Archive for the ‘Inspiration for Fundraisers’ Category

The Chronicle of Philanthropy reported this week that some international relief organizations said their average gift size to help the Haiti crisis is smaller than after the tsunamis in 2004.  The good news is that the number of gifts went up even if the size of the gift was down.

For example, (and I’m quoting from the Chronicle article here:)

In the first 10 weekdays after the earthquake in Haiti, Mercy Corps received 61,505 contributions, compared with 49,561 donations during the same period after the tsunamis. But the average size of the Haiti gifts was $109, compared with $208 for the tsunami gifts.

As of Wednesday, the American Red Cross had received approximately $231-million, a little more than a third of the more than $644-million raised by major U.S. relief groups. Online donations for Haiti have averaged $92 for the group, compared with $150 after the tsunamis.

World Vision U.S. has raised almost $30-million for its work in Haiti, roughly the same amount the organization had received during the same period after the tsunamis. But the charity’s average gift size is $130 this disaster, compared with $191 for the tsunamis.

Here’s my take on this: Clearly the disturbing trend to smaller gifts is because of the recession. How long will we be here? Gift size has dropped almost across the board.

I, for one, am anxiously waiting for signs of spring – looking for signs of a resurrection in the economy and in giving. These trends in gift size may be the first bellweather to let us know how things are going. And clearly, the tide hasn’t turned yet.  But these donors are more of the anonomyous type – the kind motivated by media to “help out” in times of crisis.

We CAN be successful when we make focus in on our CURRENT donors – those who are already on the bandwagon with us. All the more reason for us to be keeping our donors and friends of our cause excited about the impact we are making in the world.

I just read in the Benevon newsletter yesterday of some stunning results from first time “ask events’ – major funds that were raised from both new and old donors. When we pull in those personally devoted to our cause and tell our story with impact and passion, they WILL give.

Our inner circle donors are a better bet right now than new donors who come to us thru the media.

The New York Times today ran an opinion article about a new study from the national organization Feeding America.

The study showed that one in 8 Americans sought emergency food aid last year. (This is 37 MILLION PEOPLE!)

Lord have mercy, as we say in the south! They are feeding one million more Americans a week than they were in 2006.

Hunger is alive and well in America, it is awful to say.

The need is so very clear. All over our country and the world, there are people desperately in need.

We fundraisers and nonprofit leaders are on the front lines of the battle for safe, decently-fed, healthy families in our communities.

If you ever start to lose heart and feel that what you do is not making a difference, do step back and look at the real results of your work.

I think fundraising is one of the most noble professions ever.

When I say we are on the front lines of the battle, I am not kidding.  We literally can make the difference between tragedy and safty, or hunger and food, or the difference between illness and health. We do this because we bring in the resources to make it happen.

We are the catalyst. We bridge between the well-meaning people who want to help and those who so desperately need the help.

Don’t ever lose heart. Call me or email me if you need to and I’ll pump you up.  Find other fundraisers and bond with them for support. Our causes need us more than ever, ever before!

Onward, and may the force be with you!

I was reading one of my favorite blogs last week – For Impact – and just had to share this with you.  Tom Suddes and Nick Fedders (the For Impact folks) are two smart, and contrarian guys.

I highly recommend their blog – especially if you are in capital campaign mode.

It’s a dynamite addition to my “31 year-end strategies in 31 days of October.”  Here’s the most compelling advice you could possibly get to boost your year-end campaign strategy.

Here’s what they wrote last week.

“Just saw a note from one year ago today (19 Oct 08) in my journal… from über-investor Warren Buffett:

“Be fearful when others are greedy.
Be greedy when others are fearful.”

My parallel thought goes like this:

Be ASKING when others are hiding.
Be ASKING even when others are asking.

JUST ASK. It was almost a year ago when the economy crashed and everyone in the nonprofit world panicked. I wrote NOW MORE THAN EVER, where I basically said that this too shall pass….. and then that every For Impact organization needed to stay in front of its best investors (not hide under the desk).

I guess the recession is “officially” over. Dow just went back to 10,000. However, there is still a ton of people without jobs; and, clearly, things will never go back to the way they were.

For most of us in the third sector the DEMAND for our services and support has dramatically increased.

NOW MORE THAN EVER… we need to be out with our best CHAMPIONS and PROSPECTIVE INVESTORS.

Go forth… and JUST ASK!

It’s a lonely time out there with lots of my fundraising colleagues.  Especially with this being just about the toughest fundraising environment any of us have ever seen.

Being a staff fundraiser has always been a lonely business.(And consulting can be pretty lonely too!)  This is the time we need to rally our colleagues, our board members our CEO and have give them all a dose of old-fashioned optimism.

Here you are, bravely working for your cause with passion in your heart, trying to create new friends and donors for your wonderful cause.

And you have to deal with recalcitrant board members who just can’t find the courage to do what you do everyday. And you may have a CEO who also is unsure about fundraising and who won’t “do right” as we say in the south.

You may have unsupportive colleagues who are jealous that you get to go to all the events and travel around to see donors.  If you’re part of a large development operation with lots of other fundraisers, they may be competitive and view you as a potential threat.

Mix all this in with a major recession, donor reluctance, and a sinking stock market, and it sure is hard to keep morale up sometimes!

My friends are sort of relieved when I say that fundraising is a lonely business.  It acknowledges something we all know.

And it takes courage in our heart, perseverance in the face of adversity, tremendous commitment and just plain dogged determination to keep on keeping on.

What cheers me so very much is that so many of my fundraising friends are upbeat, optimistic and full of energy. They are looking at declining revenues with a sense of “things will get better.“  I almost never see a friend moaning and groaning, or wallowing around in negativism.

Here’s a friend’s perspective:  “I have something so great and I believe in it so much and I want to make it  happen!  I’ll do whatever it takes! But I can’t do it by myself.  I really need some help.”

Maybe fundraising attracts a certain personality. Maybe we are inherently cheerful and hoping for the best. I really think that’s the case.

So let’s all head on out there, in the face of a tough environment, unsupportive board members and colleagues and let’s make it work ANYWAY! Gather your forces, cheer up your board members and CEO’s, rally your colleagues around you to make it happen!

Too much is at stake for us to sit around feeling negative or bad.

The world out there is waiting for us, and there are surely lots of donors and friends for our cause in the future!

A question I am frequently asked is, “Once I get my board fired-up, then how on earth do I keep my board members motivated and enthusiastic? Whenever the board members gather together, we get excited and energized about our work. But my board members frequently get distracted with other priorities.  What to do?”

The first thing you must do is take responsibility for keeping your board energized.   If you are the nonprofit CEO, do everything you can to keep them going.  AND if you are the chair of the board, also, do everything YOU can to fan the flames of your board members’ energy.

When you assume responsibility, then you can’t expect that someone else will assume this role. Do you know the saying, “If it’s to be, it’s up to me?“  Well, here’s the perfect place to implement that idea.

If your board is gonna stay excited, motivated and energized, it won’t happen without YOU taking the lead.

You can’t expect your busy board members to keep focused and energized on their own. If you leave it up to them, you just may be disappointed. This is “Volunteer Management 101” – and the number one job of managing volunteers is motivating them.

Here is a real life best practice example from a board I am currently serving on. This is from the CEO of  Lillian’s List, a political action group on whose board I serve.  Our CEO, Carol Teal, is just about the best nonprofit CEO I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with.

Here is a recent “cheerleading” email Carol sent us board members. Needless to say, it pumped us up and made us feel really good about the results we are creating in the world. We are all engaged in a big project to systematically and personally thank our donors.

Carol wrote:

‘Thank you to all the Board members for taking the time to help us say thank you.  The connections that we all have with each other is what sets this organization apart from any other I have been involved with in the past 20 years.

“Thank you to Karen and Ernestine for joining the Trailblazer Major Donor Club and thank you to Kim for providing the excellent support to all of us so we can say thank you.  And thanks to Claire for keeping us all engaged with the Fund Development part of our mission.  Onward!

“I’m leaving now to meet with another potential Trailblazer. I love asking and I thank all of you for being part of thanking.”

Carol complimented various board members for their efforts and successes.  By praising them in front of other board members (which is something all board members love), she sets the bar higher for all the other board members. She holds these folks up as examples for the rest of us.

And do note that she ended by letting us know how excited she was about raising money. She is out there making solicitations all the time. We can’t let her down!  It makes us feel like we are all in this together.

It’s a wonderful feeling! And you can bet that this board is sure FIRED-UP!

I was in the presence of a great man yesterday.  Greg Mortenson, author of “Three Cups of Tea” risked his life to build schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

And HE said to US that he was “humbled” to be speaking to nonprofit leaders! Wow, it was I who was humbled to be in the same room as him.

The odds against what he was trying to do in those far-away countries were almost overwhelming. No money, few connections, no experience.

He started his fundraising by writing 500 letters to celebrities asking for funds to build his school.  Needless to say, that strategy failed. Then a friend of a friend volunteered the full funding needed for the first school. The rest is history.

Our lesson here is that it was the personal connection yet again, that funded his project.  The friend heard about what he was trying to do and was interested.

Mortenson’s key fundraising secret?  “Storytelling is a great way to raise money.” He says that statistics are one thing but painting a picture with a story makes all the difference.

Mortenson shared some key qualities of people who’ve been successful. I’d say these are the qualities our nonprofit sector needs now more than ever. Qualities that successful social entrepreneurs and nonprofit leaders share:

1.  You have to always think out of the box. (Consider this: where will solutions to today’s problems in our sector come from?)

2.  You can’t be afraid to fail. The key to success is sometimes having to fail first. (Are our boards willing to take these risks?)

3.  You have to be willing to work really really hard and persevere. (You can only do this if you are committed heart and soul to your mission and your vision.)

4. Learn how to listen – to the people you are trying to help. Their voice needs to be appreciated and understood. They can often show you the way, perhaps following a path that is totally outside your own box.  (Mortenson’s Pakistani friends had to teach him this lesson.

How long has it been since you really listened to the people you are serving?  They may have some interesting answers.

Morale is an issue for everyone these days, particularly with the end of the fiscal year staring us in the face.  Morale is often an issue with board members as well who liable to lose heart with all too much bad news.  

I have developed a sure-fire exercise that wakes everybody up, gets them talking, smiling and enjoying themselves, gives them their own chance to speak, fans the flames of their energy and passion, and reconnects them with the reason they are taking the time out of their busy lives to serve on the board.

Tall order you might say! But try this – and I’ll bet you get the same results!  I described this morale-boosting exercise for board members in my recent webinar “Six New Rules for Board Members in Changing Times,” which was sold out early. (I’ve decided to offer the webinar again on July 16th if you’d like to join us.)

So let me share with you this fabulous exercise: You won’t believe how easy it is. But it does require some discipline on your part and willingness to try something new on your board’s part.

I begin every single one of my “Easy Fundraising for Board Members” retreats with this exercise – and it never fails.

Here’s a simple question to ask them: “Why do you care about our organization?” It’s a pretty unusual question because board members don’t often get a chance to talk about why they care. They are too busy doing business and being efficient.

In the interest of using their time wisely, we too often just don’t take the time to go deeper and touch their hearts or hear their story. We’re responsible if they are disengaged or bored, because we are the ones who make the agendas and decide how they are going to use their time with us.

But you won’t believe what happens when you just ask this question! This is the conversation that can fan the flames of a board member’s energy and passion. I am always amazed and pleased with what it evokes in people. It helps them get back in touch with that deep caring they have in their hearts for your cause.

This is the core reason why they are with you, and why they are willing to share their precious spare time on your cause instead of something else.

Here’s how I set up this most important conversation so that no one is self conscious or feels put on the spot. I do a “mingle exercise.” It’s an exercise in which board members mingle around the room and share their own perspective with four or five different people.

Here’s how to set this exercise up.
     1. Ask your board members what they would say to someone who asked them why they cared enough to serve on this board. If they ran into someone at work or socially, what would they say?
   – (You might also ask them “what legacy do you want to leave from serving on the board?” or perhaps “what speaks to you personally about the good work we do in the world?”)
     2. Give them a few moments to write down some notes to themselves – what would they really say if given the chance?
     3. Then tell them in just a minute we will ask everyone in the room to share these thoughts with FOUR other board members.
     4. Explain the exercise: “Find a partner, introduce yourself to them in case they may not know you well, and then share your story. Each person should take just about 30 seconds. When you finish with your partner, then go find another partner and chat with them.”
     5.  Then launch them: “Everybody up!” Have them stand up, go around the room, and share their perspective briefly with four or five other board members, one after the other.

It’s great to debrief when everyone is finished.  Ask everybody first what their experience was when they were doing this.  What were they saying? How were they being? Was it easy?  Was it even fun? What did you learn from other board members?

When they do the mingle exercise, they will find themselves saying over and over why they really care about the organization and what is deeply meaningful to them about your mission.

It evokes exactly what they should be saying to their friends and acquaintances: something personal and from the heart. And it reinforces it because they repeat it again and again.

This mingle exercise has a very special added benefit: it is also a “re-kindling” conversation.

As your board member talks repeatedly about what sparks his enthusiasm or interest in your organization’s work, he is re-igniting his own passion as he speaks. He is reminding himself about the difference you make; and why it is personally important to him.

Remember, most board members don’t know what to say about your organization! This exercise gives them low-key, but most valuable, practice talking about your cause, in a natural and spontaneous way.

They also learn from other board members; they get great energy from the other folks in the room; and they enjoy themselves.

When you do this exercise, you’ll be surprised by the excitement and fun that it generates. You’ll see people laughing and smiling. Board members love to talk to each other and they rarely get the chance.

It’s a great energy boost and refreshing shift away from boring board meetings – AND it’s the best morale booster I’ve ever seen.

When they are re-inspired by their own passion for the cause, board members are now ready to go to work. Because they get back in touch with the deeper issue of why they care, then they are much more ready to tackle the work at hand with vigor – and commitment.

I’ll bet that if you do this before a meeting, you’ll find that it’s one of the best meetings you’ve ever had with this group. At least that’s what some of my fundraising friends say who have put this conversation in front of their board.

Try it and post a comment here to let me know how it worked!