The Number One Secret No One Is Telling You In Fundraising
You ready?
Here is the #1 secret no one in fundraising is going to tell you: there are no secrets.
Hands down, hands up, from my lips to God’s ear….
That’s right - there are no secrets.
Because being a strong fundraisers is using/studying/practicing the same tricks of the trade that relationship builders have been doing for years.
You can totally click out of your browser now, or read below for what I believe the 4 main ingredients to being a successful fundraiser are.
#1. GET ORGANIZED: I see a lot of fundraisers follow the shiny object. That might be a shiny object of new donors, that might be a shiny object of different ways you can fundraise. Fundraisers can zig zag their way through a calendar year and wonder: why am I not bringing in (Money)? Well, it’s because people can’t follow along with ALL you are trying to do. I’ve mentioned this before, but on average it takes someone seeing something at least 7 times (some say 11-14) times before they take any action. Therefore, if you are planning a million events in one year, or doing social media campaign after social media campaign or worse yet - changing your messaging points again and again - you donor isn’t going to know who you are, what impact you are making, or why they should give to your organization.
Try this: Map out a 90 day calendar and STICK to it. That means if you know upfront you can’t do everything you might want to do at 100% - don’t do it. Include in this calendar all the things: social media posts, mailings, gratitude calls, donor meetings, grant proposals, website updates, etc.
#2: BE CONSISTENT: Some of the best organizations creating massive amounts of impact, are so simple. Their messaging is clear and so are their actions. They are steadfast. What are you three most compelling impact stats? Say those to your audience over and over again. Listen friends, there is no reason to reinvent the wheel. Stick to what you are good at and tell the world MANY TIMES. Another thing about consistency: if you are putting out content (email, social media, etc) - pick a frequency and commit. Like the 90 day challenge above - write down what you are saying and when you are saying it and come hell or high water - get it done. For example, if you’ve been off and on about emailing your donors - come back. What can you realistically do over the next 90 days? Is it email once a week? Once a month? Choose and then GET IT DONE. That way, the next time you start asking for something with 50 emails in a week - your audience won’t be as likely to unsubscribe.
#3 NETWORK: I get it, really I do - networking can both feel yucky AND zap a lot of energy. And not for nothing - it takes a ton of time - a precious resource you are never getting back. That being said, fundraising from behind your computer aint gonna cut it. Especially if you are a newbie or your organization is just getting off the ground. Here are some ways I organize networking without thinking so much about it:
Become a ‘yes” person for 30 days: For 30 days straight - every time a professional (or heck, personal too!) opportunity comes up to get out and go somewhere - commit to going. That means coffee dates, conferences, donor meetings, etc.
Go back to your calendar 6 months ago and sift through your appointments. If you haven’t been in touch with any of the people from earlier in the year - reach out and try to reconnect.
Write it down: make a list of your ideal donors you’d love to meet with in the next 90 days and get to work on inviting them to something. Perhaps it’s a call, or a meet-and-greet you are already having, or a lunch...anything to get some face-to-face time.
Restructure your elevator pitch. The next time someone (anyone!) asks you “how have you been?” or “what have you been up to?” - weave in your work. For example, you might say you are excited about program XYZ or the results of a new survey came in and proved ABC or you are hosting an event with a super cool speaker on (insert specific date). Give something that ignites curiosity which can lead to you inviting a donor or prospect to learn more.
#4 GIVE: I’ve talked about this a lot, but you need to give, give, give before you ask. I PROMISE it will serve you well if you can think up ways about how you can serve your donor audience. In fact, I’ve written an entire blog post article on this very topic. Did you know that researchers and people a lot smarter than me have identified making “the ask” the smallest piece of the donor pie compared to stewardship and cultivation which make up the most? Simplify your offerings and then give some breathing room in between the points in the year where the ask is appropriate. If you love on your donors in between, your audience will be primed and ready to go, making your adventure in raising money so easy it doesn’t feel like asking.
xo,
