“The more you download, the more we donate” –fairsharemusic.com

Across the pond, UK music website fairsharemusic donates 50% of profits from downloaded tracks to a charity of your choice. Songs are priced at rates similar to other downloading sites like iTunes and Amazon MP3. All you do is create an account, choose a charity, and download. We like the sound of that!

Can this idea be incorporated to benefit your organization? Could you run a campaign (short or long-term) with a music label to donate part earnings to your cause? What about partnering with a musician beyond the level of spokesperson and have proceeds, from an album or song, donated to your foundation?

And go beyond the music realm to collaborate with industries looking to differentiate themselves from their competitors.  Offering consumers ‘feel-good’ purchases is a formula where everyone wins.

(Source: National Post Business)

Is the fear of failing hampering your organization from innovating? Many organizations tend to become more rigid as they grow, minimizing risk to avoid making ‘mistakes’.

But remember:

There is no such thing as perfect. If a culture of perfection is prevalent within your organization, you are doing more harm than good. Innovative success seldom occurs without failure. Experiments in various fields have failure built into them so that all possible wrongs can be cancelled to achieve the desired right. And sometimes a surprise outcome may exceed your expectations. But none of this will happen if failure in the work-flow is discouraged. Don’t cling to the past because it’s how you’ve always done it. Try something new and if you fail, learn, modify, build, and grow.

There is no such thing as failure. Failing is perspective. Failures are just stepping stones toward getting it right. But if you don’t step out and take that risk, you will never move forward. So welcome it, build it into your culture, and encourage more risk taking.

“There is no failure. Only feedback.” ~ Robert Allen

Is email part of your strategy and how big a role does it play? Are your emails relevant? Does your audience find them engaging or are they losing interest and tuning out?

Here are four tips for your email campaigns:

Personalize your Hello:

Use the recipient’s name. Addressing a recipient personally is a simple touch that is more likely to get him/her to read and respond to your email.

Focus your Message:

Keep it short and keep it focused. A concise subject line increases the likelihood of your email being opened. If it’s an e-blast, have one clear message. If it’s an e-newsletter, keep your blurbs to the point. Include your focus in the first few lines of the email/blurbs with links to more information.

The recipient goes through a ton of emails in a day. A focused email makes it easier to grasp the message for those who skim-read.

Call to Action:

Make your call to action stand out. Make links and directions noticeable.

Monitor your Campaign Statistics:

Analyze stats provided by your email marketing service to assess your success and tweak your campaign accordingly.

Also, check your Sender Score, a measurement used by ISPs to determine whether your email makes it into an inbox, junk mail, or not at all. A ReturnPath study determined that 83% of the time sender reputation determines whether an email reaches an inbox. Find your Sender Score at www.SenderScore.org.

We came across the RockCorps movement on the Haft2Know blog and we’re singing its praises. 4 hours of volunteering in your community = 1 ticket to a concert. That’s music to our ears.

The RockCorps movement was founded in 2005, offering volunteers tickets to big-name gigs across the US. Then, in 2008, the organization partnered with Orange to bring their movement to the UK and has now spread to France and Israel. Orange directly funds the program and provides the communications campaigns.

Thus far, over 60,000 people have volunteered through RockCorps, with more than 450 charity and non-profits. Is your organization part of the movement?

What incentives do you offer your volunteers? We’d love to hear from you.

Need some extra funds to launch your organization’s next big campaign? If your non-profit is registered in the US, let Pepsi know about your idea and win funding. [Come on, Canadian corporations! Get on board!]

Pepsi is giving over $20 million through the end of this year to individuals, businesses and non-profits working to better their communities. It’s a popular trend in which corporations use social media to get people involved in giving back to social issues while marketing their product to wider audiences. Recent campaigns include the Starbucks Love Project and Disney’s Give a Day, Get a Disney Day promotion.

It’s great when businesses give back to their communities and we encourage non-profits to take advantage of opportunities to create partnerships with corporations.

Here’s one way: visit the Pepsi Refresh Project website, submit your idea, promote it through your networks to gather votes, and let us know when you win.

Good luck!

As companies buy letters, ABC shows their appreciation on twitter and then tweets a call-out to their supporter’s competition.

“Thanks BC Honda Dealers purchasing the letter ‘B’. Where are you Toyota and Hyundai?” Feb 10th

“Thanks to HarperCollins for purchasing the letter H. Luckily P is still available Penguin.” Feb 10th

Organizations have been picking up letters, including the CBC [C], Scotiabank [S], and Tim Hortons [T] but there are still a few up for grab.

What we like about this?

• This is a creative twist on a really simple idea. The building blocks for words formed the foundation for this campaign. The next time you’re brainstorming campaigns for your organization, start by thinking small…really basic. Then build on your simple idea.

• There’s an element of competition and playfulness woven through this campaign. We especially like the gentle “taunts” that were tweeted. Don’t forget to have fun with your campaigns!

The Jack and Jill Children’s Foundation runs a campaign to raise funds by recycling old tech devices (mobile phones, digital cameras, computers, laptops, monitors, printers, CDs, DVDs, cables and ink cartridges).

Send the foundation your old items free of charge. Items are refurbished and sent to developing countries while those beyond repair are recycled. A percentage of sales is given to the foundation, which uses the funds to provide care to families with children with developmental needs.

200 old phones = one month’s nursing care for one family.

20,000 phones = a nurse for one sick child for one year.

Their Phones for Boards campaign teams up with schools to install Interactive Whiteboards in classrooms for a donation of 300/500 old mobile phones.

The nationwide media campaign was so successful they made it into the Guinness Book of World Records for the most phones collected.

What can you do?

• This campaign serves two causes in a simple and complementary way: recycling and health care.  Complementing one cause with another extends the reach and appeal of your campaign. So be creative when thinking of collaborative ideas that will complement your fundraising drive.

• Donors were able to raise funds at no cost to them, essentially allowing them to make a difference for ‘free’ and encouraging greater numbers to participate in the campaign. So think beyond direct monetary donations and consider incorporating ‘free’ into your fundraising ideas.

Guoman Hotels of London has created a unique cocktail collection with 100% of profits donated to their charity partners.

Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants run numerous programs focusing on social responsibility through their Kimpton Cares program. These include the Red Ribbon initiative for HIV organizations, EarthCare, and partnerships with The Nature Conservancy and The Trust for Public Land.  Employees at their Chicago hotel, Hotel Burnham, partnered with the Bear Necessities Pediatric Cancer Foundation of Chicago, wearing pins that said “Ask Me Why I Wear the Bear” to raise money for the foundation.

Sage Hospitality Hotels offers a Give a Day, Get a Night special to guests who complete eight hours of volunteer service with a non-profit organization. The incentive includes 50% off the room rate, or a complimentary night.

Is your non-profit taking advantage of collaborations in the Hospitality and Tourism industry? Talk to us about how your organization can check-in on some creative partnerships.