(As this email may enact changes that affect the total Wikimedia community, please feel free to forward or post this email on any and all applicable lists. I would like as much feedback as possible.)
Wikimedians--
We have begun exploring ideas for enhancing the visibility of the donate button not only within the Wikimedia main skin but also on every page of every Wikimedia project. We hope that enhancement will enable us to better informing our public that we are dependent on their donations as we promote the free and open knowledge movement.
We expect that a small change to the Wikimedia main skin will result in big returns in donations--donations we use to keep the Wikimedia movement alive and growing. I expect that in return for a bit of enhanced visibility, we will see a daily increase of up to 20% in donations.
Working with the same professional designer that worked on last year's donation page (http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Donate/Now/en), we have culled his 30+ button ideas into 6 that represent some of the better designs.
We have posted several design options for your comments and input here: http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fundraising_2009/Donation_buttons_upgrade
I would like your input and advice in figuring out both how to make this buttons look better and how to make the language around the buttons better. In addition, we are exploring adding different language underneath the Title Bar of an article.
Design is only half of this change...words are important. What are the simplest words we can use (we are aware that these changes may get translated to numerous other languages) that will convey what we want to convey? You, collectively, have proven to be amazing at using words and communicating with our users. How can we reach them?
One of these designs borrows from our look and feel from our previous campaign and another resembles the look and feel of Paypal. What do you think of those? We are curious about how look and feel associated with online payments will increase the need or opportunity to make a donation.
The objective here is to take the average Wikimedia user and get them to recognize we are a non-profit and that our future depends on their donations. How can we better show our users that we are a charity?
Again, your time and input is appreciated. To see the designs, go here: http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fundraising_2009/Donation_buttons_upgrade
-Rand
Your goal, which is to have "a small change to the Wikimedia main skin [...] result in big returns in donation" has been extensively researched in not only the academic literature but by major online advertisers such as Google. Since there are so many parameters that could potentially be tweaked the best way to proceed is a dual hypothesis and data driven approach where you experimentally tweak the user interface in order to determine, scientifically, what the best improvements are. Simply modifying a single variable will make it difficult for you to make a statistical determination of the success of the approach. Since there is a direct financial incentive doing this the correct way seems like an easy sell.
On Wed, Jun 24, 2009 at 3:22 PM, Rand Montoya rmontoya@wikimedia.orgwrote:
(As this email may enact changes that affect the total Wikimedia community, please feel free to forward or post this email on any and all applicable lists. I would like as much feedback as possible.)
Wikimedians--
We have begun exploring ideas for enhancing the visibility of the donate button not only within the Wikimedia main skin but also on every page of every Wikimedia project. We hope that enhancement will enable us to better informing our public that we are dependent on their donations as we promote the free and open knowledge movement.
We expect that a small change to the Wikimedia main skin will result in big returns in donations--donations we use to keep the Wikimedia movement alive and growing. I expect that in return for a bit of enhanced visibility, we will see a daily increase of up to 20% in donations.
Working with the same professional designer that worked on last year's donation page (http://wikimediafoundation.org/wiki/Donate/Now/en), we have culled his 30+ button ideas into 6 that represent some of the better designs.
We have posted several design options for your comments and input here: http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fundraising_2009/Donation_buttons_upgrade
I would like your input and advice in figuring out both how to make this buttons look better and how to make the language around the buttons better. In addition, we are exploring adding different language underneath the Title Bar of an article.
Design is only half of this change...words are important. What are the simplest words we can use (we are aware that these changes may get translated to numerous other languages) that will convey what we want to convey? You, collectively, have proven to be amazing at using words and communicating with our users. How can we reach them?
One of these designs borrows from our look and feel from our previous campaign and another resembles the look and feel of Paypal. What do you think of those? We are curious about how look and feel associated with online payments will increase the need or opportunity to make a donation.
The objective here is to take the average Wikimedia user and get them to recognize we are a non-profit and that our future depends on their donations. How can we better show our users that we are a charity?
Again, your time and input is appreciated. To see the designs, go here: http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fundraising_2009/Donation_buttons_upgrade
-Rand
-- Rand Montoya Head of Community Giving Wikimedia Foundation www.wikimedia.org Email: rand@wikimedia.org Phone: 415.839.6885 x615 Fax: 415.882.0495 Cell: 510.685.7030
“At some future time, I hope to have something witty, intelligent, or funny in this space.”
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2009/6/24 Rand Montoya rmontoya@wikimedia.org:
(As this email may enact changes that affect the total Wikimedia community, please feel free to forward or post this email on any and all applicable lists. I would like as much feedback as possible.)
Wikimedians--
We have begun exploring ideas for enhancing the visibility of the donate button not only within the Wikimedia main skin but also on every page of every Wikimedia project. We hope that enhancement will enable us to better informing our public that we are dependent on their donations as we promote the free and open knowledge movement.
We expect that a small change to the Wikimedia main skin will result in big returns in donations--donations we use to keep the Wikimedia movement alive and growing. I expect that in return for a bit of enhanced visibility, we will see a daily increase of up to 20% in donations.
Ever look at the classic skin? Much like what we used before monobook. Anyway the donate link is in much the same place. Little evidence of effectiveness.
Geni, I think that's a flawed argument, if I understand you correctly.
Sure, it was there before... under radically different conditions. No one can say that the editing/reading habits of users then are the same as the editing/reading habits of users now.
I like the idea of giving it a shot, and congratulate Rand and his team for some nifty looking designs.
Philippe
On Jun 24, 2009, at 4:33 PM, geni wrote:
2009/6/24 Rand Montoya rmontoya@wikimedia.org:
(As this email may enact changes that affect the total Wikimedia community, please feel free to forward or post this email on any and all applicable lists. I would like as much feedback as possible.)
Wikimedians--
We have begun exploring ideas for enhancing the visibility of the donate button not only within the Wikimedia main skin but also on every page of every Wikimedia project. We hope that enhancement will enable us to better informing our public that we are dependent on their donations as we promote the free and open knowledge movement.
We expect that a small change to the Wikimedia main skin will result in big returns in donations--donations we use to keep the Wikimedia movement alive and growing. I expect that in return for a bit of enhanced visibility, we will see a daily increase of up to 20% in donations.
Ever look at the classic skin? Much like what we used before monobook. Anyway the donate link is in much the same place. Little evidence of effectiveness.
-- geni
foundation-l mailing list foundation-l@lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/foundation-l
2009/6/24 philippe philippe.wiki@gmail.com:
Geni, I think that's a flawed argument, if I understand you correctly.
You would need to know about some wiki politics in 2006 to get it. Suffice to say the side bar suggestion didn't get very far. Of course at that point we were informed that the current anon notice was an experiment to last a few weeks so hard to object to further experiments.
On Jun 24, 2009, at 6:34 PM, geni wrote:
You would need to know about some wiki politics in 2006 to get it.
OK, so 'splain it to me? And to Rand, who wasn't here in 2006 either? :-) But let's not also negate the other part of what I wrote; these things don't exist in a vacuum. The circumstances have changed: what's the problem with giving it a go in a controlled format now?
Philippe
wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org