# Charity websites good on content but not donor engagement, say Dotmailer

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2009/01/21/charity-websites-good-content-not-donor-engagement-say-dotmailer/
- Published: 2009-01-21T11:25:19+00:00
- Author: Howard Lake

**Digital marketing agency dotMailer has analysed the websites of 15 major charities
and found that, while many follow best practice in terms of design and content, 
most fail to capitalise on the opportunities of building a loyal online visitor 
base.**

As a result, dotMailer says that the charities “are failing to put their website
at the centre of a wider digital marketing strategy and neglecting donor contact
and up sell opportunities”.

The benchmark study, Hitting the Heart, is published today. It details the 15 charity
websites against 26 best practice criteria, awarding each a total score out of 100.

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Cancer Research UK leads the index with a score of 81% followed by Save the Children(
80%), Action for Blind People (79.5%) and British Heart Foundation (79.5%).

Homepages generally scored good marks overall for design, layout and clarity of 
message with high average scores in particular for putting key messages above the
fold (78%), fresh content (78%) and easy-to-use search (100%).

However, only one in three of the charities assessed managed to score over 70%, 
with Crime Concern at the bottom of the table with 47.5%.

Where charities scored low was in the important areas of collecting permission based
email signups and contact data, encouraging existing donors to give more, and in
following donations up with relationship building emails. The report reveals that“
not one single charity surveyed” scored a point for sending a follow-up email campaigns
to donors within 30 days of the transaction.

Dave Ivy, Creative Director at dotMailer said: “Our study identified several key
areas in which charities should focus on making changes, such as providing up-to-
date content that engages visitors, working harder to capture permission-based email
signups, and using more intelligent web content and email follow-up to engage and
upgrade prospects to donors and turn existing donors into repeat givers.”

The full report and a whitepaper based on this benchmark study are available for
free download in return for agreeing to be contacted by dotMailer.

The document contains best practice advice for all website owners and include top
tips and practical examples from dotMailer’s team of specialists who work with charities
such as Fairtrade Foundation, Cancer Research UK and WaterAid.

www.dotmailer.com/hittingtheheart

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