Winter Wonderland Clairity Click-it: Nonprofit Links, Free Resources
Boo! Click-it!
Here’s a timely October Click-it to help you get ready to communicate in a donor-friendly fashion with all your supporters this fall. It’s giving and gratitude season, so grab yourself some great advice and be thankful — for the wisdom of the experts and for your donors. May the force be with you.
And don’t miss some timely October announcements below.
Donor Communication
Click-It: How MoveOn.org stupidly and avoidably lost me as a donor. Read this from Tom Ahern (who’s got some of the best advice in the business) and weep. TIP TO CONSIDER: If you aren’t sure you know how your donors prefer to be addressed, then take special care. Consider including something on your remit piece like this: “We hope we’re not addressing you too formally – or too casually. How would you like us to address you? Thanks!”
Click-It: Donor Communication Is A Life And Death Issue. On a related note, Dennis Fischman writes in #fundchat about the importance of showing your donors you know them. Literally, it can mean life and death, or love and hatred.
Click-It: 8 Great Ways to End Your Emails or Letters by Greg Warner of Market Smart offers some donor-centered closers to donor communications. Notice he always begins with the donor, and makes liberal use of the word “you.”
Donor-Centered Leadership
Click-It: Who Owns Your NonProfit? Richard Perry writes in Fundraising Success about the oft-forgotten fact that donors are the equivalent of nonprofit shareholders. Do you treat them as such? Or do you still treat them as necessary evils? As wallets? It’s time to shift your attitude towards gratitude. Donors are your center. They’re what makes your mission thrive. Reward them accordingly.
Click-It: Inspirational Leadership: Renew Your Own Passion. Here’s an interesting article by Adolfo Comer about something all fundraisers need to do a lot more of. Passion is contagious. If you’ve got it, you can spread it. If not, not so much. My favorite take-away line from this article? “Take personal responsibility for your own passion – don’t just “wait to be inspired. If inspiration doesn’t bump into you, go out and look for it. ”
Call for Submissions
Click-It: October Nonprofit Blog Carnival Call for Submissions: Tricks or Treats – How Do You Get and Sustain Major Gifts? Yours truly is host for this month’s carnival. Send in your posts about major gifts development. What works? What doesn’t? What’s new? Email your permalink to nonprofitcarnival@gmail.com by Monday, 10/27 (and tell your friends to do the same). Special credit for getting in the holiday spirit!
ANOTHER FREAKY OCTOBER SPECIAL!
I freakin’ love this month! There’s October baseball (Go Giants!), lovely weather (it’s our summer in San Francisco) and then there’s all that Halloween candy. Plus there’s the anticipation of the holidays ahead and, in the nonprofit world, all the year-end gifts about to come in. Yippee! It’s the time of year all your good work should come to fruition. So to spread my joy, this year I’m doing something new –I’m offering 10 super-discounted 4-hour COACHING PACKAGES. Buy before Halloween (or while supply lasts); then use your hours whenever.
Trust me. There’s a lot we can accomplish in 4 hours. CLICK HERE to sign-up for the Package of Power and schedule your first session. Grab your deal before they’re gone!
Image courtesy of Freedigitalphotos.net
2 Comments
Thank you, Claire … and not just because you mentioned my article kindly. This was a great wrap-up of worthwhile stuff. Richard Perry, in particular, bent my brain in exactly the right direction. I’ve been harping on for several years about “fundraising is sales, and donors are your customers.” But Richard absolutely nailed it with his “donors are the owners.”
Thank you Tom. It’s nice there are so many great writers out there from whom to get inspiration. I hope to meet you in person one day. Keep on fighting the good fight — and encouraging us with your words and wisdom.