# Rick Christ on instant messaging as a fundraising tool

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2005/01/12/rick-christ-instant-messaging-fundraising-tool/
- Published: 2005-01-12T00:00:00+00:00
- Author: Howard Lake

Don’t ignore the potential of instant messaging as an online fundraising tool argues
Rick Christ, Senior Consultant at US consultancy NPAdvisors.com, in an article for
the Association of Fundraising Professionals.
Instant Messaging (IM) and text messaging
are just as important as email as a fundraising and communications tool, says Rick
Christ in his article. Indeed, the younger the supporter, the more likely they are
to favour IM over email.

Christ quotes AOL’s second annual survey on IM which found that “half (49 percent)
of teens and young adults (ages 13-21) say they send more instant messages than 
e-mails, while only six percent of those 55 and older say they do.”

A Pew Internet and American Life Study confirmed this, finding that 46% of those
aged 18-27 use IM more frequently than email, compared to just 18% percent of those
aged 28-39.

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In light of this, Christ poses three pertinent questions:

Some questions to ponder:

 * do you and your organisation recognise that IM and mobile text messaging is rapidly
   catching up to email in usage?
 * how do you plan to capture and use IM addresses and use them as part of your 
   advocacy, communications and fundraising programmes?
 * if young people today find even email less attractive than IM, what will their
   reaction be to paper-based direct mail when they are older and able to give more?

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