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Social Ambassadors Part 2: The Proof
I recently wrote about the impact that Social Ambassadors can have for your organization—how this group of dedicated supporters can help expand your organization’s reach, build trust and grow your donor base.
I then ran some numbers for one of our food bank clients, the Greater Chicago Food Depository, and I knew a second blog post was in order. We recently partnered with them to launch their Social Ambassadors program and the results so far are a true testament to what a program like this can do for your organization.
Long before COVID-19, we had planned to launch their Social Ambassadors recruitment campaign framed around National Volunteer Week. Then the coronavirus hit. We regrouped and adjusted the message to reflect the importance of getting the word out during this critical time of need. The recruitment campaign was rolled out to their email house file and the response was terrific, with hundreds of people signing up in the first week.
Then came #GivingTuesdayNow on May 5 — the first big opportunity for this new circle of virtual volunteers to help.
The results speak for themselves. Here’s what we’ve seen since the Food Depository’s recruitment campaign launched on April 2:
Recruitment
Members
In less than 8 weeks, the Greater Chicago Food Depository has recruited over 800 social ambassadors!
Engagement
We sent #GivingTuesdayNow emails to the Food Depository’s new Social Ambassadors asking them to share on social media and take actions to support the campaign. The average email open rate for these sends was 50% and the click-through rate was 13%. Yes, you read that right, I didn’t forget a decimal point. This new group is highly engaged. And they were clicking through to take the actions they were asked to take—YEAH!
Now, did they actually follow through on those actions?
The Food Depository did an amazing job on social media leading up to and during the day. And we can see that their Social Ambassadors were there to help provide lift. Here’s just one example:
Just what I was hoping for — positive word of mouth for the Food Depository and an increase in social shares.
Giving
What’s more, 10% of members made a gift in response to the #GivingTuesdayNow campaign.
Also, since the group’s launch on April 2, 107 members have made their first online gift to the Food Depository — that’s 13%.
For their first big opportunity to help, the Food Depository’s Social Ambassadors performed extremely well. Now, our job is to continue to steward these ambassadors, make sure they know how appreciated they are, and keep them engaged. When the next big fundraising moment comes along, the Food Depository can call on them again!
A number of best practices went into this success. You can download this tip sheet that includes seven of them here. And if you’re interested in learning more, please contact us at info@charitydynamics.com.
Special thanks to the Greater Chicago Food Depository for allowing me to share their success. They do amazing work helping so many people (and they have a super smart team!). Follow their inspiring mission here: Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / LinkedIn / Website
