Next informal SIG networking event

Wednesday 4th April 2012, from 5:30pm for 6pm start

Upstairs at the Angel Pub, 73 City Road, London, EC1Y 1BD

Charities have never been in more need of good analysts. 

Experts predict a global shortfall in the supply of skilled insight practitioners against a backdrop of an [...]]]>  

Next informal SIG networking event

Wednesday 4^th April 2012, from 5:30pm for 6pm start

Upstairs at the Angel Pub, 73 City Road, London, EC1Y 1BD

Charities have never been in more need of good analysts. 

Experts predict a global shortfall in the supply of skilled insight practitioners against a backdrop of an explosion in customer data. If you’re interested to know more about how you can make the most of the career opportunities presented by this environment and what experience and skills you need to move on, do come along to our informal networking event.

Tickets cost just £5.  Book online at: http://insightnetworkingapril2012.eventbrite.co.uk/

For more information visit our events page here.

Now we [...]]]> The one thing that the SIG members ask for time and time again are best practice case studies for using data and insight in fundraising.  The new SIG awards have been launched in response to this, to generate a fresh view on what leading edge practitioners are achieving . . . and how.

Now we know that many of you won’t have entered industry awards before, so we have created a ‘Tips for Writing your Entry’ guide to help get you started.  We so often take for granted the good work that we do, day in, day out – so why not seek some recognition for the results achieved?

You’ve done the hard work and achieved some excellent results.  So here are a few reasons why it is worth making a small amount of extra effort to package up your experience and learning into an award entry:

• Industry recognition.  Not only will an award win look good on your own CV but your work will a credit to your organisation, too, underlining the value delivered from investments in fundraising and insight.  Now that will impress supporters in the Annual Report.
• Bolster internal profile.  Being unassuming is a common trait of us analytical folk, but let’s seek credit where credit is due.  Even the process of crafting an award entry will help you reflect upon your team’s intelligent approach, helping you to articulate why you have been successful and how you have contributed significantly to fundraising performance.  Won’t the investment in better insight and data capabilities be so much easier to make?
• Increase team morale and loyalty.  Winning an award will ensure your diligence and wisdom is celebrated.  Success breeds success and you will find it easier to retain key staff and attract talent into your team and the organisation.
• Best practice case studies for the industry.  Your work can help educate and inspire others, continuing to raise standards within the sector and our discipline.

  . . . and don’t forget, by preparing your entry for the SIG awards you will have the material to adapt for other industry awards that you may also wish to enter such as the Database Marketing Awards, the Data Strategy Awards, the prestigious DMAs and others.

So why not clear a few hours in your schedule and invest in drafting your SIG award entry soon?

Getting a truly accurate measure of life time value is a goal for many analysts but of course it isn’t easy.  Modeling behaviour into the future and the differing nature of recruitment channels make it tricky to create meaningful comparisons.

How can [...]]]> Networking event: Measuring lifetime value, Tuesday 27^th September, Devonshire Arms, Piccadilly, Central London.

Getting a truly accurate measure of life time value is a goal for many analysts but of course it isn’t easy.  Modeling behaviour into the future and the differing nature of recruitment channels make it tricky to create meaningful comparisons.

How can an analyst address these issues and serve up the robust numbers needed to base decisions on?

John Whitehead (Supporter Planning and Insight Manager at WaterAid) and Nigel Magson (Data Consultant) will share their views and experience.

Just as importantly, there will be plenty of time for attendees to discuss this topic and indeed any other during the evening, helped by the informal venue, light snacks and a drink or two.

Please book ahead as numbers are limited to 40 at the Devonshire Arms,Denman Street, two minutes fromPiccadilly Circustube (same venue as our last event in June)

Tickets cost just £5 and can be booked here http://insightsigseptevent.eventbrite.com

Any queries please contact Liz Cook on liz@insightsig.org.

(0782 5757209)

About the speakers

John Whitehead is Supporter Planning and Insight Manager at WaterAid.  He has worked in the charity sector for over 15 years, having previously worked for both the National Trust and John Grooms (now Livability).

Before that he worked in commercial marketing and advertising, including time at Air Miles, Evans Hunt Scott, CACI and Saatchi & Saatchi.  He is a Founding Member and Fellow of the Institute of Direct Marketing and a Member of the Institute of Fundraising.   And he likes finding stories in numbers…

Nigel Magson has spent over 20 years in the data services industry. Along the way he’s become a Fellow of both the Institute of Direct Marketing and the Chartered Institute of Marketing. Because of his special interest in not-for-profit marketing, in 2006 he co-founded the Insight special interest group as part of the Institute of Fundraising, aiming to raise standards for analysts working within the Charities sector.

Before he set up Tangible Data in 1996, he spent 10 years working for British Gas, where he managed the development of marketing databases used for direct marketing, business planning and modelling.

What is it and why is it essential?

by Nigel Magson, SIG Chairman Download

Domain’s Donor Performance Index explained

Using Domain’s DPI strategically at Open Doors charity

Analysing and reviewing individual fundraising projects or campaigns is invaluable. That is the critical start point in building knowledge about how to go about achieving the objectives of the organisation. But, what is the cumulative effect? What happens to your donors [...]]]>

Domain’s Donor Performance Index explained

Using Domain’s DPI strategically at Open Doors charity

Analysing and reviewing individual fundraising projects or campaigns is invaluable. That is the critical start point in building knowledge about how to go about achieving the objectives of the organisation. But, what is the cumulative effect? What happens to your donors over time and just how do you go about looking at the strategic perspective? How to you know what the strategic gaps and opportunities within the programme are? Part of the answer comes from examining donor’s performance over time. That means taking at donor centric view and tracking their giving patterns over time.

This sounds good in theory, but what exactly is the theory, how does it work, and how does the end result look?  In this session, we look at Domain’s Donor Performance Index as a tool for achieving the above goals, and we look at a live example of how this work was applied to charity Open Doors and what this delivered for the organisation.”

Insight 2009 Plenary: Supporter Journey

By Michelle De Souza, Age Concern/Help the Aged

Can you hold seemingly incompatible data sets of those who have given you a donation, purchased a financial product or benefited from a charitable service in the database and successfully identify synergies and capitalise on them? Having demonstrated over the last [...]]]>

Insight 2009 Plenary: Supporter Journey

By Michelle De Souza, Age Concern/Help the Aged

Can you hold seemingly incompatible data sets of those who have given you a donation, purchased a financial product or benefited from a charitable service in the database and successfully identify synergies and capitalise on them? Having demonstrated over the last 4 years that it is possible, this session discusses how the newly merged charity, Age Concern and Help the Aged, will take this strategy forward.

Amnesty case study at Insight 2009

By Ben Smith, Amnesty International and Jon Kelly. Wood for Trees

How many charity fundraisers can tell you how many active supporters they have, how many supporters have lapsed in the last year or how many new supporters they have gained in the last month? Surprisingly few.

These [...]]]>

Amnesty case study at Insight 2009

By Ben Smith, Amnesty International and Jon Kelly. Wood for Trees

How many charity fundraisers can tell you how many active supporters they have, how many supporters have lapsed in the last year or how many new supporters they have gained in the last month? Surprisingly few.

These crucial numbers are often hidden within unwieldy database systems and clouded by complicated or vague business rules which determine this information.  Over the last year Wood for Trees have worked with Amnesty in tying down these key definitions and presenting the results in a clear and concise manner, available to the whole fundraising team at the click of a button. The result is SuM (Supporter Monitor Report) – a user friendly, Excel based results dashboard.

Insight 2009 presentation on new data visualisation techniques

By Huw Davis, The Huw Davis Partnership

In this session, Huw explores best practice in visualising data, including how the value of a supporter’s social network can be viewed.  Dashboarding applications are recommended for performance reporting whilst segmentation is brought to life through creative treatment.

Presentation at Insight 2009 Conference

By Huw Davis, The Huw DavisPartnership

Understanding the effect of multi channel media on donations and donor engagement is critical in today’s marketing world. How you do this will be explained within this talk. Bringing it to life with specific examples of cost saving strategies that use both on [...]]]>

Presentation at Insight 2009 Conference

By Huw Davis, The Huw DavisPartnership

Understanding the effect of multi channel media on donations and donor engagement is critical in today’s marketing world. How you do this will be explained within this talk. Bringing it to life with specific examples of cost saving strategies that use both on and offline media.