MEDIA ADVISORY

WASHINGTON, DC (June 28, 2007) More than 1,000 nonprofit fund raisers and direct marketing professionals will discuss the most effective and innovative ways to reach donors, including best practices in online fundraising, at the 2007 Bridge to Integrated Marketing & Fundraising Conference , July 8-10, 2007, at the Hilton Washington in Washington, D.C.

Presented by the Direct Marketing Association of Washington and the Washington DC Metro Area Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals -- one of the largest and most active AFP chapters in the nation -- the 2007 Bridge Conference is supported in part by lead sponsor Convio, Inc. , a trusted partner leading the way in helping nonprofits use the Internet strategically to build strong relationships with constituents for driving fundraising, advocacy, and other forms of support.

Growth in online giving has seen a surge: $6.87 billion was donated online in the US in 2006, a 51% increase over 2005, driven by significant increases in online giving for both small and large organizations and the unprecedented use of the Internet by individuals for non-disaster and disaster support efforts.

“The Internet is fundamentally changing the way people connect with causes and is forcing organizations to re-think the traditional models for communication and fundraising,” said Gene Austin, CEO, Convio, Inc. “We are proud to work with more than 1,400 nonprofit organizations of all sizes and missions to leverage the Internet to create innovative and effective campaigns and achieve extraordinary results in marketing, fundraising, advocacy and other forms of support.”

Added Katrin Verclas, Executive Director, NTEN: The Nonprofit Technology Network: ”Overall, online giving is small but growth is steep. There is a surge of interest in philanthropy and civic engagement and people of all ages are online, presenting a huge opportunity. Generations X and M -- younger people -- are the next generation of donors. They have money and they're online. Smart nonprofit organizations that want to further their cause go to where their donors are. And they are online.”

NTEN, the membership association of nonprofit technology staff, is the educational partner of the AFP Bridge conference.

Integrating the Web with traditional direct marketing channels is one of the major themes of this year’s Bridge Conference, which will include sessions on integrating the Internet into fundraising programs and multichannel integration, presented by Vinay Bhagat, Founder, Chairman, and Chief Strategy Officer, Convio Inc., and Sheeraz Haji, President, Convio, Inc.

“To achieve meaningful and sustained growth in volunteers, donors and revenue, nonprofit organizations are changing from a campaign-centric approach to a donor-centric model,” said Bhagat. “This Constituent Relationship Management (CRM) paradigm starts with the integration of online and offline strategies to synchronize and sequence messages and communication across multiple channels, as well as personalize the supporter’s interaction with the organization to achieve maximum, sustained results.”

“Much has been said about how online organizers and fundraisers are the 'new breed'. But I believe that people who've been in direct marketing for the past 20 years have a lot to teach the online world. The challenge is how to translate tried and true skills into this new environment,” said Madeline Stanionis, CEO of the online fundraising and advocacy firm, Watershed Company, who will speak at the conference’s July 10 plenary session on multichannel marketing. “It requires a necessary shift in organizational thinking to take everything we know about how to connect people with causes and issues and apply it to all these mediums.”

About Convio

Convio is a leading provider of software and services to help nonprofits use the Internet strategically to build strong relationships with constituents for driving fundraising, advocacy and other forms of support. Convio has online solutions for fundraising, advocacy, Web content management, event fundraising, ecommerce and email communications. All solutions include the Constituent360™ platform, a sophisticated, online marketing database that centralizes constituent data and integrates with offline databases.

Convio's clients include American Red Cross, American Diabetes Association, American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, AVON Foundation, Easter Seals, National Association of REALTORS®, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Sierra Club, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, and Thirteen/WNET New York. For more information, please visit .

Press contact:

Claudia Zorn
Senior Manager Corporate Communications
V (202) 659-9397
M (703) 408-8636
czorn@convio.com

About NTEN: The Nonprofit Technology Network

NTEN aspires to a world where all nonprofit organizations skillfully and confidently use technology to meet community needs and fulfill their missions.

We are the membership organization of nonprofit technology professionals. Our members share the common goal of helping nonprofits use all aspects of technology more effectively.

We believe that technology allows nonprofits to work with greater social impact. We enable our members to strategically use technology to make the world a better, just, and equitable place.

NTEN facilitates the exchange of knowledge and information within our community. We connect our members to each other, provide professional development opportunities, educate our constituency on issues of technology use in nonprofits, and spearhead groundbreaking research, advocacy, and education on technology issues affecting our entire community. For more information, please visit www.nten.org.

Press contact:

Katrin Verclas
Executive Director
m (413) 687 9877
katrin@nten.org

About Watershed Company

Watershed is a consulting and services firm designed expressly to build, grow, and sustain relationships with constituents online. Services include online strategy development, list and community building, advocacy and cultivation, comprehensive integrated fundraising, viral and social network marketing, and analysis. Watershed clients include Working Assets, Breast Cancer Fund, True Majority, The Nation, and Defenders of Wildlife.

Press contact:

Madeline Stanionis
CEO, Watershed
Online Fundraising & Advocacy
madeline@watershedcompany.com
v (415) 814-6226
m (415) 786-1637