At least if shouldn’t be so hard. After all, the commercial sector manages to retain 94% of their customers. Then why does the nonprofit sector only manage to retain 41%? Even worse, new nonprofit donor retention is only 19%, down from 27% in 2011. That’s abysmal. What’s going on?
Why are our for-profit brethren beating the pants off of us when it comes to retention?
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Here are some great posts, plus a bit of personal advice, to set you up for success in the coming year. It’s going to be a busy one, so may as well figure out what you should – and should not – be doing. It will make your life a lot easier and more fulfilling. Let’s get right to it!
It’s not about the money. It’s about the mission and the impact. This year-end fundraising blog post from 2013 by a recent nonprofit client of mine, One Justice, absolutely nails why we ask folks for support. It’s about what will happen if we don’t engage in fundraising.
I encourage you to read and consider the full post. For while we may be at the beginning of the calendar year, there’s no reason you can’t use the key elements of this approach year-round. It’s not just about the prose; it’s about the attitude.
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Have you made your new year’s resolutions and picked at least one thing you’ll do differently or better in 2014? Here are some great posts to set yourself up for success in the coming year.
TOP 5 Clairification articles from 2013: In case you missed any of these, here are the five articles that generated the most interest and readers over the past 12 months. Enjoy!
DetailsIn a year-end frenzy? While putting final touches on everything, consider one last thing to make your supporters – all of them – happy. What can you do? And set yourself up for success next year too. Pick one thing you’ll do differently or better. Why the heck not? To your success!
DetailsWhen should you take risks with fundraising? When you’re ready. Here’s what I mean:
What’s on your playlist for 2014? The rewarding gold standards like prospecting, asking and stewarding? Or riskier new events? Special campaigns? Extra social media? You’re to be congratulated if you’ve got innovative ideas. It shows you haven’t lost your creative spark, and you’ve got gusto and passion for what you do. Bravo! But… wait… hold on a minute…
Before you get lost in the creative process,
DetailsThis week I’ve got some provocative posts, practical posts and more actionable tips to help with your year-end fundraising (don’t miss the useful tips; they’re at the bottom). To your success!
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Today I went to research something online and ended up viewing the first entry Google gave me – which was on Wikipedia. To my delight, I ran into an awesome fundraising campaign (this is an occupational hazard with fundraisers – we actually like and admire things like pledge breaks when they’re done well)!
Here’s what I found superimposed at the top of the screen:
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Philanthropy, Not Fundraising
Are you confident your employees – all of them – are fully engaged in your mission so they don’t bungle openings to turn inquiries into interest, interest into involvement and involvement into investment? Do your workers just do their job, or do they understand their real job to be part of your greater vision-focused undertaking?
Unless you’ve created a culture of philanthropy in your organization – one where everyone who works there is fully informed and passionate about your work and the values you enact in the community – then you’re inevitably going to blow opportunities to garner vital support. Under-informed workers lead to disengaged workers. Disengaged workers lead to disengaged constituents. And here’s how it happens.
DetailsThis week it’s about the three things that will boost your year-end giving: (1) social media done well will drive awareness of your cause and the current opportunity to make an impact; (2) creative, compelling content presented in the form of a story will trigger emotions that inspire philanthropy, and (3) your user-friendly, up-to-date website will make it easy for would-be donors to connect with you, donate and then continue to stay connected – and feel good about it – over time. This week’s links will give you food for thought – plus actionable tips.
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