Flickr Photo: mwboeckmannThe Chronicle of Philanthropy ran a provocatively titled piece last Friday: Is Direct Mail Dead? Kudos to them for two things:

1. They correctly identify that simply switching to email fundraising isn't much of a strategy shift. Email IS direct mail in all but name and processed trees.

2. They quote Seth Godin in the story.  Seth's one of my favorite daily reads. He hits it out of the park when he says that the times have changed and nonprofits need to rethink how they raise funds:

“It means opening yourself up to volunteers, encouraging them to network, to connect with each other, and yes, even to mutiny. It means giving every one of your professionals a blog and the freedom to use it. It means mixing it up with volunteers, so they have something truly at stake,” Mr. Godin writes. “This is understandably scary for many nonprofits, but I’m not so sure you have a choice.”

John Kenyon, Nonprofit Technology Specialist

In her recent report for the Overbrook Foundation, Allison Fine quotes a grantee who expresses what many think about emerging Web 2.0 tools: "I think I'm missing something really big, but I don’t know what it is or how to find out what it is." If you or your colleagues feel the same way, take heart.

Every day, organizations find new ways to bring their stories to life through digital media and the internet. There is brave new world emerging where users generate content. New ways of engaging and interacting with information are being created, new communities are being formed based on personal interests and affiliations, and digital media is being used to tell stories.