| We Have Blast Off! |
In a recent webinar I presented about How Creative Thank Yous and an Attitude of Gratitude Can Supercharge Your Fundraising, it became apparent there’s one question many of you struggle with:
Gosh dang it! How on earth do you develop a system that assures thank you’s really get out in 48 hours?
HERE’S THE BIGGEST SECRET:
DetailsSuch great links this week. Let’s get started!
Corporate Partnerships
Click-It: Safeway Foundation: 6 Tips on How to “Partner” with a Corporation Thanks to the folks at Third Sector and guest blogger Christy Duncan Anderson, E.D. of The Safeway Foundation for this great insider perspective on the sometimes mysterious business of securing business sponsors.
DetailsI love my Agitators, I really do. I’m hoping they meant to provoke, and were really being tongue-in-cheek with their recent article. Forget About Donor-Centric is very provocative, and certainly there’s truth here. Nonprofits do seriously ramp up their fundraising activities at this time of year, and it may appear they’re thinking more about money than their donor. It’s solicitation time, not stewardship time. And “Donor Tom” (Tom Belford) tells us he understands. He reasons that at this time of year he’s going to be so bombarded by appeals that he’s not going to be thinking about building a relationship with you. He just wants to give to those he’s already given to and “escape with some spending money for Christmas presents.”
That’s exactly the perspective you don’t want your donor to have.
DetailsPhilanthropy, Not Fundraising
More than ever before nonprofit leaders must lead from vision, not mission. Why? The world is moving really, really fast. Blame it on the digital revolution if you wish. But why waste time laying blame? It is what it is. Instead, get into the 21st century. Now.
The present (what you’re doing) is nothing more than a springboard to the future (the change you’re endeavoring to bring about). That’s what folks want to invest in. Positive change.
Nonprofits have tended to forget their visions in order to justify continued existence. Sometimes founders and other leaders become too wedded to the status quo. They can’t let their babies grow up.
DetailsFree Webinar alert below… Now, on to this week’s great links…
Giving Trends
Click-it: ‘Strategic Philanthropy’ Shifts Too Much Power to Donors. This is a provocative Chronicle of Philanthropy article about the way foundations give today. Did you know that 60% of them don’t accept unsolicited proposals? The trend is towards a Madisonian approach where foundations determine which issues are meritorious vs. a more Jeffersonian approach in which nonprofits, community groups and their constituents determine where resources are most needed. On which side of the debate do you fall?
Click-it: How America Gives. This is a super-awesome interactive guide
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They like it. More than a phone call. More than a visit.
Give your donors what they like. I’m not saying you shouldn’t phone or visit them at some point. But you’re better off connecting digitally than not at all. And many donors these days will never respond to a phone call. No matter how often you keep trying.
DetailsFirst, some words:
Now… on to this week’s great links…
DetailsWant your donors to sustain you? Then you can’t consume them in five minutes.
Yet all too often nonprofits treat their donors exactly like a gumball dispensed from a machine. Chew it up. Spit it out. Done.
Oh, yeah… maybe you send a quick thanks to whoever gave you the change to buy the gum. But that’s as far as your gratitude takes you. You’re over it. You never even think about that gumball again. You probably can’t even remember what color it was. You’re off hunting down your next snack.
Little snacks are nice. But they won’t sustain you over time.
One-time donations are the same way. And they’ll stay that way – one time – if you treat them the way you treat your gumballs.
DetailsThis week’s Clairity Click-it – your eclectic array of easy to-“click-it” links to posts I’ve found thought provoking. With, of course, a few comments of my own.
Body Language
Click-it: 4 Body Language Cues You Need to Know When Networking. It’s important to remember that first impressions count. A lot. You may be unconsciously giving the wrong one. This article by Ivan Misner in Entrepreneur describes how to avoid this. I myself have to constantly remind myself not to keep my arms folded (signifying boredom or being closed off). If you’re up for the challenge, try this suggestion from Misner:
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