Top digital tips to improve digital experience

Fun memories stick with us, and we want to enjoy them over and over again. Channelling that sentiment, digital is a powerful tool to remind charity supporters how much fun they had interacting with your organisation.

 

Taking a look under the hood, we check out what makes up a memorable customer experience (CX) online. We’ll also go over tips on how to build a brilliant CX journey.

 

 

What makes a memorable digital experience?

 

Memorable digital experiences start with convenience, speed, and seamlessness. These concepts in tech terms form the CX. CX includes all the digital touch points that supporters and donors have with charities.

 

To excel at CX, charities need to make interactions quick, easy, and convenient. Relationships are at stake if CX isn’t done right. Customer Experience Magazine says that “any friction in the customer support process can undo the hard-won trust and loyalty”. Taking that to heart, charities need to create flawless digital experiences to retain supporters.

 

Charity digital experiences should be accessible to users of all abilities. While accessibility tests help to gauge what charities might need to improve on, that’s just the beginning. To make charity experiences count, charities should follow these three simple guidelines: listen to audiences, get feedback, and reduce friction.

 

Ultimately, Third Sector sums it all up neatly: “In a world where 89% of companies now compete on the basis of customer experience, charities who fail to recognise the importance of CX will surely get left behind.”

 

 

Our top tips and tricks to enhance charity experiences

 

Creating seamless experiences can be simple. Our top tips and tricks help steer you in the right direction.

 

 

Remember that first impressions matter

 

The warmth of your charity welcome emails matter. Personalisation works to create an intimate touch. Be sure to include details like name, signature, job title, and any specific details you might have collected.

 

The strategy can also help increase fundraising efforts by 44%. Getting these details right is paramount – the wrong personal details easily turns off potential donors.

 

Personalisation and emails aren’t the only keys to turning supporters into donors. The interesting ‘What makes a good digital experience for charities’ White Paper by Shout Digital says that first impressions count for a lot.

 

Since most people go to webpages for information, sites need to be optimised for mobile. Importantly, donation pages should be easy to find for both computer and mobile users.

 

 

Understand your digital touchpoints

 

Understand how you speak to your audiences. A consistent brand and message helps build relationships with audiences across multiple channels. Make sure that your language is the same across all media, including by phone, text, and social media.

 

When campaigning, use all channels for the same purpose. Behind the scenes, social media management platforms help manage digital touchpoints. They can schedule content, gather audience feedback, and help teams ensure content is consistent.

 

 

Focus on your ‘customers’

 

A great digital experience focuses on actual supporters, volunteers, and donors. These groups of people are customers in the sense that they already interact with charities.

 

Keep focused on delivering digital experiences for your known audience, rather than groups defined in the segmentation process.

 

 

Sharing on social media

 

Help your audiences spread the enthusiasm by enabling content to be shared across social media platforms. After the event, digital ‘gifts’ of photos or video clips should also be sent to participants.

 

Reward audiences for sharing their experiences online. Social media is a great tool for takeaway experiences.

 

 

Keep it simple

 

There are so many options for digital enhancement out there, but they may not work for your audiences or charity employees. To deliver a great digital experience, keep it simple. Forbes Magazine recommends speed and convenience.

 

Do away with multiple logins, products on different screens, and complicated processes to payment options.

 

 

Continually improve interactions

 

Don’t let your digital experience go stale. Keep on top of what works for your charity and what doesn’t. Evaluation tools can help drive changes to digital experiences.

 

Benchmarking in customer service areas can help your teams improve digital interactions. Use interactive content to get feedback from your own audience.

 

 

Leverage your CRM systems

 

Use your constituent relationship management systems (CRM) to uncover audience trends and preferences. Digital leaders can use captured information to make changes to donor experiences.

 

Letting donors know how their funds have made an impact makes them feel good about their donation.

 

 

Enable seamless payments

 

Accepting payments should be quick, easy, and as convenient as possible for audiences. Charities need to keep abreast of payment technology. The UK is moving away from cash and cheque towards card payments.

 

The trend opens up possibilities for mobile, tap, electronic wallets, and cryptocurrency. For charities like the NSPCC, who are already ahead of the curve, accepting new, seamless payments can increase donations.