Provide Prospective Donors With Multiple Channels Through QR Codes

June 27, 2011 By David Henkel

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While interest has been high in recent years to fundraise over the Internet, a recent study found that direct mail continues to solicit the overwhelming majority of fundraising revenue. The 2011 donorCentrics Internet and Multichannel Giving Benchmarking Report also found that more new donors are giving their first gifts online but then switching to offline giving, primarily through direct mail. By renewing support via direct-mail petitions, donations may increase, according to the report.

Without doubt, donors are increasingly taking advantage of the different media channels available today, from printed material to websites to social media. As a fundraiser, it is critical to consider offering donors multiple channels for giving and interaction with your organization.

This brings us to mobile. Today’s smartphones can also serve as great connectors to your donor base. The adoption of smartphones in the U.S. continues to grow, and people are connected to the Web and social media 24 hours a day. Printed direct-mail fundraising has used website addresses to connect donors to online channels, but how can a printed piece interact with a donor’s smartphone? The answer: Quick Response (QR) codes.

Make print interactive with QR codes
You may have already heard of these two-dimensional barcodes as they have recently taken the marketing world by storm. Somewhat resembling a gray and black checkerboard, these codes are showing up in more and more places in the U.S., including magazines, billboards, business cards, product labels and in-store displays. Mobio Identity Systems Inc., a mobile payments company, reported QR code use in the last six months of 2010 increased 1,200 percent across North America.

QR codes, when scanned by a mobile device such as a smartphone, can immediately link users from printed material to online content. A QR code can be printed on a direct-mail piece sent to prospective donors or on a poster advertising a fundraising event. When a prospective donor scans the code with her smartphone, she is immediately directed to online content hosted by your organization. Powerful printed appeals are enhanced with an interactive mobile response — an immediate call to action that bridges the physical world with the virtual one. On-the-spot access to online resources can make integrated fundraising campaigns extremely effective, providing immediate access to all sorts of additional information of interest to donors, including:

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Most Recent Comments:

Jon Baldwin - Posted on June 27, 2011
QR codes and MS TAGs are also great additions to posters and POP materials. In a mailer, it's hard to imagine someone sitting at the kitchen table and scanning a code, but a quick scan at the check-out counter or on the way out of a dry-cleaner or coffee shop puts you in the browser or your participants and donors. They can bounce back to the website later, or get involved while waiting for service. It's a great way to tie the real world and virtual world together, as well as a call to action/take away to drove your funnel report.

Stephen Joos - Posted on June 27, 2011
David- Great article! I'm with mGive and we have had a handful of partners use bar/QR codes to extend their mobile engagement. We've had a great case study for Keep a Child Alive featuring celebrities like Alicia Keys, Katie Holmes, and Usher promoted in ads wearing t-shirts with unique bar codes. Smart phone users could scan the barcode from the ad/billboard/online screen with their phone and be directed to a screen where they can make a text message or credit donation. Here's the site- http://buylife.org/ Mobile Giving through text messaging is a great way to turn QR Codes into fundraising codes, as SMS is already integrated with the handset. All you need is a quick snap, the keyword and shortcode are queued up, send it and within 10 seconds, $10 is donated to a great cause. What do you think?

Jeff Schreifels - Posted on June 27, 2011
I know this is pretty new technology, but is there any testing data that QR codes increase response? While QR codes are an awesome technology, my only concern is that it will distract the donor from actually making a gift, unless the QR code directly leads them to a donation page. Has anyone conducted an A/B split test on this. PURL's are a great idea for major donors!

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Jon Baldwin - Posted on June 27, 2011
QR codes and MS TAGs are also great additions to posters and POP materials. In a mailer, it's hard to imagine someone sitting at the kitchen table and scanning a code, but a quick scan at the check-out counter or on the way out of a dry-cleaner or coffee shop puts you in the browser or your participants and donors. They can bounce back to the website later, or get involved while waiting for service. It's a great way to tie the real world and virtual world together, as well as a call to action/take away to drove your funnel report.

Stephen Joos - Posted on June 27, 2011
David- Great article! I'm with mGive and we have had a handful of partners use bar/QR codes to extend their mobile engagement. We've had a great case study for Keep a Child Alive featuring celebrities like Alicia Keys, Katie Holmes, and Usher promoted in ads wearing t-shirts with unique bar codes. Smart phone users could scan the barcode from the ad/billboard/online screen with their phone and be directed to a screen where they can make a text message or credit donation. Here's the site- http://buylife.org/ Mobile Giving through text messaging is a great way to turn QR Codes into fundraising codes, as SMS is already integrated with the handset. All you need is a quick snap, the keyword and shortcode are queued up, send it and within 10 seconds, $10 is donated to a great cause. What do you think?

Jeff Schreifels - Posted on June 27, 2011
I know this is pretty new technology, but is there any testing data that QR codes increase response? While QR codes are an awesome technology, my only concern is that it will distract the donor from actually making a gift, unless the QR code directly leads them to a donation page. Has anyone conducted an A/B split test on this. PURL's are a great idea for major donors!

Provide Prospective Donors With Multiple Channels Through QR Codes