Trees... lights... snowflakes... bows... glitter... sparkle... with holiday decorating in full swing, it's tempting to give your year-end appeals a similar treatment.
Yet your dusting of holiday cheer runs the risk of hiding your important, urgent, passionate message, and distracting people from the task at hand - their contribution to your organization.
The greatest revenue is almost always delivered through bold, simple design, accompanied by direct, clear, action-oriented messages.
Go crazy decorating the world... but keep your fundraising streamlined and targeted.
Year-end e-appeals are already appearing. While we know at minimum, you want to send two emails before Christmas and two after, we also know that some organizations will send 10+ e-appeals before the New Year begins.
What's right for you organization? Consider your limits.
Your limit = the tolerance of the people on your list. Exceed your limit, they will unsubscribe, and you will lose your ability to communicate with them through e-mail. Your limit is based on two things:
1) The strength of your brand. The more valued and beloved your organization is in the community it serves, and the more passionate people feel, the more they will be willing to accept (and respond to) multiple appeals from you.
2) Your own online generosity. In the online space, you want to give more than you ask. Organizations that also deliver communications that add value to people's lives, can send more fundraising emails because people will be less likely to want to disconnect from the value they receive year-round.
While you might think that Cyber Monday is built for retailers, and Giving Tuesday is built for nonprofits... these are simply fake constructs created to drive action - now.
While Giving Tuesday will be the clear choice for most organizations, "It's Giving Tuesday, and today is the perfect day to support our cause...." we offer an alternate option.
Send your email out today, get ahead of the crowd, and build even greater feelings of pride and connection through a subtle anti-consumerism message. "Let us suggest a different way to use your credit card today - to create a whole world of good...." or "Wrap up Cyber Monday with a gift that keeps on giving... a contribution...."
People feel pleasure no matter when or how they give. But your communications are responsible for setting up the strength and leaning of these emotions. For some, it will be a far more memorable experience to contribute today, when they aren't supposed to, than to contribute tomorrow when they are.
To delve a little further...
Cyber Monday is ubiquitous, recognized as a "thing" by most Americans. Giving Tuesday, not so much - yet.
Cyber Monday boasts increased online activity all day long (fish where the fish are), PLUS credit cards already out of wallets, ready to be used - overcoming a huge barrier to giving - the simple hassle of getting the credit card out.
Cyber Monday is about spending money - what's another $50 or $100 for a good cause when you're already shopping, shopping, shopping. Giving Tuesday is the morning after, when you've had time to realize how much you actually spent yesterday.
Give it a whirl. By now, your organization should be able to turn around a fundraising email in less than a day. If you can't, you'll want to put that at the top of your Santa Wish List for the year to come.
What's your best lead for year-end giving? A reminder about tax deductions?
We don't think so. While there's no real hard evidence to prove it, this is our thinking.
Consider first, the fact that less than fifty percent of Americans itemize their taxes. Of course, the itemization rate increases as income goes up, but it's not wise to assume that all of your donors have large incomes. People in lower income brackets actually tend to contribute a greater percentage of their income to charity than people in higher brackets.
Then consider the people you are likely to reach at this time of the year.
The procrastinator: This person is well aware of your organization... they are aware of tax deadlines... they may even already have a list of organizations they plan to contribute to at year-end. Yet they haven't found their perfect moment to sit down and take action. Your regular presence in their mailbox or in-box is the best way to win them over to action. But they need to be reminded not of the pesky stuff like taxes, but rather about why your organization is important and deserving of action.
The planner: This person does care about tax deductions and probably already has a plan in their head about how much they intend to contribute at year-end. Your goal here is to convince them that your organization belongs on the list. Possibly your goal is to be even more convincing, and get them to give more than they had originally planned. The tax deduction case then, is also not your best lead here.
The lover: This person loves what your organization does, probably supports you already, and feels great about the world in this "season of giving." They're walking around with a do-good spirit, just waiting to make a difference. Your powerful, passionate, and emotional case can inspire them to do more. Your reminder about tax deductions will probably leave them feeling flat.
The tester: This person knows about your organization, maybe follows you on social media and receives your emails. But they have yet to support your organization. They still need to be convinced, which means that you need to make a strong case for the power of their gift, and the importance of your goals and deadlines, then follow with the tax reminder as an added benefit.
Now is a good time to double-check your year-end efforts before they hit mailboxes and in-boxes in the weeks ahead.
ARE YOU PERSONAL? People connect with and contribute to people. "You's" and "I's" should fill your communications rather than the more formal "our supporters" and "we's."
ARE YOU TARGETED? This isn't the time for an "everything but the kitchen sink" story about all you do. Build your communication around one key message. Stick close to your theme and develop it well.
DO YOU ASK FOR THE MONEY? Ask directly, succinctly and with power. Ask more than once. Don't ask questions (will you consider a gift?) or be less than assured (we hope you will contribute). Be bold: Your support right now is vital to the future. Make your important contribution today.
Up next: Your hook. How heavy should you go with tax and deadline messages?
Successful fundraising, marketing and PR pitches have one thing in common: FOCUS.
Here's a simple trick to help you build a focused story.
1) Get out a piece of paper.
2) Write "The End" on it.
3) Just above "The End," write your final sentence - your story's defining idea.
Now, begin your story, and point everything you write towards that end.Stay focused!
Consider the platforms available on which to raise funds.
On-air has power because it involves human faces and voices making a direct, heartfelt appeal. Direct mail has power because it is personal, and has a physical presence. And then there's online - with our ubiquitous "Donate Now" buttons in the top corner - that nut we can't quite seem to crack.
Here's what we know: On the average day, the vast majority of people who come to your site do not come with the intent to donate - just as the person who turns on their TV or radio in the morning is not expecting to be persuaded by a fundraising pitch, and the person who opens the mailbox is not expecting a letter from your organization.
And yet they give.
So why aren't we converting more people to donors online?
Perhaps we haven't caught up
with the power of the online platform to inspire action.
Think about it like this: You wouldn't ever simply put a "donate now"
button up in the corner of the TV screen and actually expect it to
deliver results. And you wouldn't simply send a reply form in an envelope
without taking the opportunity to enclose a personal letter sharing why support is important.
Yet this is what the vast majority of our online fundraising does.
What's there to catch attention? What's there to inspire? Where's the human pitch? Where's the personal appeal?
- What if you started simple, and made more of your donate button real estate. Add a short, powerful slogan like, "You keep this alive" or "Your support is critical" for example.
- What if you added a video of a recognizable person from your organization making a powerful appeal for why funds matter -- and you linked to it from multiple pages.
- What if you created your own set of bold advertising buttons and banners and changed their content to match each section of your site.
- What if you built and launched an actual online campaign that uses many of these techniques and more, and lasts for a week or two.
It can be done with imagination and bold action..
He was raised in the theater, sitting in boxes at the ballet. Being a restless child, he quickly grew bored with the familiarity of the dances and chose instead to watch the audiences. To see when they smiled and gasped, when the women sighed and when the men began to nod off.
So perhaps it is not terribly surprising that now, many years later, he still has more interest in the audience than in the performance itself. Though the performance must be spectacular in order to coerce the best reactions.
And because he is incapable of observing the faces of every audience member at every performance of every show, he relies on the reviews.
--From The Night Circus by Erin Morganstern
Reviews = results. This is our reality. What kind of performance are you putting on?
1) Clean, readable copy with short paragraphs.
2) Simple, crisp design. (Photos often depress response. Know how they perform for you.)
3) One focused theme and message. This isn't about everything your organization does.
4) More than one ask on each page. Always an ask at the bottom.
5) A P.S. with a strong ask.
6) Strong use of indents, underline and bold to move the reader's eye to key messages.
7) A readable font that says "important."
8) The appropriate signer (always one signer only.)
9) Make it personal. Use "I" and "you" often.
10) A clean reply form that's simple to fill out, with proper coding to record your responses.
This week's model of awesomeness is KYUK Public Media from Bethel, Alaska, a tiny station that serves 56 villages on the edge of the tundra, 300 miles from the nearest road. It truly is a place like no other, and the station is a lifeline to the the world for the people of the region.
So why the awesomeness?
For their fall fundraiser, they dared to set one of the largest goals in their history and they went for it all out, with 100% enthusiasm. Incredibly, they reached their stretch goal of $20,000 ahead of schedule.
How did they do it? They made their fundraiser completely theirs. They made it about their community. They made it passionate and fun, and it worked.
It started with their first ever "Village Showdown" - won by the people of Kwethluk - that pitted village against village for total donations, for the chance to win live coverage of a men's and women's high school basketball game, a big thing in Alaska.
And then there was the grand prize - Alaska Airlines tickets and miles, of course, plus a half cord of pre-split wood donated by the village of Napaimute, already drying and waiting for pick-up by the lucky winner. As one of their facebook fans noted, "that's better than money in the dead of winter!"
Would this work anywhere else in the country? Probably not. But that's the brilliance of it.
It only had to work for them. And it did.
Here's general manager Mike Martz's heartfelt post-drive note to the community.
Bravo for thinking big KYUK!
Earlier this week, we shared a Freakonomics podcast, that for fundraisers, is 30 minutes of time well spent. Find it here.
For us, it inspired this:
We ask for money because it works. Why do we spend so much time trying to figure out how to ask less?
We work in a business that's largely based on conventional wisdom, habits and tradition. How can we get out of this box more often?
Giving isn't pure altruism. It's about enlightened self-interest... the warm glow... sometimes even guilt, social pressure and benefits. Why do we fight this?
Think about it.
One of my favorite places is a small wildlife refuge not far from my home.
It's closed because of the government shutdown.
While I'm certainly disappointed that I can't be out there during these final glorious days before the weather turns, of interest to this conversation, is what's happening in my mind's eye.
I can't stop picturing how no one is peeking up into the secret branch where the little owl naps... no one is reaching down to pick up the fuzzy caterpillars that venture onto the paths this time of year... that the eagles, egrets and wide-eyed deer remain unspotted amongst the grass and trees.
While we wouldn't wish this scenario on any organization, it's a good time to step back and think about how - without the drama of actually closing up shop - you can assure that what people see in their mind's eye are images that allow them to take ownership of who you are and what you stand for.
It's about delivering experiences that resonate... communicating in a way that's personal and compelling... telling the human story of why this matters to people.
It's mostly about helping people find their way towards the place where they truly believe "this is mine," and they're willing to foster and protect it.
1) BEGIN WITH COMMUNITY
Speak directly to your community. It could be a place, or it could be a state of mind. Find the elements of your community that rise to the surface and meet most powerfully with the values and sensibility of your organization.
2) FIND THE BIG IDEA
Commit to the one overarching idea that your work represents. This is not what you do, this is WHY you do it.Can you put it in one sentence? Can you say it in five words? Drill down to the essence.
3) EXECUTE PRECISELY
Words... ideas... images... personality. As you build out your big idea and engage with your community, everyone who touches communications inside your organization (this is most everyone), must speak and act with one cohesive voice.
It's the easiest thing in the world to do... to convince ourselves that we have all the answers because of our own life experiences. When it comes to communications, this is a dangerous place to be. Here's why:
- You are not your target audience.
- The knowledge you think you have is not as valuable as actual evidence of human behavior and results.
- You can't change things effectively without understanding how they got to be this way in the first place.
Listen... learn... understand... then act.
Here in the community where we live, Nike founder Phil Knight caused quite a stir over the weekend with a very public and dramatic announcement of a $500 million challenge gift for cancer research.
A news article can be found here.
This is not only an incredible statement on how he and his wife value the work of the organization they've chosen to support with such a groundbreaking gift... but it also speaks to the power of an organization with a vision... an organization that isn't afraid to dream big... an organization that is confident and unfailingly honest about what it will take to successfully accomplish the work it has set out to do.
Sure, $500 million isn't what every organization needs to fulfill it's potential. But what amount would transform your organization's ability to do more? What steps can you take to put a value on the impact your organization can create? And what steps will you take to set about making it happen?
To build a great marketing or fundraising program is to balance two competing sensibilities:
1) Question everything. Constantly.
2) Move forward. Confidently.
You need both, but one will always want to prevail.
Too much questioning - you risk becoming frozen.
Too much confidence - you risk missing the mark.
Be aware. Embrace the conflict. Walk the line.
One of the best things you can do before you begin to craft your next campaign is pick up the phone and call five or ten of your supporters.
Thank them for what they do, ask them what they most appreciate, treasure, or love about your organization, and engage them in an actual conversation.
Your job: LISTEN.
Listen to what they say. Listen to how they say it. Hear what's most important to them.
Write it down. In their words.
Chances are, the way they speak is the way you should sound in your campaigns to build a greater connection and deeper sense of meaning that will inspire greater giving.
There's no doubt that incentives (t-shirts, tote bags, bookmarks, benefit events...) are an important fundraising tool.
However, when incentives automatically become your "go-to" technique every time you launch a campaign, it's an indication that:
A) Your organization has become addicted to the boost in results an incentive can provide, or
B) You've run out of compelling messages.
In the case of the former, overuse of incentives will stop working over time and will negatively impact your retention rate. However, this situation can be difficult to unwind on your own.
In the case of the latter- get busy!
Start making lists to refresh your thinking:
10 awesome things your organization does
10 reasons someone should care
10 ways your organization makes a difference
Etc.
Then bring these fresh, important ideas into your campaigns.
Incentives may get you that extra point, but mission is what will get you across the goal line consistently time after time.
"Who" is your organization?
The scrappy startup? The underdog? A major force? A champion?
Are you under threat? Or leading the charge?
Are you for something? Or against something?
While your organization can be all of these things in different times and circumstances, when it comes to campaign development, a keen focus on bringing out just one element of your personality can deliver powerful results.
Behind every contribution is a motivation.
Motivations come from feelings:
Responsibility - opportunity - taking a stand
Motivations come from perceived outcomes:
Keeping it strong - building something bigger - becoming a part of it
Fortunately, people tend to respond to these motivations based on their age.
Older = It's our responsibility to keep it strong
Middle (boomer) = It's our opportunity to build something bigger
Younger = Stand behind it, get involved
Consider how these motivations will appear in your next campaign. Focus in on just one to build the strongest appeal.
In the big funnel of fundraising, we often spend much of our focus on how many prospects we turn into donors.
There's also the issue of speed - how quickly we can funnel people from interested person into committed donor.
When speed is the focus, communication is the priority.
Speedy donor conversion comes from building an engaging experience... connecting early and often... and creating a collaborative marketing and fundraising program that brings high visibility to your appeals.
More donors faster goes far beyond just asking more. It's a commitment to connection.
Unlike direct mail, which can be held up for a day or two in a busy post office, you have ultimate control over when to send your emails.
A recent article in the Chronicle of Philanthropy reports that Tuesday
is the most lucrative day for online giving, while Thursday sports the
highest average gift, and Monday, the highest number of gifts. Weekends are decidedly lackluster. Additionally, 60% of online giving occurs during workday hours.
So should we all just start sending emails out on Tuesdays at 10am?
Not necessarily, because email doesn't stand alone. Other fundraising efforts still drive the majority of online giving.
Instead, combine this data with what you know about your own program and the other initiatives you have in play, in order to make the best choices for your situation.
Always keep in mind that email is there and gone in the blink of an eye. The more informed your strategy is, the better chance you have to generate traction.
As several more athletes recently got caught up in doping violations that made the finish line just a little easier for them to reach, it's a good time to note that in fundraising, there is no performance-enhancing drug.
Long-term success in our race can only be found in doing the work... learning... creating... putting your campaign in the race... collecting the results... learning more... and doing it again and again.
This is how a program builds, improves, and creates the traction and loyalty that generates solid, increasing net revenue.
Your easy, sure-fire idea simply won't work if you haven't built a strong foundation of messaging and technique over time.
And when the time comes that you actually need to sprint to the finish to fill a funding gap or avoid a fiscal crisis, it's only your foundation of solid work that will ensure that your supporters will come along with you to help you finish that final homestretch with success.
Chances are, other organizations do similar work, and your marketing and fundraising efforts target many of the same people.
Success often comes in helping people see how your organization is special and distinct.
It's not likely to be found in what you do.
It's more likely to be found in how you do it, where you do it, or who you serve.
This is a great summer exercise. Gather some colleagues, have this conversation, then turn your answers into copy and campaigns that truly set your organization apart from the rest.
On any given day, a multitude of people could be delivering a message about your organization. Do you know what they're saying?
Whether it's your board... volunteers... donors... your customer service team... organization staff... telemarketers... event partners, and more....These people have a passion for your organization. They want to talk about you. And they're more than willing to fill in the details if they haven't received them from you.
Here's what you can do:
Launch a new habit of sharing key messages and developments with all stakeholders on a regular basis, either annually, semi-annually, or at the launch of important campaigns.
Make it a priority.
Make it part of your process.
Make it simple to absorb, easy to get behind, and specific to their needs.
When people feel that they're an important part of your communications team - when they feel informed and inspired - when they know not only what you want them to say, but why you want them to say it - they can help keep your message strong and targeted out in your community.
Great fundraising spins your story in a multitude of ways across the year.
But the foundation of true effectiveness is repetition.
Repetition of ideas. Repetition of phrases and slogans. Repetition of techniques.
Your story builds emotion and connection. Your repetition delivers the power that drives action.
How many times have you written that sentence? Said that catch phrase? Are you tired of it?
That's exactly how you want to feel.
You can use repetition effectively by mapping out your organization's key ideas, words and phrases onto a one-sheet and using them every time you write.
Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.
If yours is the kind of organization that cares about your brand, and prefers that people interact with you on your own website, you may see things like Kickstarter as a threat to the way you want to do business.
However, at this point, it seems fairly certain that online cause and project fundraising is here to stay. So what do you do? Jump in!
Why? First, the downside risk is actually very slim. Second, it's likely that there are far more people clicking around on big social media and crowd funding sites than on your website. And third, unless you try, you'll never know the answers to questions like these:
- Will some of your fans be more inspired by a special project than they are by your traditional fundraising appeals?
- Will this bring new donors to your organization?
- Could this bring your current supporters even closer because they get to participate in something very concrete - something that becomes their own?
- Are these gifts sustainable over the long-term?
- Does it matter if they're sustainable, or is there something else going on here too?
Yesterday, I ran across a Nature Conservancy facebook post that led to this page for their "Plant A Billion Trees" campaign. The execution isn't perfect. The video could have been more compelling and less traditional. The copy could have done a better job connecting me, here in Oregon, with that threatened forest very far away. Also, there's a bit of a disconnect between the dollar-a-tree idea... the billion trees planted idea... and the fact that the goal for this particular campaign is only $10,000.
But still it's there. They took the plunge. They're out in the world with it. Their brand isn't wrecked. They haven't lost all control. They will make money. Only time will tell whether it was worth it in the end, but at least they'll know.
That's how intelligence is gathered. That's how change happens.
Lindsay Benedict has a passion for nonprofits, and we're very fortunate she's chosen to join LKA as administrative coordinator.
Lindsay has worked in a variety of capacities with nonprofit organizations, from event planning and volunteer coordination to financial analysis and project management. Most notably, she has experience as the program coordinator for a grassroots urban land conservation initiative; as the conference coordinator for the North Carolina Natural Products Association; and as a volunteer board member with Living Yoga.
Says Lindsay, "I'm thrilled to have this opportunity to help support LKA and the growth and development of the organizations we work with."
Since moving to Portland in 2008 from Asheville, North Carolina, she spends her time doing many of the things that make Portland such a wonderful place to call home: biking around the city, hiking with her dog, exploring the Oregon coast, and singing in an all-girl rock band. She volunteers teaching yoga and meditation in prison with a local nonprofit called Living Yoga, and says she couldn't imagine a day without yoga.
Welcome Lindsay!
Once again, we watched telemarketing receive a bad rap in the 50 Worst Charities list that came out last week. Of course, the tactics employed by those firms, and by some of the charities themselves, should absolutely be called out, criticized and halted because of their deceit and clear breach of ethics.
For many nonprofits however, telemarketing, when employed strategically and properly, can be an incredibly effective technique. In fact, the vast majority of the best fundraising programs include elements of telemarketing, because it works. It's a great opportunity to engage one-on-one with your donors. It's personal and powerful.
As you explore the world of telemarketing, here are some ways to be diligent about your efforts:
- Before you begin, check out more than one company. Ask for references.
- Ask for results including contact rate, typical cost per dollar raised, average gift, credit card rates and typical fulfillment rates. Results vary widely by industry. It's best to receive results for organizations that are similar to yours.
- Ask for prices. With the exclusion of a possible small start-up fee, you should pay only by the
hour or by the contact. Nonprofit telemarketing should never involve any
sort of up-front calling with back-end profit sharing, or
commission-based fees.
- Ask some leading, open-ended questions to determine competence and initiative. What's working best for you right now? What changes and challenges are you seeing? How are incentives working these days? Etc.
- Ask to listen in on some calls to gauge style and sound. If you work in Montana for example, an urban-sounding call center in Los Angeles might not be for you. Additionally, some call centers tend to be urgent, some alarmist, some passionate, and some matter-of-fact. You're looking for the one that suits the style of the fundraising you do and/or the campaign you plan to launch.
- Find out who your account manager will be. You want someone who is experienced, and can add value to your partnership, someone you can trust to take quick action, and someone who has the ability to effectively relay your instructions and decisions to the callers who work on your behalf.
- Monitor... monitor... monitor. Once your campaign is launched, it's critical to monitor your results on a daily basis and adjust as needed. Certain segments of your file may perform differently. A script may not be quite locked in. An ask may be too high or too low. Successful telemarketing takes focused attention all throughout the campaign.
This is true.
Two organizations.
One city.
Similar missions.
Strategic decisions are made.
Organization A gains in relevance, impact and revenue.
Organization B slips in relevance, impact and revenue.
Then this: Organization B starts to use Organization A's brand color in its online campaigns. Even more boldly, Organization B uses a recognizable tagline from Organization A in a fundraising appeal.
Happenstance? Unlikely.
Unethical? Sneaky? Perhaps simply unimaginative? Definitely not cool.
An interesting mental exercise nonetheless.
What would you do if you worked for Organization A?
What if you worked for Organization B?
Yesterday, the Tampa Bay Times published a list of America's 50 worst charities. These are organizations that dedicate 10% - and many times far less - of their revenue to the actual cause they say they support. At the same time, the Susan G. Komen Foundation was under fire for its $684,000 CEO salary, even as they cancel some of their popular fundraising events.
What this means to you is that it's ever more likely that your organization will be questioned.
Are you prepared?
- Do
you know where you stand with the watchdog organizations like Guidestar and Charity Navigator? Even if you
don't agree 100% with their methods or conclusions, it's important to
keep an eye on what's being said about your organization, because at
least some of your prospective donors will use these resources.
- Does
everyone in a communications role at your organization have complete and
understandable information and talking points about your business model? This includes
your front line customer service staff.
- Have
you set protocols for who can answer certain kinds of questions and at
what point people should be sent further up the flagpole?
- Is someone at your organization actually assigned to keep this information current and top of mind?
Your public reputation is everything. And it's up to you to protect it.
Granted, the organizations mentioned above have some serious answering to do, and it appears that some of them should even no longer be in business. But assuming that yours is on the up and up, then it's critical to approach your communications with knowledge and preparation, particularly in times when you don't control the conversation.
Scrambling around searching for information and creating talking points on the fly is exactly when mistakes are made. It's a risky way to treat the reputation of your organization. Take the opportunity now to be prepared.
Over the past decade or so, the idea that generations respond differently to language and technique has become widely accepted. The most successful organizations have, among other things, targeted their messages on different platforms, to speak directly to the generation most likely to engage.
We all know that the main subsistence of nearly every nonprofit organization comes from the Boomers and beyond, with Gen Xers in the wings as they slog through the expensive child-rearing and college years. Yet we still keep our eye on those elusive Millennials - on what our marketing and fundraising world might look like in 10 or 20 years.
As the mother of a Millennial about to enter college, Time Magazine's recent issue, titled "The ME ME ME Generation," (not freely available online) intrigued me. Of course, there's the traditional talk about trophies for every achievement, incessant self portraits posted to facebook, and the seeming inability to grow up and move away from home.
Then there was this: They're nice, and they're positive. "They want new experiences, which are more important to them than material goods. They are cool and reserved and not all that passionate. They are informed but inactive: they hate Joseph Kony but aren't going to do anything about Joseph Kony."
It could be called lazy, and many have called it just that. But as I read through the article, practical was actually the word that came to mind. It seems perhaps, that to connect with this generation - those18 to thirty-somethings - it's not heart on your sleeve. It's not about a grand vision for the future. It's not about vehement opposition to wrongs or daring solutions to issues.
It's somehow a simpler, gentler appeal for good - for a more concrete way they can make the world a better place. Practical.
Now if we can only figure out how we're going to reach them when the post office stops delivering mail, and they completely stop reading email (which they have nearly done already)....
Your renewal mail - and accompanying email - is the workhorse of your program. Steady. Reliable. Predictable. Focused on building a habit of annual giving in your supporters.
On a month-to-month basis, your goal is to set it and forget it. However, at least once a year, it's important to put a critical eye to the effort.
First, start with your data. Look at how performance is tracking, overall and by effort. If your response rate or average gift is slipping compared to last year, it may be time to refresh some or all of your series. But be sure you understand your data fully, because some slippage in your mail response could simply be people migrating to online giving. Check that out before you change something that doesn't need to be changed.
Here are a few ways to think about your series:
- Do the letters feel and look like they belong together?
Particularly for the donors who don't respond early, your goal is to
build on each effort as they continue to receive your appeals month
after month.
- Do your letters increase in urgency as the series progresses? You want
the beginning to be more inspirational about the organization and
practical about the membership ask, and the end to be more urgent about
the membership ask and more pointed about the organization and your member's role in it.
- Is your copy fine tuned? Key words, phrases and messaging will naturally evolve at an organization over the course of time. Have your renewals kept up? Do you need to refresh the language either to stay with your organization, or be more compelling to your donors?
- Do you change up signers to build drama and a little difference?
- Does every letter have a powerful P.S. with an additional ask?
- Are at least one or two of your envelopes slightly different - with a teaser or different color of ink to catch the eye in the mail?
Renewal mail is an incredibly important element in a successful fundraising program. Take the time to make it work for you. (And don't forget the accompanying e-renewals too!)
Whether it's visionary or practical, casual or formal, your mission statement is important. It represents your principles and is the foundation for the work you do.
Mission statements are about aspiration.
Communication is about action.
Effective
communication takes the big ideas in your mission and puts a
fresh new spin on the story of your organization to encourage someone to find out more... click the link... share information... purchase something... attend an event... donate... etc.
Action-driven communication is all about "now," "how, "why." It's active, it's lively, it's human. It's about stories, descriptions, and finding many ways to talk about what you do and why it matters.
Think of it like this. Your mission statement bottles the pure essence of your organization into one powerful compact package. Your communications pops the cap off and sets it free.
Next time you're tempted to say, "Our mission is...," challenge yourself to explore a different, more engaging way to share that idea. It will have more impact.
The Agitator beat us to it, but we think this is great too.
It's Google's new One Today app for Android.
Why is it great? It's unlikely that it will ever raise big bucks for any of the featured organizations... and it isn't sustainable revenue at just one dollar a pop.
It's actually about habit.
One of our esteemed colleagues, an analyst at Target Analytics, has a theory that one reason we see shrinking donor pools these days is because we're no longer a church-going culture. And it doesn't have anything to do with religion, values or morals. It's about the passing of the offering plate each week - about people growing up surrounded by habitual giving - about it being a part of their lives.
This app has the potential to be a habit-developer for the next generation. And that's a good thing.
From an organizational point of view - that's really what great donor retention is - developing the habit of giving, fostered by the great communications and solicitation work you do year round.
In a well-done brochure, the targeted words and carefully-chosen images tell a visible and compelling story that makes us all feel fantastic about what we do. So why are we still stuck with plain old fundraising letters and emails?
Great fundraising is fundamentally a person-to-person activity. One person asks another person for money.
A brochure isn't "from" anyone. And it isn't "to" anyone. While it may open a door, or spark some deeper feeling, it will rarely succeed in directly raising funds, because no one is actually doing the asking, which makes it easy to say no.
Great fundraising also allows the prospective donor to paint a picture in their own mind that resonates personally.
A brochure is your story, not theirs. Perhaps your piece is filled with images of kids that remind them of the noisy kids down the block. Or perhaps it has stunning photos of bears and coyotes, but they love birds. You get the picture.
If they can't put themselves in your picture, they'll remain a rational observer rather than an engaged participant. While brochures can play an important role in branding and awareness-building, it can be risky to build actual revenue expectations around them.
