Say it again

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.

The wild world of fundraising online

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.

Welcome Lindsay!

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!

Telemarketing can work for you

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.

A case study in choice

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?

In the line of fire

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.

The next generation

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)....

Renewal check!

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!)