NTEN’s Study of Nonprofit Website Suckiness

On Tuesday, The Nonprofit Technology Network, NTEN, released a report produced by ForeSee Results called “Trends in Constituent Satisfaction with Nonprofit Websites.” This is an excellent report and should be reviewed by all nonprofit directors and technology focused employees.

Overall, the picture is pretty bleak for nonprofits. The overall satisfaction rate for nonprofit website visitors is 73 of 100. Online banking is at 83, while government sites are a 74. It’s a bad day when the government is producing better websites.

Some of the key points:

Satisfied website visitors are 49% more likely to donate
Nonprofits need to encourage more people to donate online
Visitors coming from a media story about the nonprofit were most likely to donate

What Does This Mean to Your Organization?

Well, first off, you need a website. If you don’t have a site, get one today. Period. Full Stop. I wrote a short background piece on WordPress that you might find helpful. Though originally a blogging software, WordPress has become a great Content Management System. I also discussed the use of WordPress in my Technology Startup Guide and finally in Why Your Non-Profit Needs WordPress. Using WordPress, you should be able to get a basic site up quickly.

If you currently have a website that hasn’t been updated in years, change this immediately. If a grandmother can’t find your donate button, you’re doing it wrong.

Next, your site should be heavily focused on driving donors to your online giving system. I can’t give you specific advice on how to do this for your site, but a good start is making the “Donate Now!” button prominent on your site. Next, don’t miss an opportunity to explain how donation are essential to your program. If you publish a story about your services, make sure to include links to donate from that article. Even better would be to link to a populated form with a pre-defined giving amount and a note about how that specific donation will be used. Use personal examples when asking for donations.

Finally, get in front of the media. Reach out to local interest reporters. Subscribe to Peter Shankman’s mailing list, Help A Reporter Out. Send out press releases for upcoming events. Make the job easy for reporters: provide all the necessary information for a solid, well researched story. Don’t wait for someone to call you. Be proactive with the media. Reporters always need experts for stories so make yourself available to answer questions for unrelated stories. How many local interest stories have been written about the impact of the economy on charitable giving? Were you quoted as a source? Why not?

Don’t depend on my analysis of this report. Head over to NTEN and download it yourself. I’d love to hear your comments on this report.