by Michael Steiner “I have someone I would like you to meet. She is a great person, but is not yet engaged with our organization "- says your CEO. In our line of business often we receive leads about people to engage with. It may come from our trustees, board members, from our supervisor, CEO, colleagues in the organization or from another donor. What typically follows next is the “first meeting” followed by our efforts to turn a person who knows little about our organization and is neither a supporter nor a believer to a supporter and believer who sees the great things our organization has to offer. While we don’t typically think about this first meeting as an opportunity for different wherewithal, we often try to leave a strong impression which would lead into a long and lasting … Continue Reading
A Message in A Bottle: The Four Donors
by Steven L. Meyers, Ph.D. I like to think about The Four Donors as if it were a forgotten fragment of a lost hagaddah, written by a philanthropist long ago, translated for our day. Whether you are a philanthropist or a fundraiser, it's a message in a bottle, which resonates for people seeking to understand their charitable impulse. The Four Children offers a lesson on meeting people where they are and appreciating them for what they are. The Four Donors helps translate the charitable inclination into action through personalized philanthropy: finding just the right gift for the right person at just the right time. This message in a bottle seems relevant all year long, not just at Passover. Four Donor Personalities (from a lost haggadah) 1. The Wise Donor: This is the wise and loyal annual … Continue Reading
The Challenge of Naming Opportunities for the ‘Middle Range’ Donor
What does an organization do when the donor is giving a gift of somewhere between $10 and $20 thousand? How does the organization recognize this ‘mid-range’ gift? And when a donor is contributing such an amount and requests to have their gift named after a loved one, is the nonprofit obligated to do so? In general, is there a rule of thumb for naming opportunities that are not very large donations? It is easy to set a policy that requires a minimum gift before a donation will be honored with a naming opportunity. While this is a reasonable policy, not all nonprofits have thought through this or perhaps they don’t want to alienate donors so that in the end, they might be caught off guard with the request for a naming opportunity when the gift is not considered that high. However, there is a … Continue Reading
Telling Your Story When Engaging in Philanthropy
by Jo-Ann Mort and Judith Wineman eJewish Philanthropy featured an article recently by Dan Brown, eJP’s editor, about a donor organization that doesn’t promote its own fundraising through traditional communications outlets. This especially caught our eye because we believe that communications outreach is essential to good philanthropic practice. Philanthropists need a targeted megaphone beyond the act of grant making or financial contributions. Indeed, a solid communications strategy offers a multiplier for the money a funder puts into the field. This is a critical step for a donor moving from checkbook philanthropy to strategic philanthropy. Moreover, funders have an advantage that they don’t often employ. Donors have a unique perspective that their grantees don’t often share. … Continue Reading
Three Thank You Templates and You’re OUT!
by Deborah Kaplan Polivy, Ph.D. Because I coach so many fund raising professionals, a friend called the other day to ask my opinion of the way in which she was thanked by a nonprofit organization. Within a short time she had received three template letters and wondered if that was “normal”. She described the scenario as follows. Last spring a fund raising executive came to her home. They “chit chatted” for an hour or so, the professional then solicited her and she made a pledge. Shortly thereafter she received a letter beginning with the words, “Women throughout history ... ”. The letter continued with a generic thank you - “thank you for your commitment” - and then a discussion about needs and mission. No mention was made of her specific gift. She transferred shares of … Continue Reading
For Whom Do You Write While Cultivating Donors?
by Jo-Ann Mort and Judith Wineman Our approach to every client project - development planning, donor outreach, media relations - is to create the singular message that defines the organization and tweak it for individual situations. It’s vital that an organization be branded with a clear set of messages that define the group in all aspects. These messages can be multi-purposed for various needs, re-crafted for different audiences by tweaking them and they can be delivered using varying methods. Message creation is a living process and is perhaps the most vital time for development and communications professionals to work together. In challenging economic times, we cannot afford to lose the impact of emotional connections in our messaging. Communications professionals can help frame the … Continue Reading
How to Use Strategic Communications for More Successful Donor Cultivation
by Jo-Ann Mort and Judith Wineman When a client hires us, the first thing we try to explain is that cultivation is more than an ask, and developing well designed, targeted materials and messaging are key to building a permanent and sustainable donor base. Raising money is a goal, not a step. Cultivation is about building relationships. As the saying goes: “people give to people.” One good donor relationship can easily lead to three more, but one donation is never a promise of another. As alluring as a one-time gift is, it’s the long-term investment that best aids an organization. That’s where the communications piece comes in. There are timeless tools that are used and will never go out of style. Communications professionals can help development professionals with the best scripts to … Continue Reading
Recognizing Donors: A Blessing and A Challenge
A few days ago I received an inquiry from a colleague who works at one of the large non-profit organizations in Israel. He asked me about “the rules” guiding the acknowledgement and recognition of contributions and gifts from donors. His questions were about the difference between a contribution to a capital (building) campaign and a donation providing support for an on-going program. When an organization raises funds for a new building or renovating existing offices there are a variety of ways to acknowledge the contributions received. During the planning of the capital campaign the volunteer leadership and the professional are able to work together to identify naming opportunities. A naming opportunity refers to the placement of donors’ names on the building; on rooms in the building; on … Continue Reading
Got Milk? How About Cultivation?
by Sherri W. Morr I always have milk in the refrigerator. I like it with my coffee, and as a child drank it every night with cookies before bed, so it’s a memory to always have milk. As a child I was thin, so drinking whole milk (and sometimes the fat on top too) before bed was my Mother’s way to insure I would be gaining weight while I was sleeping. As I said it’s a memory. Same thing with cultivation. Always have to have it, create the memory. In the nonprofit field, one has to cultivate at least daily, or there will be no memory. Just the way it is. For non Jewish nonprofits this is the big season. It’s a necessary element of the last 3 weeks in December to be calling, writing emails, sending year end appeals, and generally thanking and wishing donors well. Everything … Continue Reading
English