To hear more about personalization join WealthEngine at the Marketing Analytics Conference on Monday, June 5 for a session on The Promise of Personalization – Two Approaches in Conversation.

May 18, 2017October 1, 2018

2017 Spring Newsletter

Message from the CEO

Greetings and welcome to the spring installment of the WealthEngine Customer Newsletter. We are proud to be the leaders in providing actionable wealth intelligence to our clients. We believe that it is our responsibility to share our experiences and best practices to assist all customers in achieving their goals. Whether those goals include finding donors or customers, it all begins with gaining a better understanding about the individuals with which you are engaging. Our mission is to help you find, understand, and engage the wealthy prospects that can positively impact your organization.

It’s May, and that means that our higher education clients and some nonprofits are approaching the end of their fiscal year. Within this newsletter, we focus mostly on our solutions to help power fundraising organizations during this end-of-year push. We are proud to be the largest provider of wealth data and analytics in the industry, serving over 2,600 nonprofit organizations. Last year alone, over 700 new charities and higher education institutions selected WealthEngine to be their strategic fundraising partner. As the industry leader, we believe that it is paramount to manage your critical donor data with the utmost care. We are pleased to announce that WealthEngine is the first, and only SOC 2 certified data provider available. Protecting sensitive data cannot be compromised, and we’re proud to handle our clients’ data with full security compliance.

In addition to serving the needs of nonprofits, large and small, we have endeavored to leverage our unique and valuable data in other markets. I would like to highlight an exciting session that I was able to participate in within the luxury marketplace.

Earlier this month, I joined senior executives and decision makers at the 2nd annual Luxury Roundtable hosted in New York City by Luxury Daily. The day focused on how to drive and sustain demand from Generations X, Y and Z, whose shopping habits are strikingly different from the silent generation and baby boomers. I spoke about how WealthEngine can provide useful insights on customer segmentation and the critical importance of personalization, particularly as different generations are living on their smartphones and in the digital world. It was an outstanding session that resonated with the value proposition we can provide to companies in the luxury industry.

What is compelling to note is that these experiences within a broad range of industries and use cases provides valuable signals that further advance our data offerings. Our customers continue to use our solutions alongside of leading DMS and CRM products. Over the upcoming weeks, WealthEngine will make a few exciting announcements about our expanding relationships with Salesforce, Marketo and others.

Our product focus this month is on one of our newer offerings, On Demand Screening, a revolutionary new screening solution for websites. With this product, organizations can instantly learn the wealth of their web visitors in real-time as they interact with their site. When that person inputs their information into online web forms such as registration or donation forms, the solution screens that individual and returns their wealth data in real-time. Organizations now have increased options to improve the quality of their fundraising efforts as donors interact with them online – not months later, after the moment has passed.

In our spotlight, we shift gears slightly this quarter. While we normally focus on an individual or team within the organization, this month we decided to focus on giving back. We are consistently amazed at the incredible work that the charitable organizations we work with do for their communities. Our marketing team recently worked with one of our partners for a “day of service.” They spent an afternoon at The Children’s Inn at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD making snacks and treats for the kids and their families. While we enjoy helping our clients succeed, joining them in their cause is a rewarding opportunity that we are honored to participate in.

Over the next few weeks, we’re excited for some coming attractions and new announcements to roll out. Some of these include:

Expanded WE Customer Support and Consulting
Q2 Product Promotions
Customer Case Study Contest

Finally, I’d like to highlight that we are committed to providing you all with additional resources and content to help you meet your demands and challenges. As such, we feature best practices and industry trends within our regular blog articles, customer success stories, webinars, and free trainings. We also continue to publish thought leadership to share with our customers and prospects for free.

We are proud of the 3,000+ organizations that are part of the WealthEngine family. To compete in today’s environment, you need to maintain a full understanding of your customers. We are committed to providing the best solutions to assist you in achieving your goals. We are excited to continue our work with you on new opportunities. As always, please share any feedback with us and let us know if there are any additional topics you’d like us to touch on in future newsletters.

With regards,
Mark

What’s New at WE?

Publication | The Data-Driven Annual Fund
We have released Part 1 of this 3-part series. This workbook focuses on building a strong base for the annual fund and setting the protocols that will drive the entire process. Specific topics include conducting a data audit, data hygiene and segmentation, and developing an annual fund plan. Download Now.

Video | WE Overview
We are excited to show you a new video we produced to serve as an explainer of the WealthEngine Platform capabilities and benefits we provide to our clients. View Now.

Press Release | WealthEngine Expands Presence as the Leading B2C Wealth Data Provider in the Financial Services Industry
WealthEngine is proud to share with you the steps we have taken to position ourselves as the premier partner for all financial service institutions. Learn More.

WE Spotlight: Volunteering

As part of National Volunteer Week, the WealthEngine marketing team spent the afternoon at The Children’s Inn at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD. The Children’s Inn provides a home away from home for families with children participating in clinical trials at NIH. Each family’s stay at the Inn is free of charge. Many activities, outings, and comforts are provided including game rooms, a library, arts and crafts, and much more.

WE spent our time baking snacks and treats for all of the kids and their families. On the menu was puppy chow (aka muddy buddies), salted caramel pretzel brownies, soft pretzel bites, and PB&J roll ups. WealthEngine offers employees two days per year of volunteer time off as part of our benefits package. As a company, we believe in giving back to our communities and helping organizations achieve their missions.

The team also donated WE sunglasses to each of the kids’ “Thoughtful Treasures” mailbox. Every day, little surprises are placed in each of their boxes so they can enjoy these gifts on their way to and from their treatments.

It was a rewarding afternoon spent in the service of others. WE send our best wishes to all the children and their families as they continue through these challenging times filled with hope and courage.

Product Deep Dive – WE On Demand Screening

What if you could instantly screen your donors as they donate online so you can take immediate action?

Every day, high-potential donors and prospects visit your website and donate to your organization. The problem is that you may not know it until much later and by then, it can be too late. When donors give online, they are engaged. That engagement can fade as time passes, so it’s important to take action right away to nurture that relationship and generate deeper support.

How can I take action right away?
Maximize these opportunities with WE On Demand Screening. Instantly screen your online donors as they interact with your site by integrating your online donation process with the WE Platform.

How can WE On Demand Screening help me?
On Demand Screening lets you personalize the donor experience. As new prospects are in the process of giving online, you can learn their propensity and capacity in real-time. This enables you to personalize the rest of the online experience with that donor.

For example, depending on the capacity of the donor, you may change the default online donation options in real-time. Instead of displaying smaller donation amounts, show larger amounts you know the donor has the capacity to give.

Besides customizing donation amounts, WE On Demand Screening allows you to automate and streamline your processes. Directly route prospects from your online donation system into your donor management system. From there you can trigger a number of automated actions, such as including particular donors in email nurture campaigns or routing donors to specific teams for further action and cultivation – all based on rules and segmentation you define.

How does it work?
On Demand Screening is a turnkey solution. We deliver an integration between your online donation platform and our platform. Our team works with you to design an integration and process tailored to your organization. We also implement the integration and help you roll it out to your users. Once the rollout is complete we transfer all knowledge to your technical staff.

How do I get started?
Don’t miss out on opportunities. WE On Demand Screening provides you with vital prospect intelligence and personalization in real-time, allowing you to transform your fundraising strategies and enhance your messaging as donors interact with your site. Request more information.

A Look Ahead

Event | May 30 – June 3 | Gaylord National Harbor, MD
Jenzabar Annual Meeting (JAM) | WE are looking forward to sponsoring the annual Jenzabar conference as an integration partner and will be exhibiting in booth #19. Learn more.

Webinar | June 1, 2-3 PM ET
UFO Sightings for Nonprofit Organizations | Join us as we demonstrate how to systematically involve your development team in creating a free-flowing prospect pipeline and achieving a more sustainable fundraising model. Receive CFRE credits. Register Now.

Event | June 5 -6 | Austin, TX
Marketing Analytics Conference | WE are excited to be a Silver Sponsor of the DMA’s Marketing Analytics Conference. Join us in learning about data-driven marketing strategies. Learn More.

Webinar | June 15, 2-3 PM ET
Marketing Automation with WE: Using WealthEngine to Personalize Your Lead Nurturing | Listen as our experts discuss the seamless integration of WealthEngine with marketing automation platforms, allowing you to append wealth and attribute data to your records in your leads database. Register Now.

Event | July 26-29 | Anaheim, CA
APRA’S Prospect Development Conference | WE are proud to be a Prospect Development Partner of this annual event. You will also not want to miss our session that’s part of the Data Analytics Symposium led by our Director of Predictive Analytics, John Andrews, as he talks about – Thinking Outside the Black Box: Balancing Model Interpretability and Accuracy. Learn More.

Training
Looking for a refresher on the WealthEngine Platform? Our training team is offering free monthly sessions focused on various topics about our platform including our ratings and scores. View the topics and register.

May 16, 2017

A Nonprofit’s Guide to Running a Successful Data Engagement

Part one of this 6-part series is written by Mark Daigle and Eric White, members of the WealthEngine Professional Services Consulting team.

You know that using evidence-based metrics is the key to improving all aspects of your fundraising efforts. You recognize data is useful and can be used in decision making. But do you know what to do with the data you have? Or do you know exactly what data you have and if it’s useful?

If the answer to these questions are “no”, don’t worry. You’re not alone, and you’re not helpless. Engaging with a strategic third-party vendor can give the additional lift you need to help your fundraising take off.

Once you’ve vetted and selected the data provider of your choice and are preparing to begin your engagement with them, there are some key pieces to consider to maximize the effectiveness your project. We have compiled five areas that we suggest you and your team start thinking about as you prepare to embark on your project. For your data partner to properly execute and meet key deadlines, you should be prepared to discuss the following areas with them.

Over the upcoming weeks, we’ll dive into more detail on the topics below and lay out the process of setting up a successful data engagement step-by-step. In the meantime, here’s an outline of what’s to come:

Get the Right People on the Bus
Who are the people that need to be on board from the very beginning? Make sure to include executive leadership, development leadership, and the IT or database administrators. Everyone plays key roles at various points in the engagement. Having buy in from everyone from the beginning is key and it will also help with managing expectations. Key stakeholders should fully understand the scope, milestones, and expectations of the project. It will pay dividends later.

Work Backwards
Work backwards from the close date of your campaign to determine key deadlines. When are you going to conduct the A/B testing of your mailing campaign? When is the silent phase of the capital campaign scheduled to close? What is the deadline for submitting finalized collateral to the mail house?

The preparation, screening, and analysis of data sets takes time. Even the most straightforward data project sometimes lasts weeks or months so working backwards from fixed deadlines will ensure a successful outcome and help alleviate undue stress towards the end.

Expect Hiccups
It is inevitable that you will experience a few bumps along the way. Suppose you have diligently entered birth dates onto your CRM or DMS records. You’ve exported them into an Excel file to share with your vendor, but your vendor calls to say that some dates appear as 1/1/1900! Your colleague that manages the database is on leave. What are you going to do? How are you going to fix this without having to push back your deadlines? Things like this happen sometimes, so be prepared. Ask your vendor. They can help.

Get Your Hands Dirty
Commit to being comfortable with the unknown. We learn more effectively by doing. Your data vendor is not asking you to be a statistician, but you may be asked some questions and be tasked with some responsibilities that will require you to be willing to stretch your mind. Do yourself a favor and don’t shy away from rolling your sleeves up and getting your hands dirty. You will become a better fundraiser for it.

Enjoy the Ride
Fundraising brings with it a whole host of anxieties. Some of the old ways of operating are going to feel the safest, but they may not work. Embracing an analytical approach to fundraising can be scary, but it’s also a lot of fun. Data-driven fundraising empowers organizations to make more effective decisions that will drive their mission forward. There is nothing like the thrill of finding your OWN real life “millionaire next door.” They’re out there and you can find them by taking the right approach.

Working with a data vendor does not have to be daunting. Focusing on these five areas can help you have a successful data engagement and build a relationship with your vendor that will be beneficial for years to come.

In our next post we will dive deeper into who the right people are and the value of getting them in the room.

May 8, 2017October 1, 2018

CEO Mark Logan on Marketing to Gen X, Y, & Z

On Wednesday, May 3, our CEO, Mark Logan, joined senior executives and decision makers at the 2nd annual Luxury Roundtable hosted in New York City by Luxury Daily. The goal of the roundtable was to discuss a serious issue facing luxury marketers: how to drive and sustain demand from Generations X, Y and Z whose shopping habits are strikingly different from the silent generation and baby boomers.

Mark joined a panel of experts to discuss “Ecommerce and Mobile: Symbol of the New Path to Purchase.” The focus of their session was how to deploy online and mobile channels to generate new business while retaining existing customers for generations who live on their smartphones. Mark shared how WealthEngine can provide useful insights on customer segmentation and the critical importance of personalization.

WealthEngine has put together a useful resource to help luxury marketers use predictive analytics and modeling. You can download it here.

For more on the roundtable, including slides and other panel summaries, click here.

May 1, 2017

Why Your Nonprofit Should Consider an Independent Audit to Improve Fundraising

You know the importance of improving fundraising operations, processes, and results. This includes any investment you’ve made in wealth screening and predictive modeling, since they’re only as good as your implementation after receiving the data. So, let’s ask some questions and see if any of these might pertain to your current situation:

Are you nearing the end of your wealth intelligence contract? Do you know what steps are crucial for your ongoing success?
Are you concluding a multi-year engagement which included screening and predictive modeling and you’re wondering if you’re applying the insights correctly?
Are you struggling with making your grateful patient program as impactful as possible?
Do you have a particular pain point (or points!) and don’t know what to do next?

If you’ve answered “yes” to any – or several – of these questions, then you should consider bringing in independent counsel for a development audit.

This short, in-depth exercise can help pinpoint strengths, weaknesses and opportunities for growth in your fundraising operation, your use of wealth intelligence data and provide a roadmap of best practices and recommendations to move forward successfully. Bringing in an outside resource to conduct this audit also ensures you receive an impartial look at what your organization is working on and what can be improved. In essence, it’s getting someone else to ask the tough questions that you may not want to ask.

Once your organization has decided to undergo a development audit, look for a provider who can do a deep dive into your documentation, be present onsite to interview key stakeholders, and will provide a final, detailed written report and an overview presentation.

This kind of brief, affordable engagement can mean a world of difference in your fundraising operations and results. And, it can fine tune your investment in wealth intelligence to ensure you aren’t just purchasing a product, but an authentic solution to meet your organization’s needs.

If you are interested in improving your fundraising operations by identifying any gaps you may have, contact us about a WE Quick Audit.

Month: May 2017

A Nonprofit’s Guide to Running a Successful Data Engagement: Get the Right People on the Bus

Take Personalization Beyond Email

A Nonprofit’s Guide to Running a Successful Data Engagement

CEO Mark Logan on Marketing to Gen X, Y, & Z

Why Your Nonprofit Should Consider an Independent Audit to Improve Fundraising

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