Donors
Articles with advice for improving ministries' interactions with donors. (Donor retention, growth, regaining, identifying needs, etc.)
Regret. What is it? The dictionary defines it as: a feeling of disappointment or distress about something that one wishes could be different.
It that’s the case—disappointment over something we wish could be different—here’s the question: will we have regret in heaven? Will we wish something could be different?
Hey, heaven’s supposed to be the perfect place. No more crying. No more tears. The end of the suffering life. We’ll be with the eternal God and experiencing life in all its fullness. We’ve finally made it back to Eden. Right?
Certainly, here in this life we’ll experience regret. It may be the loss...
posted @ Friday, June 10, 2011 6:31 PM |
Bill Gates and Warren Buffett have generated quite the buzz by encouraging billionaires to have 50% of their wealth to charity. In July, the Chronicle of Philanthropy provided an interest report on the habits of the wealthy in their giving.
From 1992 to 2007, America’s top 400 earners reported giving a low of 3.5% to a high of 10.8% of their income in any one single year. In general, the top 400 earners hovered around the 8% mark in terms of giving a percentage of their income. The 8% mark compares to the 2.1% median giving percentage for all Americans.
So on average the...
posted @ Friday, January 07, 2011 3:46 PM |
The online world is here to stay for ministries. For that reason, it’s a good time to evaluate your website from a donor’s perspective. Here are 10 tips:
1. Be concise. Most donors are scanners. Big blocks of text scare people off. Use bullet points and small paragraphs.
2. Use pictures. Show the story. Don’t just tell it with text. Pictures produce emotions, and let your readers “feel” your mission.
3. Highlight your vision, mission and key objectives. Make sure that people know where you are going, how you are going to get there and your 3-5 mission critical activities.
4. State the problem clearly. Make sure that your donors know what problem you...
posted @ Tuesday, November 30, 2010 6:24 PM |
Fundraising has changed. What worked pre-crash 2008 does not necessarily mean it will work now. It is not business as usual. The wise charity is making adjustments now.
Lisa Sargent Communications reported on a recent study on "What's Working in Donor Fundraising and Development Today." Here are some of the highlights:
1. Finding new donors remains a challenge. Non profits need to find new ways to find new donors.
2. Competition for donor dollars is at an all time high. Less dollars means more competition.
3. Social media is necessary but has not proven itself yet as a fundraising tool. Pursue social...
posted @ Tuesday, November 23, 2010 7:29 AM |
Do you run a really cool and happening ministry? Is it full of excitement and pizazz? Yet do you wonder sometimes why your donors don't get how cool your ministry really is?
A recent study at Excitement or Peacefulness provides a powerful insight. People in their 20's, 30's, and 40's tend to equate happiness with excitement, activity, jazzy stuff. On the other hand, people in their 50's equate happiness with peacefulness.
Implications? The young hip ministry tries to get their donor base excited over the ministry with cutting edge materials and presentations when in fact their older donor base...
posted @ Monday, November 22, 2010 8:29 AM |
As we turn the corner to December, many people are beginning to think about their year end tax calculations and correspondingly, their available tax deductions.
The biggest available deduction in any one year typically is the charitable deduction. I find many do not realize the rules. Here are the two big ones in brief:
1. you may contribute up to 50% of your income each year and still be allowed a charitable deduction;
2. 30% of the 50% may be in the form of a non cash asset ( things like publicly traded stock, real estate, cars, collectibles, and closely held...
posted @ Tuesday, November 16, 2010 2:59 PM |
It’s October, but it is year end tax season.
I work with people all across the country. Each year, we see people set up donor advised funds in the month of December. In fact, we’ll see 50% of our activity take place in the month of December. While it’s a good thing that we have that kind of activity, it’s also a lesson for those planning now. Encourage your donors to begin thinking about it now!
A few years back, I got a call from a donor who desperately wanted to set up a gift annuity. A few days later, we got a check for a...
posted @ Wednesday, November 03, 2010 9:12 AM |
In the first part of 2010, Guidestar reported that 4 in 10 charities reported a decline in giving from January 1 to May 31, 2010. Three in 10 had cut back on budgets and more than half reported they had saved money by cutting back on programs. Half of all non profits had frozen staff salaries. In light of this gloomy news, how should the non profit respond?
1. Seek a Development Partner. Whether formally or informally, all non profits should be seeking to align with those individuals, consultants, board members or organizations who can give them ongoing consistent feedback on their development efforts. That may mean...
posted @ Thursday, October 14, 2010 2:46 PM |
Not long ago, I sat in a ministry presentation. The ministry was clearly trying to win the crowd to gather support for its ministry.
It was a fairly typical presentation. They described who they were, and they listed the numbers behind the impact they were making. And they made a call for support.
But they failed to present the big why. Most importantly, they did not understand that their ministry was not the big why. It never is.
What is the big why? The big why is the overall strategic reason for the organization’s existence. For instance, Young Life is...
posted @ Thursday, September 23, 2010 3:31 PM |
I had a cup of coffee with a friend of mine the other day. It had been awhile since I’d seen him. I knew from our email trail that the days preceding had been hard. Business challenges. But little did I realize how severe…
He was ready to take his life so that way his family could have the life insurance money. A real estate development had gone sour and left him holding the bag with mounds of debt. Their large house was emptying rapidly with the effects of Craig’s list sales. Even his kids had gotten into the act by selling Ipods, TVs, video games—anything that...
posted @ Tuesday, August 24, 2010 8:08 AM |
If you are a development director, who do you want to meet with—the husband, the wife or both?
A recent study of women revealed that they often feel left out of the investment discussion by their investment bankers. On the other hand, investment bankers tend to believe that men will make quicker decisions on investments. Part of the perception underlying these findings is that the men are in control of the finances.
However, a survey by Citi’s Women & Co. found that 63% of women are the chief financial officers of their household. In fact, the same study found it was the women who...
posted @ Wednesday, August 11, 2010 10:09 AM |
The Wall Street Journal recently reported on a survey of the affluent by the Boston Consulting Group. The survey found that 55% of the affluent (those with more than $250,000 of bankable assets) said private banks need to do a better job of serving women clients.
In general, women respondents said the banks give better advice, better deals and better terms to men. Often, the women felt ignored and that the wealth managers communicated directly with the men.
Here’s some highlights:
· Women want a level playing field and the same advice and opportunities men get;
· However, women also want their advisors to...
posted @ Friday, August 06, 2010 9:15 AM |
In the USA, the death rate continues to decline, ministries need to realize that this represents a significant challenge to fundraising without appropriate action. As donors age, resources often become more limited, and the charities they support will feel this effect. However, much of this can be alleviated by ministries encouraging their donors to investigate planned giving.
At first, some donors object to this idea, because they want to make a difference right now and give to an immediate need. “However, if presented strategically, donors may better understand the importance of testamentary gifts, a gift that can keep an organization’s legacy...
posted @ Wednesday, June 30, 2010 9:10 AM |
One of the essential elements of a nonprofit is its board. This brings up the question though of how involved should board members be in their own contributions and fundraising roles for the nonprofit. As I have followed various discussions, it seems there is quite the variety of perspectives. “Give or get” seems to be the predominant mentality. However, there is not one correct mentality for all nonprofits. Let’s examine a few of the options.
1) “Give or Get”—This model suggests that board members should be active and freely generous in supporting the organization, or ‘get’ off the board.
While I am...
posted @ Wednesday, June 16, 2010 10:39 AM |
This rule is essential to success. More accurately spelled out, “you” before “I” is the key for compelling communication. Let’s take ministry newsletters for an example.
When a donor reads a newsletter, what are they hoping to find there? At first, it would seem the answer would be is that they want to read about the ministry. In a sense this is true, but there’s more to the picture. Donors want to read about the ministry and see themselves as part of it.
What does this look like? It’s the concept of “you” before “I.” A ministry can list all its services...
posted @ Friday, June 11, 2010 9:30 AM |
There are three categories of wealthy donors who give online, according to Joanne Fritze. In this article, we will review these categories and make suggestions for action items you can implement in your approach.
1) “Relationship Seekers”
The research from Convio, Sea Change Strategies, and Edge Research shows these statistics about this group:
--They make up 30% of the wealthy online donors with the average age of 48
--Nearly 90% have given online
--Over 50% say they prefer online giving
--42% read most charity emails
--42% use social networks
From these statistics and further research, the general characteristic about this group is that they are looking for...
posted @ Friday, June 04, 2010 9:01 AM |
“If you give people what they need, they will give you what you want.” When I took a class on Business Communication, my professor continually repeated this phrase. It transformed my outlook on how I communicate. Using this phrase as a starting point, let me walk you through writing fundraising requests.
Let’s compare your fundraising request letters to the example of missions support letters. These letters all detail great projects and at the end they give you an amount of money that they need to raise. If you are writing a support letter, what is going to make yours stand out from...
posted @ Friday, May 28, 2010 10:10 AM |
By Tim Dykes
www.omniproconsulting.com
Are you building a stronger relationship with your prospective donors?
During the past 19 years, I’ve had the opportunity to work as a professional fundraiser in radio, a parachurch organization, healthcare, higher education and a museum. Every organization had a different mission, yet the fundraising strategies were very similar. No matter what organization I worked with, the most similar aspect of building a comprehensive fundraising program was the ongoing task of strengthening relationships with people.
Fundraising is much like the phases in dating, engagement and marriage. These relationships are not built overnight but given time, they advance to...
posted @ Saturday, April 10, 2010 1:43 PM |
The economy is forcing many nonprofits to rethink how they find new donors. It takes different styles of communication to demonstrate the need to donors. Because of the current situation, everyone knows there is need, so nonprofits must determine how to present their need.
1) Put numbers to the need—By giving an accurate picture of the true need, donors have a better feel for the urgency and how your plan will change these numbers. Look up the compelling statistics on the areas you work with, and utilize these to strengthen how you reach out to donors.
For example, the Ozarks Food...
posted @ Monday, November 23, 2009 8:23 AM |
As you meet with donors, you will encounter various groups and will need employ various styles of communication.
First, you need to know who your groups are. Narrow it to a few core groups (2-4) and identify their basic communication style. For instance, are young adults one of the groups you are involved with? An online approach might be the best form of communication to reach them. Think through all your groups—it’s not just about style, but about content and its quantity.
Once you have those core groups, focus on those. It is not always wise to expend your effort or...
posted @ Wednesday, October 21, 2009 6:56 AM |
One of the important steps to maintaining funding is to retain your donors. One time gifts are nice, but having a consistent and strong donor base is important. Some basic steps to retaining donors:
Make personal phone calls to ask donors to renew. Involve your staff and even board to make this contact.
Develop a newsletter. Whether sent by email or direct mail, it is important to keep people informed. Let donors know the stories of what is going on in your organization. People want to know their money...
posted @ Monday, September 28, 2009 8:35 AM |
“Nonprofits could raise a lot more money if they paid closer attention to retaining their best givers over the long term, “ Todd Cohen writes.
Paying attention to your best givers involves many different actions. Adrian Sargeant, a professor at the Center of Philanthropy, says that “the single-most-important factor in determining whether givers continue to give to a particular charity is how the charity’s fundraising staff treats them.”
The organizations that stand out are the ones that go above and beyond the call to treat their donors well. There is an intrinsic need within people to be cared for, and when organizations...
posted @ Monday, August 31, 2009 2:27 PM |
Psychology and the words associated with it often convey a sense of hazy, mystical hocus-pocus. However, there is much to be learned from psychology when relating with donors and encouraging them to take action.
1) “Frame an action as preventing a loss”
People are more motivated to take action when they are preventing something from being taken away as opposed to receiving something of equal value. (For example, people will put more effort into saving $1 than they will into attempting to gain $1.) So, instead of writing, “Help ensure our children have a better future,” say, “Don’t let them take away...
posted @ Wednesday, July 22, 2009 3:30 PM |
“Nonprofits could raise a lot more money if they paid closer attention to retaining their best givers over the long term, “ Todd Cohen writes.
Paying attention to your best givers involves many different actions. Adrian Sargeant, a professor at the Center of Philanthropy, says that “the single-most-important factor in determining whether givers continue to give to a particular charity is how the charity’s fundraising staff treats them.”
The organizations that stand out are the ones that go above and beyond the call to treat their donors well. There is an intrinsic need within people to be cared for, and when organizations...
posted @ Monday, July 13, 2009 10:41 AM |
Direct mail is not yielding as many results as before in gaining new donors, and this leaves many organizations worrying if they should continue looking for new donors. The answer, in short, is “Yes!” When organizations stop investing efforts in looking for new donors, it may save some costs short-term, but the long-term revenue loss from not having those donors is far more damaging. The NonProfit Times illustrates this by saying, “about 20% of the donors that are acquired in a given year will still be contributing to an organization in five years’ time. This is what...
posted @ Thursday, June 25, 2009 10:06 AM |
A supporter has just signed up for your e-newsletter or joined your cause. How do you engage them while their interest is still new and passionate? Allowing them to just sit there will only teach them to be passive about your cause. Here are four tips for encouraging new members to become donors.
Ask soon
New members are most likely to be inspired by your work because they just joined. For example, once a person signs up for your cause, the next page they should see could include a tell-a-friend button and a donate page. This will give motivated new supporters a...
posted @ Thursday, June 18, 2009 1:54 PM
The newly released Giving USA 2009 report showed that despite the beginning of the recession, charitable giving only dropped 2.7% in 2008. The Giving USA press release is available here.
According to the University of Kent, people should not assume that philanthropy will be drastically affected by the economy: “Charitable giving is a very complex and personal decision that is not driven solely by how much spare money someone has […] If the main reason people made donations was because they could afford to, then every rich person would be a philanthropist, and every fundraiser would walk away with a big...
posted @ Thursday, June 11, 2009 3:04 PM
“I’m just more aware of the nitty-gritty of needs that happen every day. I just feel like, now, I’m…on the front line,” said one member of a giving circle. A recent study called The Impact of Giving Together, has reported that members of giving circles, like the one mentioned above, gave more strategically than a control group of donors.
This report showed that donors in giving circles were more likely to give to causes that advance change, support general operating expenses, make multi-year gifts, and take cultural differences (race, class, gender) into consideration when choosing organizations to support. Also, these...
posted @ Tuesday, June 02, 2009 1:17 PM
One of the important steps to maintaining funding is to retain your donors. One time gifts are nice, but having a consistent and strong donor base is important. Some basic steps to retaining donors: Make personal phone calls to ask donors to renew. Involve your staff and even board to make this contact. Develop a newsletter. Whether sent by email or direct mail, it is important to keep people informed. Let donors know the stories of what is going on in your organization. People want to know...
posted @ Monday, June 01, 2009 4:14 PM |
A year end appeal letter? Many ministries don't do them despite the fact that the wise ministry recognizes that 30-50% of an organization's funding may come in the month of December. So suffice it to say, it is wise, if not imperative that you write a year end appeal letter to your donors.
What are some of the basics in writing a year end appeal letter? They are as follows:
1. Keep it short. No more that 1 and 1/2 pages.
2. Tell a story. People like stories. Jesus used stories. Better yet, people share stories.
3. Use pictures. A picture tells a...
posted @ Saturday, November 29, 2008 10:19 AM |
It's the home stretch. This is the time when many ministries will receive up to 30-50% of their giving--in a single month. It's remarkable what takes place at this time of year. The question is whether your ministry is prepared to receive these kind of year end gifts.
First, what drives year end giving? Quite simply, it's the charitable deduction. Many people come to year end and are calculating their tax liability they will owe. In order to reduce that tax liability, they, and their financial professionals will often encourage them to increase their giving so they get additional deduction and...
posted @ Friday, November 28, 2008 11:14 AM |
In uncertain economic times, it is often difficult to make donations with the same frequency as in better days; however, giving money is only a small portion of your overall giving. Your time, talents, networks, enthusiasm, and spreading the word are also ways to give to charities. There are at least ten ways in which you can still continue to give in difficult times:
10. Conserve Resources.
Remember to turn off lights and computers you are not using. Use energy-saving light bulbs, reusable shopping bags and water bottles. Write family members’ names on cups and use the same cup all day instead...
posted @ Friday, October 10, 2008 3:38 PM |
In the U.S., charitable giving has a long and illustrious history that includes community participation, neighbors settling new land helping one another, and most recently, giving circles. Giving circles are a recent but growing trend in philanthropy. In 2006, they generated $13 million dollars for community projects. A giving circle is “a group of individuals who come together to pool their dollars, learn together about the community and philanthropy, and then decide collectively where to give their money.”
Due to the weakened economy, giving circles will become more effective as they allow members to make large donations to nonprofits.
For...
posted @ Tuesday, October 07, 2008 2:32 PM |
Despite the common assumption that donors judge charities based on the organization’s overhead costs, a recent study of wealthy donors indicates otherwise. This survey, which was carried out by the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for High Impact Philanthropy, looked at how the nation’s wealthiest donors choose which charities to support, how they find information about those organizations, how they judge their donation’s impact, and the roles they wish to play at that nonprofit.
Thirty-three individuals who give away an average of $1.5 million every year were interviewed for this study. Many of these people had built businesses in finance, technology,...
posted @ Monday, September 22, 2008 3:18 PM |
The Internet has made donating to charity more convenient for donors and also has reduced nonprofit operating costs. However, one must be careful as there are risks associated with using a credit card online and there are scams appearing to be charities. The American Institute of Philanthropy (AIP) gives the following five tips for donating online.
Know the Nonprofit. Research the charity before giving to it. Look at their mission statement and their annual report. AIP says a nonprofit should not spend more than 40% of their income on administrative expenses. Also, at least 60% of your donation should directly support...
posted @ Thursday, September 04, 2008 1:29 PM |
Worried about fundraising with all the economic predictions? Worried about losing donors? It is a crucial time to consider how to truly connect with your donors. However, you can set your worries aside. By simply taking a step back and evaluating the needs of your donors and working on acting on those things, you can successfully continue in your fundraising.
First, you need to understand why your donors contribute. As statistics and hundreds of interviews emphasize, donors contribute because of a relationship first and foremost. That relationship can grow deeper by continuing to pursue after the donors as people. Make your...
posted @ Friday, August 22, 2008 9:24 PM |
A lapsed donor can be defined as a donor who has not made a contribution to your organization with in the last 1-3 years, while those who haven’t contributed in 3 years can be classified as former donors. There is value in pursuing lapsed donors because they are not unfamiliar with your organization’s mission – they cared enough about it to donate at one time, after all. Kent Dove, author of Conducting a Successful Fundraising Program, says that the typical rate of response from mailing to lapsed donors is 11%. As you are creating your appeal letter to...
posted @ Tuesday, August 12, 2008 10:22 AM |
Steve Meyerson, a Washington fundraising consultant, asked a recent audience of fundraising professionals to think about how their non-profit would handle hard economic times “if [they] knew for a fact that there’d be no recovery until 2010.” That answer, he said, should dictate their non-profit’s planning now. At this fundraising conference in Washington, Mr. Meyerson offered several fundraising tips for raising money during a recession: Tell donors how the non-profit changes its client’s lives. “Donors are not that interested in numbers,” he said. Donors want to know...
posted @ Wednesday, August 06, 2008 9:22 AM |
Selecting new right donor management software for your foundation can seem like a confusing, frightening job. The starting point for finding the right package is to figure out why you need the software and how you’ll use it. If you already have software that doesn’t seem to suit you, make sure that the product is being used to the fullest of its potential – that you don’t buy something new because you weren’t using your old software efficiently. Technological ignorance is often a bigger problem than inadequate software for nonprofits. If, however, you think that you need new software, you...
posted @ Thursday, July 24, 2008 6:13 PM |
In an interview with the Idaho Statesman, Larry C. Johnson, founder of a consulting firm, gives his advice on how non-profits can succeed, especially by connecting with individual and corporate donors. Approaching corporations for donations. In order for a non-profit to establish relationships with businesses, the non-profit must prove “its viability and demonstrate that it adds to a more positive business environment, to the GDP (gross domestic product), to a more livable environment, which helps corporations attract better employees.” Connect with the business community. Philanthropy encourages better businesses - it is not something corporations...
posted @ Thursday, July 03, 2008 9:20 AM |
Recently, there was an article published about wealthy online donors. These donors were grouped into three categories: “All Business,” “Casual Connectors,” and “Relationship Seekers.” While these donors do give online, they are rarely impressed with charity websites and their email communication. These donors have many expectations and suggestions about how charities can improve their online presentation.
Wealthy online donors want these items from the charities they support:
A year-end tax summary
A report on the projects their donation supported
A renewal option
The ability to control...
posted @ Tuesday, June 17, 2008 12:00 AM |
Wealthy donors are actually quite active online, writes Joanne Fritz in analysis of a study by Convio, Sea Change Strategies and Edge Research. These three companies studied individuals who make four-figure or higher annual donations to charities. Of these donors, 25% percent of them have salaries over $200,000, while 50% of them have salaries over $100,000. There are three groups that these donors fall into: “relationship seekers,” “casual connectors,” and “all business.”
The “relationship seekers” want to connect emotionally with your organization online. They are the youngest group of wealthy online donors with 42% of them being in between the ages...
posted @ Friday, June 13, 2008 12:00 AM |