Giving is Good
It’s easy to talk about engagement and we do it a lot in our work. Donor engagement. Prospect engagement. Team engagement. Volunteer engagement. It’s more difficult to consistently behave in ways that engage donors, prospects, volunteers, and colleagues, though. And, it’s incredibly uncommon to consistently behave in ways that would warrant the addition of qualifiers…
No one can tell us if a particular direct mail package will succeed in encouraging more first-time donors to give. We can’t know – for certain – if the email announcing a matching gift will encourage giving from current donors to increase enough to meet the match. It is not a certainty that our off-campus…
One morning recently, I attempted to pull into a McDonald’s to grab a cup of coffee (McDonald’s coffee is the best, don’t @ me). I say attempted to pull into a McDonald’s because the particular entrance I was using to get into the parking lot was marked as a one way entrance and there was…
Amid the confusion, contentiousness, frustration, outrage, division, anxiety, and despair, it can feel sometimes like the world we are leaving for our children and grandchildren is going in the wrong direction. Pick an important personal, societal, or global topic and it can seem like negativity and virulence surrounds it. When we look back on human…
Development folk are not salespeople. But, there are elements of selling psychology that can be helpful for development officers to understand. Enter Wheeler’s Which. Elmer Wheeler was a sales trainer almost a century ago in Texas. He came up with the well known phrase, “Don’t sell the steak. Sell the sizzle.” He also came up…
A lot of people are willing to do the task. Make the phone calls to major donor prospects. Finalize the run of show for the upcoming giving day. Create the leadership-giving direct mail solicitation letter. Choose the pictures for the magazine’s next cover story. Edit the videos for the campaign’s website. Far fewer are willing…
It’s fairly easy to find most any advancement-related strategy, program, approach, or tactic within minutes through an old-fashioned Google search. We can attend professional development conferences in person. We can engage in synchronous and asynchronous online education programs. We can listen to podcasts and read books, blogs, and articles. Today, we can even engage artificial…
“I’m struggling to get my assigned donors to agree to visit with me.” Without question, this is one of the most uttered complaints of gift officers. When prompted to share their outreach message, it is common to hear the following: “I tell them I’d like to thank them personally for their support.” “I tell them…
Be the first to: Offer a helpful hand. Provide a compliment. Find the good. Say, “I was wrong.” Walk away from gossip. Encourage someone. Deliver on time and better than expected. Provide a solution to a problem. Speak up. Change the subject away from complaints. Smile. These behaviors can often feel awkward, difficult, or vexing…
A president has invited a small group of major gift donors and prospects to serve on an advisory council for a new strategic initiative for the institution. These are current or previous donors who have given significantly in the past, have a sense of ownership about the institution’s future success, and are especially interested in…