Help addressing fund raisers.

Hi Mary. Welcome.
To break it down, you're talking about affiliate marketing. Some affiliate marketers create nice landing pages explaining the features and benefits of the product. These pages usually contain links that point to the actual sales page of the product.

Reading your appeal here I'd say you've probably got the stuff to write a decent landing page. Without knowing much about the product perhaps a heartfelt letter to prospects would work. That's kinda what you've started out with here.

I would encourage you to be far more specific with what you write. For example, you start by saying 'global directory.' That's pretty vague. When you do this for the money you're going to want to flesh that out some. You might say, a global business directory designed to... then tell 'em what it is in detail.

You go on to mention the RDA (no idea what that means) and some other charities. Again, when you present your offer don't assume that your readers will know anything about it. It will be up to you to give them the scoop.

This is just one approach to affiliate marketing. You might also consider writing a comprehensive review of the product. And then there is article marketing...

You've got lots of options. Good luck.

Oh, you can create a Warrior Forum signature file and include your link(s) in it. That will help to use your profile to get you some exposure right away.

Hi Mary,

1. I suspect the directors of these Clubs and associations will be very receptive to your offer. These folks are always looking to enhance member value.

But I also think it will be a multi-step process. Meaning, it won't just be one sales letter. You might have to touch them as many as ten times in various ways. Maybe a video, a webinar, a podcast, maybe a voicemail blast.

You are going to have to romance the opportunity a bit. Consider it a courtship. Especially is you're targeting management of the clubs and associations.

At some point, a phone call may be necessary to cinch the deal.

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I don't know if you have the same thing in Australia, but you may want to approach Chambers of Commerce first. These are business owners who do business within a town or city.

It would be the easiest ones to approach. You might be able to do a presentation. If you do one, you can do two, three, etc...

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2. With the equine industry, that's a lot more targeted. Which is good. And what you are doing is extremely noble.

There are two ways to go about this:

1. To tell a simple, compelling and compassionate story about RDA. One that touches the heart and soul, and explains your passion. And why you're committed to this and why you think they should be committed to this too.

2. The second way is to have a particular club lead by example. Find someone you know you can close, and do it, and make them a success story. Do it "toe to toe."

Again, you are going to have touch people multiple times. Do not get dejected if they say "maybe". or "no."

It will take a little bit longer, but it's social proof and other equine clubs and such will take notice and spring board off their success--guaranteed.

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It must be serendipity, last week, I spent two hours playing guitars at a music store with a guy who owns a stable of 150 horses and a feed store. Never met him before. Man, I learned so much about horses and the business in so little time.

You horse owners one passionate bunch!

- Rick Duris

Im not sure if I am understanding your post but I think you are ultimately asking how to market affiliate products to Clubs and Associations. If this is the question, I would say offering a free video or even a cheap service to help them collect members would build a good list for you. Can email market to them from there.

One sentence in your post caught my attention tho, "To cut a long story short, An Australian company is about to launch a global directory that is much more sophisticated yet easier to use than those that exist now."

Always remember the McDonalds story with this. Plenty of places make better burgers than McDonalds but they will never compete with McDonalds. It sounds like this directory needs a much more unique sales proposition than "easier to use and more sophisticated".

Thank you gentlemen for your replies.

RDA is Riding for the Disabled and is run by volunteers for people with physical and intellectual disabilities. It's a little difficult to explain to non-horse people the benefits but if you can imagine the joy of a child that can not ambulate being able to sit on a horse's back and have all that power and freedom of movement available to them you will get the drift.

The RDA also now explores the emotional healing that takes place and has had much success with autistic children and those who have been severely abused.

There are also some people over here who work with street kids and terminally ill children with horses and these are the groups that I would like to see benefit.

The global directory is SISS business systems and if you watch the video on their home page (the link is on the top right) you will be able to understand more the concept which I have difficulty describing. I can't put the link here and hope it is OK to put their name.

It may also be an opportunity for those on the Warrior Forum with good business lists to become an affiliate in their country. It is a high risk venture and hence the returns are also high should it be successful.

I am not at liberty to divulge who some of the Global partners are as I have signed a confidentiality agreement but suffice to say that they are large International Companies that are household names so that in itself is at least one promising sign.

Thanks again for your input.

Mary

I have some experience writing for and working with non-profits, and here's your biggest obstacle:

Most non-profits are staffed by a relatively small number of dedicated volunteers. Most of those volunteers are there to contribute their efforts directly to the work at hand. So, for example, the RAD volunteers' interest lies primarily in hands-on helping with the riding sessions. NPs tend to be chronically short of people to run the nuts and bolts of their organizations.

Additionally, in my experience, most volunteer organzations are (as you've noted) pretty unsophisticated in their fund raising efforts.

For this affiliate proposition to make sense to NPs, you're going to need to target organizations that already have a web site; preferably one with a decent amount of traffic.

Further refine your list by finding out who's actively approaching businesses to solicit donations, online or offline.

Then if the NP has someone actually in charge of fund raising, contact that person directly. If not, get hold of someone on the Board.

Position the listing offer as a 'bonus' they can offer to businesses they approach for funds.

(So for example, the NP sends out an annual appeal letter to its list. Ideally, the appeal will include a sponsorship option, not just a straight donation. Business sponsors get Benefit, Benefit, Benefit, and a free listing in this directory (potentially valued at $X).)

Then, presumably, the NP makes a few bucks if the business upgrades to a paid listing.

The NPs can do a variation of this online, as well. However, if you cruise NP sites, many of them are pretty rudimentary, and don't even break out corporate or business sponsorships from their "Donate" page.

Another possible way to go about this is to lurk Facebook pages and NP-related blogs. See who's active in social media for their cause. Contact them. See steps above.

This is where your equine social networking database may be more productive for building affiliates and listings than directly contacting NPs.

In terms of contacting general Clubs and Associations, I don't think you'll have much trouble getting them to sign on as affiliates. Whether they will have the knowledge or resources to market the directory so they'll make some money...

Your best bet, in this instance would be to target business-oriented clubs that collect dues from their members (in other words, they have a coffer of working funds). Sell the Board on the affiliate idea as a way they can raise additional monies for their Working Fund. Then the Board lets the members know about the free reg as a bennie of membership, and - hopefully - the members sign on and upgrade to paid status.

I have some reservations about the directory itself (they're positioning themselves head-to-head with Google and Yahoo - that's an arena which is going to take an ungodly amount of money to compete in. See: Bing), but I'm totally in sympathy with what you're trying to do.

I volunteered with a local RAD in Connecticut, mostly severely autistic and cereberal palsy. The changes in riders - in just a few sessions - was nothing short of miraculous. So I wish you all the best in your efforts.