TAT’s Facebook App Shows one way Non-Profits can use Digital Marketing

March 18, 2008 – 10:35 am

By Matt Clark

The New York Times and Yahoo! reported last week that Takes All Types (TAT), a new grassroots organization allowing users to register as volunteer Blood Donors and receive alerts when they are needed to donate, has launched a Facebook Application to grow its user-base.

Users opt into the program, fill out their blood type and receive alerts through Facebook when their blood type is needed in their area.

“We were reacting to our sense that most of what was on Facebook was too academic or frivolous,” Ben Bergman, co-founder, told The Times. “The whole thing was done in about three months, for about $500.”

Now I’m not sure what developers they found to build a Facebook app for only $500, but it shows the strong ROI digital marketing efforts have. When your initial investment is so small, almost any result is a win.

“Facebook provides a great viral marketing engine,” said Rich Hecker, co-founder. “Being able to leverage Facebook’s own growth and ease of virality within Facebook, we thought it was a no-brainer and the easiest way to get to market.”

Since February 2008, TAT has increased to a $1,071 app valuation according to Adonomics. The application has had strong feedback so far, and has already beaten out a competing app by roughly 1,300 members. There are about 1,640 total installs, but only 82 daily active users.

The number of daily active users spiked when the Times article came out on March 9. TAT’s PR team has gotten some great national (Yahoo! News and NY Times) and trade (TechRadar and Silicon Alley Insider) press.

To my mind, given the amount spent and the short launch time, the application is a success. But I’m not sure it will stay that way for the long run. There are a few drawbacks:

• It’s tagged wrong. The app is currently under politics and alerts. Those Facebook Tags have a low click through rate.
• It’s not engaging content. Bergman suggested that they built the app specifically because it wasn’t frivolous, because it actually had functional value. If that’s the case, though, the app must be tagged correctly. TAT should be under causes, where users go to help grass-root efforts.
• Will people really opt into a program that stores private information like blood type? There could be a security issue here that might hold it back. They should have partnered with the Red Cross (which has their own app, with over 31k members) to tap into their database and give the program more credibility.
• I have said this again and again – a Facebook app alone does not work. The TAT website itself is plain, outdated, and dead. The information is weak and there is no sign of third party credibility or other digital marketing efforts. This surprises me as Richard Hecker, partner, is a very successful entrepreneur with a lot of Web development at his disposal.

Nevertheless, this is a great example of non-profits utilizing digital marketing to increase awareness and users. It has the potential to take off (especially considering its board has strong members). An application like TAT’s could have real value, particularly in the event of a large crisis, and I hope it does well, or that someone comes in and makes a better one.