Sometimes major donors give less than the previous year. Sometimes they stop giving to you entirely. What’s the worst sin committed by fundraisers when this happens? Not noticing. What’s the second worst sin? Assuming it has nothing to do with you. Sure, sometimes donors’ priorities change. Or some of their money goes to an emergency…
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This Thursday folks in the United States will celebrate what I consider to be the social benefit sector holiday of the year.
So it’s time for my annual Thanks(for)Giving post!
Just think about what ‘Thanksgiving’ means.
Literally, it’s a day for giving thanks for the blessings given to us.
Who, and what, do you count among yours?
I’ve noted when we go around the table at my family Thanksgivings, saying what we’re grateful for, most folks respond with people-based answers. Yes, gratitude for the feast in front of us is mentioned, yet what folks are most grateful for are caring friends, loving family, embracing community, and simply for being together sharing the warmth of good company. This year, with parts of the world completely unbalanced by barbaric acts of war, extreme poverty, and a spreading global divide teetering on the edge between democracy and autocracy, giving thanks may seem like a stretch. Which is why leaning into your connections with people, and all the good things you share with them, are more important than ever.
But not all connections are around a Thanksgiving table with family and friends.
A lot of connections for nonprofit workers are with donors, volunteers, clients and co-workers.
Gratitude in the social benefit sector extends to all the people working to restore balance and repair our world. It’s difficult work, to be sure. Rather than fall prey to doom casting, tears and hand wringing, let’s take a moment to breathe deeply and welcome gratitude into our hearts. And let’s extend that gratitude to the people who care (including yourself). As Margaret Mead famously said: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed individuals can change the world. In fact, it’s the only thing that ever has.”
This year Giving Tuesday is November 28th. So, soon.
If you’ve not done so already, now is a good time to think about whether or not you want to jump on the bandwagon and, if so, how. There is more than one way to slice this particular piece of pie. And, really, that’s what Giving Tuesday is – just one piece of your total annual fundraising strategy.
You don’t want to blow it out of proportion. But you probably don’t want to ignore it. Rather, plan ahead to put it into a context where it will complement your other year-end communications and fundraising strategies.
Let’s take a closer look.
What is Giving Tuesday?
I confess I’ve been a bit of an apologist for the “holiday.” I like to turn the tables by actually giving to donors, rather than asking them to give yet one more time during this busiest fundraising time of the year.
Plus, I often say if you want gifts, you must give them. What better time to do so than on giving Tuesday?
Of course, asking can also be a form of giving. So, I love appeals on this date that give people the option of giving money or supporting you in other ways (e.g., volunteering; in-kind donating; advocating, etc.).
It’s all philanthropy (aka “love of humanity”).
You likely collect a lot of data in your donor database, but is it really valuable to you? It’s not if you just let it sit there, rarely lo at it, and never run reports based on data that will help you with meaningful donor segmentation for appeals. And by that, I mean meaningful from…
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As explored in Part 1 of this 2-part series, small to mid-sized organizations are uniquely capable of creating a sense of community, even family. This is what people yearn for. And it gives you a secret advantage when it comes to nurturing the relationships essential to developing and sustaining a strong mid-level and major gifts…
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If you’re a small to medium-sized organization or movement, especially if you’re local, you’ve got an unfair advantage over your larger compatriots in the social benefit sector. Perhaps you’ve never loed at it this way. Perhaps you fret about not being able to compete with the behemoths. Perhaps you’ve been waiting to hire a major…
DetailsI firmly believe part of the role of a philanthropy facilitator is to foster both individual and community well-being. You must both: (1) focus inward, as you can’t help others unless you first help yourself, and (2) focus on the way you connect with others. What you say, What you do, and, most important, How…
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It’s been a rough decade thus far, beginning with a pandemic out there killing people. And then the hurricanes, fires, floods and earthquakes killing people. Not to mention the genocides, autocracies, global and domestic terrorists killing people. The list, unfortunately, goes inexorably on.
What can your nonprofit organization do to offer a remedy?
Kill ‘ em with kindness.
I’m talking about your supporters, of course.
In order for people to do good they have to feel good.
Seriously, philanthropy takes energy. It takes the ability to step out of one’s day-to-day grind and think about someone, or something, else. And it’s more difficult than usual for folks to find this generous space right now.
You can help.
I often say “If you want gifts you must give them.”
Maya Angelou says “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.
Let’s talk about what you can give – as nonprofit staff and board members — to create happier supporters.
Notice a lot of folks saying “This has been a bad year?” People can use a bit of cheer. They’re tired of doom and gloom.
Remember when “random acts of kindness” was a thing? People would buy a coffee for the person behind them in line. Or they’d pay the bridge toll for the next car. Their reward was simply imagining the unexpected delight their gift would give to someone that day. Ever have it happen to you? Ever try it?
Now’s your chance!
I’d like to suggest practicing some creative planned (seemingly random, but not really) acts of kindness.
Something to bring your donors and volunteers a bit of good cheer. It can be as simple as letting them know what they did to change someone’s life for the better. Or it can be a modest, human gesture showing them how grateful you are for their support. This is something you can have fun with. And the rewards will be huge, both for you and your donors.
A couple of years ago I wrote about 4 Strategies to Listen so Others Will Talk, noting the secret to building authentic relationships is to use your two ears and one mouth in that proportion.
It’s a good start, but there’s more.
You can’t just listen passively.
Active listening, supported by powerful, succinct, to-the-point generative questions – that’s what will draw you and your donor (or anyone with whom you’re in relationship) closer together.
But not all active listening is created equal. And you may think you’re actively listening, when really you’ve listened for a hot minute; then gone down your own rabbit hole of reality.
In that rabbit hole, you become the narrator. It thus becomes your story, not the donor’s.
Uh, oh.
Today we’ll explore how to draw your donor out so you truly hear their voice and sense their emotions, not your own.
This is something I value, as an outsider looking in.
I’m not good at it.
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I’m a huge Seth Godin fan, always in awe of the plethora of wisdom he manages to pack into one pithy post. I save them up, building a collection I can draw upon for inspiration as life, personal and professional, pushes in.
Recently I looked back at What’s in the box? The point of the post is to make us question our quest for perfection and all the needless worrying we put into imagining everything that can possibly go wrong. Godin encourages us to worry less; just open the box and see what’s in it. Good to consider. Yet this presumes there’s a filled box to be opened.
When we’re in reactive or firefighter mode, we must open the box. The contents must be dealt with, generally with some urgency. So, definitely, perfectionism gets in the way. There’s simply no time for it! But, what about when we’re in proactive mode, building our own projects?
Filling and delivering it! This means coming up with useful, delightful, meaningful content your recipient will consider a true gift. Once you’ve got a nicely filled box — a good gift — it’s time to deliver so the donor’s “feel good” can begin. Alas, this is where the concept of “done enough” vs. “overdone” can rear its ugly head.
Imagine This: You plan to send some cookies to your college sophomore. You make a batch of gorgeous macarons. Then you worry they’re too fancy. The next day, before putting them in a shipping box, you decide to add some chocolate chip since they’re ‘safe’. The next day you decide, as long as you’re bothering to ship these, you’ll add some brownies and oatmeal because then there’s some to share with roommates. The next day you realize it’s almost Valentine’s Day, so they’ll probably expect some heart-shaped sugar cookies. Now you’re getting into the “project-ness” of this endeavor, and decide you’ll make a few more kinds so it’ll be a really spectacular presentation! Great fun, yes… but, what has happened to the macarons by the end of the week?
While it’s true sometimes things are not ready for prime time, the reverse is also true.
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