An experiment in gratitude

My friend Kivi Miller of Nonprofit Marketing Guide recently shared the results of her annual giving experiment.  And it’s pretty bad.

She sent $20 donations to 10 national charities online and waited to see who would thank her and how they would do it.  These were national organizations and you would think they’d have their act together for thanking donors, no matter what level of gift was given.

As you can probably guess, not many responded. By Feb 18, she had heard from only 3 organizations.  Pitiful! 

Come on folks!  No matter what size organization you work for, you should ALWAYS have time to thank a donor.  If you have lots of donors to thank, then create a system to make it more efficient for you.  Not thanking donors is a good way to lose them.  And you can’t afford that.

Every donor deserves to be thanked for every gift.  Appreciation should be expressed promptly, warmly, and sincerely.  Don’t make the donor sit and wonder if you got their gift – get a thank-you letter out to them within a couple of days.

You can read Kivi’s summary of her experiment on her blog at http://www.nonprofitmarketingguide.com/blog/2010/02/18/10-donations-3-thank-yous-7-failures-to-communicate/.

When the cat gets too big

I love days that I get to work in my office.  It gives me some quiet time to think and plan.  But today, my solitude ihas been interrupted.

Sadie is a rather large kitty and has decided that she wants to sit in my lap.  This is one of our older cats and she’s a big girl (16 pounds!).  Not only is she in my lap, but she’s purring to beat the band and insists on keeping her paw on top of my arm, making it difficult to type.  Why she isn’t upstairs pestering my daughter, I don’t know.

Now, you probably know I love my critters.  This one included.  I just don’t love her when she gets in my way. 

Which reminds me of a donor story I heard today.

My friend Lynn is an Executive Director of a good-sized organization and has a new facility manager she just hired.  He’s working out great and is followinfg her directions for keeping things clean and tidy.  There’s a long-time volunteer who also happens to be a major donor who has taken it upon himself to tell this young fellow everything he needs to know.  The only problem is that the volunteer/donor is giving the staff guy different instructions than what Lynn did.

So for Lynn, this volunteer/major donor is kind of like the cat in my lap – I love you, but don’t get in my way.  If the proverbial cat gets too big (if the volunteer/donor gets too caught up in being in charge) it can really cause problems.  Best to deal with it as soon as possible.

Lynn feels a bit caught between a rock and a hard spot. My suggestion is that she sit down with the volunteer/donor and go over the procedures for the facility and get his buy-in.  She should also let him know that she’s got the new guy well-oriented and is supporting him.  She should probably go one step further and ask the volunteer/donor to let her know if he sees things happening that he thinks needs to be addresed with the new guy.  And find a way to let the volunteer/donor know that it’s not his job to tell the new kid what to do.

This is a tough situation, trying to keep the volunteer/donor happy and engaged, but keep him out of staff business.

What would you do if it were you?  Click on the comment link and let me hear from you.

Meanwhile, I’ll see if I can convince Sadie to go find another lap!

Can unclear communication sink your ship?

Communication is key in relationships, and expecially in relationships with your donors.

You may think you’re doing a good job of keeping them informed, but are you really?

Watch this quick video and see if you can tell how unclear communication can literally sink a ship.

Sometimes you shouldn’t Ask for money

How your ears help raise money

There’s an ad in the new issue of Fundraising Success magazine that caught my eye.  It says “Listening is the new fundraising.” I don’t know about you, but I’ve known listening was important for years.

When it comes to building relationships, which is what fundraising is all about, listening is key.  

One of the most important skills you can develop as a Fundraiser is your ability to listen well.  Whether you’re talking with donors, volunteers, or co-workers, being able to hear what someone else is saying is a skill that takes a moment to learn and a long time to master.

There’s an old saying that goes “You have 2 ears and 1 mouth – use them accordingly.” It’s a nugget of wisdom that means you should listen twice as much as you talk.

Here are 8 keys to being a good listener.

1. Be patient and calm. Don’t be tapping your foot or drumming your fingers.

2. Be present in the moment. Don’t be thinking about yesterday or tomorrow.   And don’t be thinking about what you’re going to say next.

3. Focus on the person you are listening to. No multitasking.

4. Don’t let your mind wander. No mental distractions.

5. Ask questions. This is a good way to open up the conversation for the other person and give them the chance to express themselves.

6. Summarize what you’ve heard.  This is a great way to clarify. Sometimes people don’t say what they actually mean and by summarizing, you help them better verbalize their feelings and ideas.

7. Watch body language and what isn’t being said.  Listen for underlying feelings and ideas.

8. Don’t interrupt.  In fact, pause for a moment before you speak.  This will help the other person feel that you aren’t in a rush and are likely paying close attention to what they are saying.

If you are tired or stressed, it’s going to be harder to listen well and you may have to work a bit harder.   

The best way to master the skill of listening is to practice.  Spend time daily practicing these 8 keys to being a good listener and you’ll find fundraising to be an easier task.

What your donor REALLY wants

The ABCs of Relationship-Building Conversations

Last week, I met up with some friends for lunch and got a lesson in relationship-building from a 3 year-old.

We’ve met fairly regularly for the past few years and one gal usually brings her son Paul.  He’s adorable and she usually has toys to keep him busy while we chat.

I realized I had’nt seen Paul in a while when I arrived.  He’d gotten so big!  Being me, I struck up a conversation with him before I had completely said “hey” to the ladies.  Over the next 2 hours, Paul told me about his birthday and I showed him pictures of my cats.  He showed me his activity book and I helped him match shapes and colors.  By the end of lunchtime, he had crawled up in my lap and was asking if I wanted to come to his house to play.

It was so easy to connect with him and it hit me that being with donors should be that easy too.  As I thought about what made it so simple to be with Paul, I came up with these ABCs of relationship-building conversations:

A. Ask questions.  Attempt to learn all you can about the other person and what they like or don’t like.  This is how you will get to know them better.

B. Be Interested in the other person.  Be present and focused.  Don’t let your mind wander and don’t be thinking about what you’re going to say next.

C.  Care about the other person.  Be genuinely interested in them and what’s happening in their world.

What would you add to this list?  Hit the comment link and share your thoughts.

Write what your donor wants to know

Communicating with donors and prospects is critical to fundraising.  Too often, we as fundraisers write without taking our donor’s point of view into consideration.  We simply spew what we think they need to know.  And it’s not necessarily interesting to them.

Remember that your donor doesn’t understand all the acronyms and jargon of your organization.  So translate for them.  Spell things out or better, use simple terms in the first place. Make your statistics and facts meaningful to the average person.  Be sure to tell your stories in a conversational tone that is easy to read.  Write what’s interesting to your donor.

The bottom line is this:  if you want your written word to be effectively communicated, put yourself in the donor’s shoes before you write the first word and try to think about what your donor cares about.  This simple exercise will have a tremendous impact on your written communications and likely be much more compelling for your donors to read.

Put on your straw hat and head to the garden!

I love to dig in the garden.  There’s something so peaceful to me about getting my hands in the soil.  Maybe it’s the way I feel connected to the earth. 

Last night, my family and I planted most of our summer garden – squash, okra, and corn.  As I was working, it struck me how much gardening is like working with donors.  You do a lot of work that you don’t see immediate results from.  There’s a lot of cultivating involved.  Sometimes, you have to shovel manure.  But the end result is something so pure and healthy that it’s worth all the work.

So the next time you feel disgruntled about making calls or visits to donors, remember you are tilling the garden and nurturing plants.  Soon enough you will reap the harvest.

You can lead a horse to water…

You know this saying, right?  ‘You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink.’  Let me tell you, it is TRUE!!

Harley is my big ol’ Appaloosa.  He is a grouchy guy at home, but if he even thinks we might be going for a ride, his attitude improves dramatically!  He gives me no trouble at all on the trail and he usually wants to trot the whole time.  Since he’s such a big fellow, all that exercise makes him sweat.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve offered him water on the trail and he’s refused it.  I just can’t make this horse drink.

Donors can be like that too.  You can give donors every chance in the world to give, but if they aren’t interested or if the timing isn’t right, you can’t force a donation.  All you can do is keep offering them the chance to change a life.  It’s up to them to take it.

Tips for having great conversations with donors

In the world of fundraising, we know that building relationships with donors is critical.  One key skill that every good fundraiser must develop is the ability to converse effectively with others.

 

For many, meeting with and talking to donors is out of their comfort zone. If you fit this description, spend the time learning to be comfortable in your own skin when you are talking with your donors.  Practice speaking with co-workers and colleagues so that you can learn to carry on a conversation and develop your skills. 

 

When you speak with your donors, be warm and sincere, and truly interested in them.  They’ll feel more comfortable with you and the relationship will develop naturally.  People can tell when you’re forcing a smile, so be genuine.  After all, these are your donors you’re talking to – they are the people who make the work of your nonprofit organization possible!

 

 

Here are some tips for great conversations.

 

Find out what the other person is interested in. Do some research in advance if you can.  Otherwise, pay attention.  If you’re in the donor’s home or office, notice the pictures, books, and other personal items displayed.  These are usually great objects for conversation starters.

 

Ask questions. What do they like to do? What sort of things have they done in their lives? What is happening to them now? What did they do today or last weekend? Identify things about them that you can politely ask questions about. Don’t bombard the donor with questions, but ask one or two naturally as part of the conversation. You’ll learn a great deal about them when you do.

 

Listen. This is the most important part of any conversation. Pay attention to what is being said. A conversation will not go anywhere if you are too busy thinking of something else, including what you plan to say next. If you listen well, the donor’s statements will suggest questions for you to ask.

 

Allow them to do most of the talking. After all, you have two ears and one mount – use them accordingly!  Your donor will probably not realize that they did most of the talking, and you’ll get the credit for being a good conversationalist – which of course, you are!

 

Focus on the donor and be present in the moment.  If you are too busy thinking about yourself, what you look like, or what the other person might be thinking, you will miss a great deal. Developing the relationship requires you to focus on the donor.

 

Practice active listening. Part of listening is letting the other person know that you are listening. Make eye contact. Nod. Say “Yes,” “I see,” “That’s interesting,” or something similar to give them clues that you are paying attention and not thinking about something else – such as what you are going to say next.  Just be careful not to overdo it.

 

Try not to cut the person off mid-sentence. It is disrespectful to the donor. Let them finish their thoughts before you speak up.

 

Practice having conversations with ease and before you know it, you’ll be building strong relationships with all your donors!

Find out what your donors are thinking

Do you know what your donors are thinking?  Or what they want from their relationship with you?

It’s easy to find out.

A simple donor survey can help you learn what’s on your donors’ minds and what they’re interested in.  Here are some tips for creating an effective survey.

• Plan your survey.  Be clear about what it is you want to find out.  This will help you hone in on the most important questions.
• Keep it short and simple.  Remember that donors are busy people and won’t take the time to complete a long survey.  I recommend 10 questions or less.
• Use a variety of questions (a mixture of simple answer, multiple choice, and fill in the blank).

My favorite survey tool is Survey Monkey (www.surveymonkey.com).  It’s easy to use and offers a free version.  You create a survey then email your donors the link.

I used Survey Monkey with a client recently to find out what donors thought about their enewsletter.  The survey featured only seven questions and we were able to learn that we needed to rework the format a little bit.  The result was a more effective enewsletter that donors were more likely to read.  Cool huh?

Stellar Donor Communications

I spoke to my local chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals last week about stellar donor communications practices.  Here are a few tips I shared.

1. Communication is a 2-way street.  Always give your donor the chance to contact you.  In practical terms, this means including a contact name, phone number, and email in your newsletter, thank you letters, etc.
2. Intersperce communication among appeals.  If all you do is send out letters asking for money, pretty soon donors will stop opening the mail.  Send them something every now and again that simply thanks them or informs them about how their donations are being used.
3. Tailor your message to your audience.  Make it interesting to them, not you.  Be sure to put yourself in your donors’ shoes and think about what they are interested in.  It’s probably not the same things you are interested in.

Above all, tell the stories of the people whose lives you are changing.  People love human-interest stories. That’s why newspapers sell.  Keep telling your stories and you’ll keep your donors engaged and giving.

What aggravates donors?

My friend Marc Pitman at the Extreme Fundraising Blog recently did a survey on LinkedIn to find out what annoys donors. I think he got more response than he was expecting!

There’s some very eye-opening stuff there and I encourage everyone to read the responses and take them to heart. See what you can learn from these frustrated donors to help YOUR donors have a better experience with you.

Check it out at http://www.linkedin.com/answers/non-profit/non-profit-fundraising/NNP_FUN/301654-8616660.

My visit to Jackson, Mississippi

I had the pleasure of speaking to the AFP chapter in Jackson, Mississippi recently.  I love being with other fundraisers!  There’s such a bond through common challenges and successes.  I love hearing what others are doing and getting ideas from them.  (This helps me keep from reinventing the wheel!)

In my presentation, I focused on going back to the basics.  With the economy being a bit tight for many people, it’s smart to make sure you are taking care of your current donors.  It’s cheaper to keep an existing donor than to go get a new donor.

Here are a few of the tips I shared with the group in my presentation:

- Provide your donors with a good experience.  It’s likely that they are supporting other organizations and if you do a better job of customer service, you’ll stand out in the donor’s mind.

- Pay attention to the details.  Make sure you spell the donor’s name correctly.  Send the thank you letter to the person who made the gift.  Use the proper salutation.

- Acknowledge gifts promptly and sincerely.  Change your thank you letter regularly (monthly is ideal!). Get creative about ways you can acknowledge and thank donors and it will help build a valuable relationship with the donor.

This is me and two of my new friends: Julia Daily and Marilyn Blackledge.  Julia is the Program Chair for the Chapter and the Executive Director of the Mississippi Crafts Center.  I got to see her organization while I was there and it was very cool!  Marilyn is the Chapter President and Director of Development for the Mississippi Food Network.  That’s a cause that’s very near and dear to my heart.

Know why your donors give

Understanding why people give is essential to being a successful fundraiser.

Let me tell you something – giving is very emotionally based. Donors feel sympathy, empathy, guilt, or some other emotion when they donate. Knowing which emotion triggers donations to your organization can help you be more effective in fundraising. You can create marketing materials and campaigns to evoke those emotions to raise more money from established donors and attract new ones as well.

Giving is an emotional act.

Don’t make the mistake of thinking that your donor gives simply for the tax deduction. Donors give because they want to make a difference, because they want to give back, or for any number of other reasons. Tax deductions aren’t usually the top reason for giving.

Get to know your donors and why they give.  It will help you build those all-important relationships with them.

This tip is from Fundraising Buffet.  Get your copy at http://www.sandyrees.com/ebook.html.

Take the Donor-Centric Pledge

Here’s a great piece I got recently from Tom Ahern.

Raise your right hand. Repeat after me…

We, [fill in the name of your nonprofit organization here], believe:¦

1.  That donors are essential to the success of our mission.

2.  That gifts are not “cash transactions.” Donors are not merely a bunch of interchangeable, easily replaceable credit cards, checkbooks and wallets.

3.  That no one “owes” us a gift just because our mission is worthy.

4.  That any person who chooses to become our donor has enormous potential to assist the mission.

5. That having a program for developing a relationship with that donor is how organizations tap that enormous potential.

6. That we waste that potential when donors are not promptly thanked.

7. That “lifetime value of a donor” is the best (though often overlooked) way to evaluate “return on investment” in fundraising.

8. That donors are more important than donations. Those who currently make small gifts are just as interesting to us as those who currently make large gifts.

9.  That acquiring first-time donors is easy but keeping those donors is hard.

10.  That many first-time gifts are no more than “impulse purchases” or “first dates.”

11.  That you’ll have to work harder for the second gift than you did for the first.

12.  That a prerequisite for above-average donor retention is a well-planned donor-centric communications program that begins with a welcome.

13.  That donors want to have faith in us, and that it’s our fault if they don’t.

14.  That donors want to make a difference in the world — and that our mission is one of many means to that end.

15.  That donors are investors. They invest in doing good. They expect their investment to prosper, or they’ll invest somewhere else.

16.  That we earn the donor’s trust by reporting on our accomplishments and efficiency.

17.  That individual donors respond to our appeals for personal reasons we can only guess at.

18.  That asking a donor why she or he gave a first gift to us will likely lead to a amazingly revealing conversation.

19.  That fundraising serves the donors’ emotional needs as much as it serves the organization’s financial needs.

20.  That we are in the “feel good” business. Donors feel good when they help make the world a better place.

21.  That a prime goal of fundraising communications is to satisfy basic human needs such as the donor’s need to feel important and worthwhile.

22.  That the donor’s perspective defines what is a “major” gift.

23.  That every first gift can open a door to an entirely new world for the donor, through participation in our cause.

Excerpted from Keep Your Donors, by Simone Joyaux and Tom Ahern, published in Nov. 2007 by Wiley/AFP.

Get the volunteer/donor experience!

I spent most of today working on a Habitat house.  It was GREAT!  We got the house prepped for siding and apparently there’s a big group coming tomorrow to do that.  Everyone today was pleasant and cheerful, and even though the weather threatened rain the whole day, it was lots of fun.

I thought about the 10 or so folks who were there volunteering with me.  Some were retired, others were using a day off from work to be there.  How cool that people value the mission of Habitat so much that they were willing to be there all day working on that house?  Of course, from what I saw, the volunteers got lots of benefit from the experience.  Several of us learned a new skill and made new friends.  Some were hanging out with old friends (I could tell from the laughter and joking!).  In the end, we were all there to do something for someone else.

If you don’t volunteer for another organization, you need to.  Likewise, you need to be a donor to another organization.  These experiences will help you offer a better experience to your own donors and volunteers.

Leave an “easy-to-hear” voice mail message

How many times have you or I tried to listen to voice mail messages and had to play them multiple times to get the whole thing or pick out the number?  Don’t make your donors work that hard to listen to a message from you.

Here are some tips for leaving an “easy to hear” voice mail message:

1. Speak slowly and clearly so that your message can be easily understood.

2. Say your name at the beginning and end of the message.

3. If you leave a call-back number, say it slowly, then repeat it.  If your listener is scrambling for a pen or paper, this will give them a little extra time.

4. Don’t ramble.  Rehearse your message in your mind before you place the call, just in case you have to leave a message.

5. Stand up or lift your eyebrows when you’re on the phone.  It lifts the tome of your voice and can help you seem more positive to the person on the other end.  Nothing’s worse than a message that sounds like the caller is on their deathbed or couldn’t care less.

6.  Be friendly and personable.  No need to be all formal.  After all, you’re all about building relationships with your donors, right?

Give your donors a great experience

Here’s a powerful way to keep your donors happy – give them a great experience.

Make everything about donating to your organization easy and fulfilling.  Treat your donors warmly and with respect.  Take the time to talk with them and get to know them.  It goes a LONG way and can make all the difference in the world when it comes to successful fundraising!!

I had an experience with an organization recently that could have been much different if the staff had just made a little effort.  It’s an animal rescue organization and I had talked with the Executive Director a couple of years ago about possibly being on their Board.  I asked her to give me a little more info about what they expect from their Board members.  I never heard back from her.  I was quite puzzled and never figured it out.   Then out of the blue, I got an email newsletter from them this week.  I responded to a request for foster parents in the newsletter and I got a very short, stale answer from the same woman.

I’m really disappointed.  It would be so easy for me to pour my heart and soul into this organization had she connected with me on a personal level.  Why was it so hard for her to treat me like a person?  She could have taken two seconds to make her email to me a little more friendly.  Now, I’m not feeling too warm and fuzzy about helping them.

You want to know the saddest part?  This is the third organization to treat me this way in the past few years.  I could be paranoid and think that it’s about me, but I know too many people who have had similar experiences.

So, by giving your donors, volunteers, prospects, and anyone who could help your organization a good experience with you, you can come out way ahead.  Think about it this way:  you never know how valuable someone can be to your organization, so treat everyone as if they have the potential to be your biggest donor.

You never know… one day they just might be!

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