Nonprofit Organizations Committee Thought Leadership

Nonprofit marketers are rethinking growth as influencer marketing, donor integration, and federal compliance reshape the sector. Shifting regulations and new fundraising models could fundamentally alter how organizations build audiences and sustain revenue.

During a February 12, 2026 meeting of the ANA’s Nonprofit Organizations Committee, GoFundMe.org and GivingTuesday unveiled new research on how peer to peer fundraising is shifting donor behavior, expanding audience reach, and driving new growth opportunities for nonprofits.

Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs) are the fastest growing segment of philanthropy, but most organizations lack a proactive, collaborative strategy to maximize DAF giving. Alzheimer's Association and Chariot shared how a unified approach can unlock transformational outcomes.

Elyse Wallnutt, founder and principal at Agility Lab Consulting, provided a clear understanding of global privacy trends and how they may impact nonprofit data strategy at a high level. Wallnutt also shared a practical checklist and insights to build awareness and review current data tools from a risk perspective to increase effectiveness in marketing and fundraising.

During a session at a June 2025 joint Brand Purpose and Relationship Marketing Committee meeting, United Way discussed its brand strategy refresh.

U.S. Postal Service and Colorado State University presented newly commissioned academic research analyzing direct marketing’s effectiveness across multiple dimensions — qualitative interviews, large-scale surveys, and field experiments — with a focus on ROI, customer lifetime value, and its role within omnichannel strategies.

Visit California shared how its marketing and communications strategies are brought to life with phased messaging and a strong digital push across its programs.

During a session at an ANA Brand Purpose committee meeting, The American Parkinson’s Disease Association shared the impact of its purposeful partnership with Havas Lynx New York.

Influencers are becoming a larger and larger part of brands’ marketing mixes, and nonprofits, too, are capitalizing on this still-new channel. At an October 2024 meeting of the ANA Nonprofit Organizations Committee, the audience received advice for how to capitalize on this powerful marketing resource from Moore's Misti Dragano.

During a session held at a May 2024 meeting of the ANA’s Nonprofit Organization Committee, audience members received recommendations on the use of technology and audience targeting (among other topics) from Jeffery Owens, territorial director of marketing at The Salvation Army USA, Western Territory.

Nathan Miller of Merkle reviewed the latest trends in AI, such as generative AI, and discussed the use cases and implications of using these technologies for business applications.

Wiland shared a brief overview of cookies, including their significance in digital marketing and the new identity markers that will replace them in the data world.

Truth Initiative shared a series of case studies demonstrating how it partnered with brands to fight tobacco use.

The Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation shared how it developed a PSA campaign and restroom finder app to destigmatize and support people suffering from Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis.

Epsilon explored different donor segments nonprofits can target to stay afloat in the face of an impending recession.

Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta shared the benefits and the process of humanizing a brand.

The law firm Copilevitz, Lam & Raney examined the changes to online fundraising that will take place once a new California law goes into effect in January of 2023.

World Vision's Hilary Reynolds shared how her organization mobilized a multi-tiered, omnichannel campaign to promote its disaster relief efforts in Ukraine and surrounding nations. The aim was to provide critical resources to women and children displaced by the war.

In the coming years, cybercrime will continue to grow. Learn what your role as a data steward can be in avoiding becoming another cybercrime statistic and stopping these situations from occurring.

In this session, learn why data from all sources must be in one place, in its native state, clean, associated, current, and trusted by the organization in order to win on constituent experience (CX) and optimize outreach efforts.