Perhaps you're encouraging your supporters to attend an annual dinner to honor a community member. Put all the information about the dinner and the honored person on that Web page so a visitor can either bookmark the page, print the page, or sign up on the spot. If you're expecting some people to sign up immediately, make sure your online forms and response mechanisms are fully tested and professional. Once you've put all this digital content on your Web site, you'll need to also format this material for use in email. Whereas your Web site relies on people visiting you, an email newsletter is something that you send to them.
Email is a core tool in any effective and proactive online fundraising campaign.
Combined with a postal mailing and information posted on your Web site, email will allow you to introduce your online fundraising campaign to your supporters, send regular updates on your financial goals, remind people to participate, and thank people for their support. Enlist your staff, volunteers and board in an active campaign to collect email addresses that can be added to your subscriber list. Avoid email spamming complaints by asking people's permission to be added to your email update list. The combination of publicizing your fundraising campaign through postal mailings, Web site postings, and pro-active email will assure that you're getting your message out regularly and effectively to your supporters. Michael Stein is a nationally renowned author, columnist and Internet consultant with over a decade of experience working with nonprofits, foundations, labor unions and socially responsible businesses.