Giving is Good
During visits with donors, if you find yourself regularly sharing a personal experience or anecdote because the donor brought up a similar topic, you might be story-swapping. Story-swapping during conversations is a natural way for humans to build rapport and isn’t necessarily a poor practice for a gift officer to use. But, it also may…
After decades of donor interactions and thousands of donor interviews, here is a list of what I’ve heard from major gift donors about what they want but don’t always get: Follow-up and follow-through; Recognition – even, if only privately; Timely responses; Mission-centered impact reporting – doesn’t have to be specific (i.e., “your gift provided the…
How many incoming media/content/messaging streams are you managing right now? How many tasks do you have on your to-do list today? How many transition periods (i.e., where you can breathe and reset) do you have built into your calendar today? We claim we are constantly overwhelmed. We complain about our schedule being too busy. We…
If we want to get the philanthropic results that make the biggest difference in the lives of others, there is no getting around the notion that we also have to take responsibility. Here is a beginning list of ways we have to take responsibility if we want our work with donors to make a significant…
Less effective gift officers ask for gifts. When we ask a donor for a gift we don’t position ourselves (nor our missions) in the most attractive light. We may even feel bad about asking because we don’t want to be a bother. Asking reinforces a sense of “haves and have nots,” that reduces our influence…
Seeking answers to strategy exceptions can be helpful. For example, if our strategy is to establish visits with each Board member and invite their gift in support of our newly-approved multi-year, comprehensive campaign, it becomes helpful to agree on how our strategy might change for Board members who have already given this year versus Board…
If you are involved in facilitating an advancement-related advisory group for your organization, the following 5 questions are critical to getting the most out of their engagement: What is the topic on which you are seeking their advice, perspective, feedback? Having a specific topic-focused theme for each advisory group meeting is an essential starting point. …
The good advancement professional knows the mission, the project, the initiative for which they are raising funds. The exceptional advancement professional believes in the mission, the project, the initiative for which they are raising funds. Understanding the difference between knowing and believing and embracing why that difference matters is the work of every new advancement…
Earlier this month, our world lost the gifted musician and soulful vocalist, D’Angelo. He died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 51. If you are not familiar with D’Angelo, he created some of the most soul-stirring, deeply-emotive, grown folks popular music of last 40 years. In 2000, he won a Grammy award for his…
“What makes our institution different or distinctive?” This question dominates most every nonprofit marketing and branding conversation. And, in a world in which competition seemingly continues to escalate – for students, patients, donors, and volunteers – each institution wants to differentiate themselves from the others. We want others to view our brand based on unique…