nonprofit – Page 40 – The Healthy Non-Profit

Dear board volunteers . . . A few observations and requests from a new member.

May 6, 2013 erik Board development, Board governance, Fundraising, organizational development, Planning, technology, volunteers

DonorDreams blog is honored to be hosting the May 2013 Nonprofit Blog Carnival. The theme this month is “Dear board volunteer . . .” and the idea is “If you could write an anonymous letter to a nonprofit board about something they do that drives you crazy, what would that letter look like and what suggested solutions would you include?” If you are a blogger and would like more information on how to participate and submit a post for consideration, please click here to learn more.

I wanted to expand the Nonprofit Blog Carnival concept in May. So, I reached out to real non-profit people and asked them to also write an anonymous letter to their board volunteers. These people are executive directors, fundraising professionals, board members, donors, community volunteers, consultants and front line staff. I promised everyone anonymity in exchange for their submissions.

We will celebrate May’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival on Wednesday, May 29, 2013. Up to that fun-filled day, I will publish real anonymous letters every day from real non-profit professionals right here at DonorDreams blog.

I hope you enjoy this real look at real issues that our community deals with on a daily basis.

Here is today’s letter:

Dear Board Members:

I’m absolutely thrilled and honored to be serving with each of you and to be of service to this fine organization. I consider my board service to be a privilege. I hope each of you feel the same way.

I do have some observations after serving on this board for the past seven months. They are as follows:

Madame Board chair, respect your fellow board members. While you were a teacher during your professional days, you are no longer dealing with students. Your fellow board members, or at least this board member, is a professional. Treat me as you would like to be treated. If you are having a bad day, please keep that to yourself. Frankly, I couldn’t care less if you are crabby. Do you really want that fact recorded in our board minutes?

Let’s try and have some fun with our board service. Our organization does not deal with life and death situations. It’s ok to interject some humor in or discussions.

We need to hold our CEO accountable. Setting stretch goals, providing regular feedback on performance and completing a written performance evaluation is important to our work and central to us meeting our outcomes. Let’s not shy away from having the difficult and uncomfortable conversations with our CEO. We will be a better organization in the long run as a result.

While fundraising is not central to our mission there is not one single reason why we cannot develop a culture of fund and friend raising in our organization.

WE NEED A STRATEGIC PLAN. Let’s plan our work and work our plan.

Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest are here to stay. Our clients use social media. We need to be optimized across multiple communication channels. A website is great, but it’s no longer enough. The sooner we understand social media, the sooner we will reap the many benefits it has to offer us.

Just because an organization is 4X larger or 4X smaller than we are, does not mean that we can’t learn from them.

Can we please try to recruit fellow board members strategically?

Can we do something socially as a board so we can get to know one another?

That’s all for me. Just some random early observations from your newest board member. In spite of the above, each of you, in your own way, has energized me around our mission and the importance of our work.

All the best,
The new guy

If you have some advice for the author of our anonymous letter, please be respectful and share it in the comment box at the bottom of this post. If you are a blogger looking to participate in this month’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival and want to learn more, then please click here.

Here’s to your health!

Erik Anderson
Founder & President, The Healthy Non-Profit LLC
www.thehealthynonprofit.com
erik@thehealthynonprofit.com
http://twitter.com/#!/eanderson847
http://www.facebook.com/eanderson847
http://www.linkedin.com/in/erikanderson847

Dear board volunteers . . . Discover your case for support.

May 3, 2013 erik Board development, volunteers

I wanted to expand the Nonprofit Blog Carnival concept in May. So, I reached out to real non-profit professionals and asked them to also write an anonymous letter to their board volunteers. These people are executive directors, fundraising professionals, board members, donors, community volunteers, consultants and front line staff. I promised everyone anonymity in exchange for their submissions.

I hope you enjoy this real look at real issues that our community deals with on a daily basis.

Today’s anonymous letter is a little different from Wednesday and Thursday’s submissions. This contributor decided to take on the persona of the iconic advice columnist Dear Abby.

Here is today’s letter:

Dear Abby,

It seems like every time I need a board member to do something really important, they have a conflict, are too busy, or are uncomfortable with the task. Please help!

Sincerely,
Hoping for Change

Dear Hope,

On a summer evening two years ago, I received a call from one of our staff letting me know that a 17-year-old boy, named John had come to the Club after hours looking for help. John, who was in foster care and has cognitive disabilities, had an argument with his foster mother and she kicked him out of her car on a busy road. John was totally alone, but he found his way to the one place he knew was safe – the Boys & Girls Club.

The Club staff called John’s “in case of emergency” contacts to no avail. His foster mother refused to pick him up, his caseworker was busy. As I received these updates, I became acutely aware of the life my own two children were living. It was after dinner, I was reading them stories, our house had just been professionally cleaned. I began to cry as I thought about the stark contrast between my own children’s life and the life of this most vulnerable boy.

This could have been the day I decided my work was too depressing. Thankfully, this moment became a turning point for me. This is when I realized that what I do is more than just a job. Although, I wasn’t there to open the door for John that night, I knew that I had the power to open a door for others like him. Not only do I owe this to “those” kids, but to my own kids. I owe it to them to do everything in my power to make sure that they do not have to live in a world where a vulnerable child who is left on a busy street at night has no place to turn. This is what I think of when I have too much on my plate, or am uncomfortable with the task ahead of me.

I tell you this story not to sadden you, but rather to shake your board into finding their story.

What is their motivation for being involved? Too often, I hear from board members that they are too busy to attend meetings, have too much on their plates, or are uncomfortable with fundraising. These are frustrating comments to hear – especially as I think about John. In order to be successful as a board member, one must find the story that will motivate them to serve, even in the most difficult of circumstances.

The good news is John still finds his way to the Boys & Girls Club everyday. He is living in a group home with other young adults who have disabilities. He is now a Club volunteer and loves spending his time helping staff maintain the technology labs. The Club is a family for John, but the Club staff and kids also think of John as a part of their patchwork family.

I hope your board has the opportunity to one day find their story. It will change their lives and the lives of many others. When this story is found, the job of a board member becomes more than a series of meetings and tasks. It will be the catalyst for a better, more purposeful life for those you serve and those you love.

Sincerely,
Mission-focused Mary

If you have some advice for the author of our anonymous letter, please be respectful and share it in the comment box at the bottom of this post.

If you want to submit an anonymous letter for consideration this month, please email it to me at the address in your signature block below.

Here’s to your health!

Dear board volunteers . . . Stop joining other boards!

May 2, 2013 erik Board development, volunteers

I hope you enjoy this real look at real issues that our community deals with on a daily basis.

Here is today’s letter:

Dear Board Member:

HOW MANY Boards can you sit on? Please STOP!

Please consider where you want to spend your energy! I love that you care about this community but sitting on five non-profit boards doesn’t help us and can’t be easy for you.

I recognize your service and your time, but what I am asking for is can I get your energy? Is your energy at optimal level when you come to meetings? Are you out in our community with passion and energy advocating for our mission? Do you have energy to keep up on all the minutes, meeting notes, financials etc. that are critical for governance for all those boards?

I need you to be our Champion. Our Board of Directors needs to be made up of Champions who can advocate and invite others into our mission without being conflicted by other areas of service. We need your talent and energy at every meeting, in every interaction, your engagement is critical to our success.

Now, I’m not asking for you to give all your work up, I am asking you to choose which mission you want to serve, which board can you choose to serve with passion, which can you in all interactions advocate and champion energy. Which can you truly be a Champion?

Our cause and other non-profits’ causes are too big and too important to just have a person’s time, and too critical to have just a fraction of that time. “Energy, not time, is the fundamental currency for high performance.”

We want your dedicated time with the energy to be a CHAMPION so we can successfully serve our mission.

Sincerely,
The Executive Director in any Med/Small Market

If you have some advice for the author of our anonymous letter, please be respectful and share it in the comment box at the bottom of this post.

If you want to submit an anonymous letter for consideration this month (and you’re a donor, volunteer, staff member, board member, and NOT a blogger), please email it to me at the address in your signature block below.

Remember, bloggers are encouraged to blog about this theme and submit their post for consideration at the Nonprofit Blog Carnival. Bloggers can click here for more info about that process.

Here’s to your health!

Dear board volunteers . . . Can we please follow our fundraising policies?

May 1, 2013 erik Board development, Fundraising

I hope you enjoy this real look at real issues that our community deals with on a daily basis.

Here is today’s letter:

Dear Board Members,

We are so excited that our upcoming fund raiser is nearly at capacity. You all have done an outstanding job in talking up the event to your friends and colleagues, and in getting others to buy tickets to the event. Thank you for that.

Several years ago, you established a process that let each event committee determine the policies around which each event would operate. Once the policies were established by each committee, they were accepted or modified by the full Board. Now I know that each of you did not agree personally with all the policies, but majority rules and the policies were set, or at least I thought so.

To my surprise, and dismay, now I find out that there are many of you asking, assuming, or demanding that we don’t enforce these policies, at least as it concerns you. Some of you want to bring more people with you, of course at no additional cost. Some of you even think you should be allowed to come for free because you are a Board Member.

Good grief, this is a Fund Raising Event. It is designed to make money! Don’t you get it?

Now here is what really ticks me off. You don’t call or email me — the executive director — with these ideas. No, you call or email my event staff, who are already intimidated by you. What kind of spot do you think this puts them in?

So what do we do about this?

First, if you want to make a difference in how an event operates, volunteer to serve on the committee that designs the event. We would love to have more of you actively engaged in these committees. Second, when the committee presents the event at the Board Meeting, speak up, express your concerns then. Make your vote count. Third, once the Board accepts the policies surrounding an event, accept them. We all need to follow the direction the Board sets.

And please, call or email me if you are having issues or concerns with an event. Calling or emailing my staff with this sort of thing just isn’t appropriate or helpful. However, you must know that while I will listen to you or read your email, I will always back up the Board’s decision. You really would not want me to do otherwise.

Sincerely,
Lonely at the top

If you have some advice for the author of our anonymous letter, please be respectful and share it in the comment box at the bottom of this post.

Here’s to your health!

Nonprofit blog carnival: “Dear board volunteers . . .”

April 30, 2013 erik Board development, volunteers

I love the Nonprofit Blog Carnival because it is an online collaborative space where bloggers can focus on a specific nonprofit theme and readers can easily access different points of view on the same topic. I am very honored and humbled that the DonorDreams blog will host the May Nonprofit Blog Carnival.

Let’s get this party started with the immortal words of Dr. Seuss from “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!“:

Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You’re off to Great Places!
You’re off and away!

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.

Attention all bloggers: Calling for submissions to the May 2013 Nonprofit Blog Carnival

The theme for May’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival is . . .

“Dear Board volunteers . . .”
If you could write an anonymous letter to a nonprofit board about something they do that drives you crazy, what would that letter look like and what suggested solutions would you include?

carnival mask

I encourage you to have a little fun with this topic. You can write it from any of the following perspectives:

executive director
fundraising professional
fellow board member
nonprofit consultant
donor
volunteer
program staff

You can also theme your letter on any number of issues pertaining to: fundraising, board development, leadership, financial management, planning, organizational culture, volunteerism, etc. The possibilities really are endless!

And remember to keep the letter “anonymous” just like the Mardi Gras carnival!

Go visit April’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival hosted by Katya’s Non-Profit Marketing Blog

In April, the carnival was hosted by Katya’s Non-Profit Marketing Blog and the theme was “Best Advice“. She asked bloggers to consider the following questions:

How has it transformed your work?
What is your own best single piece of advice for people who work at nonprofits?

If you’re interested in reading what some very smart and talented bloggers had to say about this Nonprofit Blog Carnival theme, click here.

But wait . . . there’s more!

If you couldn’t tell from my introduction, one of my favorite writers is Dr. Seuss, and he has been described by many as an “architect of social change“. In my opinion, the genius behind his writing is that he talked about social issues in a way that even a child could understand.

So, those of you who can incorporate some reference or tip of your hat to Dr. Seuss in your Nonprofit Blog Carnival submission for May will get bonus points.

It can be as simple as incorporating a quote or a moral to one of his stories into your anonymous letter to nonprofit board volunteers. Or it can be as complex as composing your entire letter in a Seuss-like format.

I’ll even help by providing you with these online resources and ideas:

What exactly do bonus points get you? Simply put, it increases the chances that your blog post will get included in the Nonprofit Blog Carnival in May, which will be published on the DonorDreams blog platform on Wednesday, May 29th.

Finally, if you choose to accept the Seuss-challenge, be careful about copyrights, trademarks, and all of that legal stuff.

How to submit your work for consideration?

You are welcome to write your blog in a house or with a mouse or in a box or with a fox; however, I must receive your submission by the end of the day on Monday, May 27, 2013:

How do you submit? Simply email the following information to nonprofitcarnival[at]gmail[dot]com:

Your name.
The name of your blog.
The permalink of your post.

Who will make the decision on what gets included?

During the entire month of May, I’m turning the DonorDreams blog over to the Nonprofit Blog Carnival theme of “Dear Board Volunteers . . .”

In the last few weeks, I’ve invited a ton of executive directors, fundraising professionals, board volunteers, and nonprofit consultants to do the same thing that I’ve invited you to do, which is write an anonymous letter with some advice in it to their nonprofit board volunteers. Of course, I didn’t ask them to get creative with the Dr. Seuss curveball because they aren’t creative bloggers like you! 😉

I am publishing their work at DonorDreams throughout the month of May. (If you are looking for some inspiration, I encourage you to periodically click over to DonorDreams. Something you read may just spark a blog post for you.)

I will ask those nonprofit professionals and volunteers who get published at DonorDreams in May to help me judge what you and other bloggers submit at nonprofitcarnival[at]gmail[dot]com. Remember, the big carnival celebration happens on Wednesday, May 29th.

Miscellaneous details?

Click here to learn more about the Nonprofit Blog Carnival. If you want to view the archives, then you want to click here.

Do you want to become a “Friend of the Carnival” and receive email blasts twice a month with reminders about the Carnival? Click here if you want to receive those reminders.

Here’s your final piece of Seuss-inspiration: “You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who’ll decide where to go . . .”

I am very much looking forward to see what you decide to do and where you decide to take this month’s Nonprofit Blog Carnival.

Here’s to your health!

Should we compensate our non-profit board volunteers?

April 29, 2013 erik Board development, volunteers

Those of you follow this blog know that I’ve been unpacking old boxes of “stuff” in my basement for the last few weeks. There is a small mountain of boxes from my last place of residence. It is stuff that was deemed unimportant at the time of unpacking, but important enough (for whatever reason) not to throw away. As I’ve encountered old non-profit training materials and memories, I’ve shared some of it here at DonorDreams blog.

Last night, I rummaged through another two boxes in an effort to get ready for garbage day on Monday. As I unpacked and recycled more stuff, I came across a March 2004 edition of BoardSource’s “Board Member” magazine. The cover story was titled: “At What Cost? The Board Compensation Debate.” James Orlikoff wrote the proponent article “Yes! In the Accountability Era, Board Members Must Be Paid.” Kevin Murphy wrote the opponent article “No! Paying Boards Is a Solution in Search of a Problem.”

I remember reading this pro-con piece almost a decade ago and I found myself firmly in the “Heck No!” camp. However, I’ve softened over time and enjoyed re-reading this article last night (especially because it took me away from the job of unpacking boxes . . . LOL).

Here is the thesis of Orlikoff’s proponents argument:

“In today’s challenging, complex, and litigious environment, board compensation may soon emerge as a key component of effective governance.”

Here is the thesis of Murphy’s opponents argument:

“. . . compensating board members not only undermines public confidence in the sector, but also begins to erode the underpinnings of our governance system. The media attention to compensation scandals makes one thing clear: With board member compensation, the potential abuses outweigh the potential benefits.”

One reason for my recent defection from the opponent’s camp is that I see many municipalities compensating their city council members. In my hometown of Elgin, Illinois, a citizen who gets voted onto the council received a $1,000 monthly stipend, the ability to participate in the city’s health insurance program, and a few other small perks.

I honestly don’t think the issue of compensation undermines public confidence in our municipal institutions, and I don’t see any erosion to the underpinnings of the governance system. In other words, I am looking at an empirical example and don’t see any evidence of what the opponents to board compensation argue.

Sure . . . the city of Elgin is not a non-profit board of directors, but it also isn’t a for-profit board either.

So, let’s look at a handful of arguments put forth by the proponents:

A lot is asked of non-profit board members, and compensation is a way to reward such work and create an incentive to do a quality job.
For-profit board members are compensated, and non-profits might need to start doing the same thing in order to compete.
Adding compensation to the picture might contribute to a more rigorous board recruitment and evaluation process.

Orlikoff ticks off 10 reasons for compensating non-profit board members, and after reading each argument I find myself shrugging my shoulders and saying “Hmmm . . . maybe.”

However, in my opinion, I am left wondering if compensation might change the dynamics around “engagement” of non-profit board members.

While I have not yet formed an opinion, if someone could show me that non-profit board members would be more engaged in activities like fundraising, financial management and board governance issues, then I might joyfully jump into the proponent’s camp.

I know that some of you might be scratching your heads right now thinking it is illegal to compensate non-profit board members. The simple answer is that it is not illegal to do so. It is just a little more complicated.

According to this BoardSource article, two percent of non-profits currently pay their board members (mostly large and complex organizations), and 25% of foundations pay their board members. Joanne Fritz at about.com answered this question in her post titled “Can a Nonprofit Compensate It’s Board Members?”

So, here I sit again in the middle of a good debate. While I understand board compensation alone won’t improve non-profit board governance, I am left wondering if it isn’t part of the solution.

What are your thoughts? Would adding a small stipend create a change in recruitment efforts? Year-end evaluations? Meeting attendance? Committee meeting attendance? Fundraising? Engagement? What are some of the problems we might create by opening this ‘can of worms’?

Before you share your thoughts in the comment box below, please consider the following quote from American business man James Casey.”

“The basic principle which I believe has contributed more than any other to the building of our business as it is today, is the ownership of our company by the people employed in it.”

I dunno . . . let’s talk about it. Here’s to your health!

The key to your non-profit’s success? LEADERSHIP!

April 26, 2013 erik Board development, organizational development

Welcome to O.D. Fridays at DonorDreams blog. Every Friday for the foreseeable future we will be looking at posts from John Greco’s blog called “johnponders ~ about life at work, mostly” and applying his organizational development messages to the non-profit community.

In a post titled “Dr. Pepper’s Shadow,” John talks about:

how we view leaders,
how our leaders’ words and deeds are hugely influential, and
how leaders can have an unintended impact on all types of situations.

I know that I’m oversimplifying John post, but everything he says points to how important leadership is to any organization. Like it or leave it . . . I believe it is likely the biggest factor in determining your successes and failures.

I’ve worked with non-profit organizations that have great programs, great mission, great vision, great staff, great systems, great policies and practices and great history, but they find themselves “in the tank” because leadership is lacking. As John talks about in his post, the leaders in my example are casting a “long shadow” and its impact is negative.

I’ve also worked with non-profit organizations that have serious gaps and deficiencies. They lack resources, their technology is bad, their systems and policies are poor or nonexistent. . . and they seem to overcome all of it. In these cases, it is always the leader who makes a huge difference.

leadership1

I’m also not just talking about a non-profit organization’s executive director. I’m also referencing board leadership.

The reason I am on a leadership kick this morning is because of an online article I read a few weeks ago about J. C. Penney at NPR.com.

Here is the story in a nutshell:

J.C. Penney’s hires a new CEO.
The new CEO boldly casts a new vision and changes everything!
Everyone follows the new CEO. (He has a LONG shadow)
The new strategy doesn’t seem to work and a lot of money is lost.
The board fires the new CEO and stock prices go up as investor confidence rises.
The board hires the previous CEO and stock prices go down.

There is a lot going on with this story, and I suspect John can carve two or three different blog posts out of it. However, I will point to the one obvious thing . . . “LEADERSHIP! Everyone places tremendous importance on this idea and that person casts a long shadow!”

leadership2

Now there are all sorts of ideas floating around about leadership. Servant leadership, situational leadership, democratic leadership, charismatic leadership, bureaucratic leadership, and the list goes on and on. There are also all different kinds of leaders.

One point of view on leadership that I’ve become enamored with in the last few years comes from organizational psychologist and management consultant, Noel Tichy, who has worked with a number of troubled and successful companies throughout the years. Here is what he has to say about successful organizations and leadership in the introduction of his book, “The Leadership Engine“:

“The answer I have come up with is that winning companies win because they have good leaders who nurture the development of other leaders at all levels of the organization. The ultimate test of success for an organization is not whether it can win today but whether it can keep winning tomorrow and the day after. Therefore, the ultimate test for a leader is not whether he or she makes smart decisions and takes decisive action, but whether he or she teaches others to be leaders and builds an organization that can sustain its success even when he or she is not around. They key ability of winning organizations and winning leaders is creating leaders.”

Uh-oh . . . I may be starting to border on another hot topic and age-old question . . . “Can leadership be taught or are leaders born?” John tackled this question (with regards to a servant leadership paradigm) in his post titled “Born, Not Made“.

I going to stop here and remain at 50,000 feet with my original observations:

leadership is important,
everyone looks at the leader and they cast a long shadow, and
leadership seems to be the great equalizer (and it can make or break your organization).

Does your non-profit organization have great leaders sitting in the CEO and board president’s chairs? How do you know if they are great leaders? Have you ever seen a great organization with bad leadership at the helm? Do you have a “point of view” around leadership like Noel Tichy or John Greco? If so, what is it?

Please use the comment box below to share your thoughts, opinions and experiences. We can all learn from each other.

Here’s to your health!

Are you building your future base of Millennial donors?

April 24, 2013 erik Fundraising, volunteers

Did you see it? Did you see the front page news in USA Today Monday on Monday, April 22, 2013? The article by Hadley Malcolm was headlined “Millennials show no e-fear“. In a nutshell, this entire article boils down to one simple idea. We are going through an economic paradigm shift, and we’re moving to something economists are calling “The Participation Economy“. I believe fundraising and non-profit professionals need to pay attention because this will likely have a HUGE impact on the future of philanthropy.

So, what is “The Participation Economy“? Jeff Fromm, who is a blogger at Millennial Marketing and co-author of Marketing to Millennials (ugh … how old fashion . . . a book . . . what is THAT?), really describes it well when he says in USA Today:

“They’re (millennials) willing to accept advertising, but they want something out of it. The willingness to share where we are, who we’re with, what we like with the virtual world is part of ‘the participation economy’.”

The reporter dug up some interesting data from the University of Southern California’s Center for the Digital Future:

25% of Millennials would trade personal info in exchange for more relevant advertising (for those of us 35+ years old only 19% agreed with this statement)
56% of Millennials would share their location to receive deals from nearby businesses (for those of us 35+ years old only 42% agreed with this statement)
51% of Millennials would share info with a company if they get something in return (for those of us 35+ years old only 40% agreed with this statement)

Consumers are willing to “participate” if they get something in return, and this especially applies to younger consumers (aka people who will have the money in the not-so-distant-future).

Looking at this from a different angle, people are willing to ENGAGE if they get something in return.

If you want more proof, I suggest that you turn on your television set. The shows that people tune into most are participatory (e.g. American Idol, The Voice, etc).

What does any of this have to do with your non-profit and your resource development program? Well, here are just a few of my thoughts:

Millennials live their lives in both the physical world as well as in the virtual world. Fundraising programs will need to set-up shop in both spaces in the future.
Ten years ago, many of my fundraising colleagues warned against over-investing in ePhilanthropy strategies because Millennial donors were young and years away from participating in serious philanthropy. Well, the oldest Millennials are now 34-years-old. Uh-oh! I think “the future” is knocking on the door. It might be time to get serious about what ePhilanthropy looks like and what strategies and tactics are effective.
The idea of PARTICIPATION holds the key to engagement for this up-and-coming generation of philanthropists. So, it stands to reason that if you want Millennials to take the place of their Baby Boomer parents over the next 10 years, then your resource development program can’t simply treat donors like Cash Station machines (ATM). We need to get beyond the “you ask and then you get” mentality. We need to shift our paradigm to “you involve, you ask, they give, and they stay involved“.

At first blush, we’re obviously talking about volunteerism being the key to engaging the next generation and developing your future base of donors. Here are a few interesting resources for those of you who understand that you have some work to do around strengthening your agency’s volunteer recruitment and management program:

However, I think focusing on your volunteer recruitment, management and retention program and strategies is just the tip of the iceberg.

Here is a crazy thought out of left field. What if you and a handful of Millennial aged supporters sat down and asked the question: “How do we build great participation (both physical and virtual) strategies into our resource development program?” Here are a few wacky questions and ideas to chew on:

How can your agency partner with the business community to entice Millennial consumers (aka donors) to “check-in” on Facebook or Foursquare at a local business. What benefit will the business get out of it? What benefit will your agency get out of it? What benefit will the consumer (aka donor) get out of it? How can the business and your agency share that data? What will you do with it once you have it? For some reason, I am envisioning a scavenger hunt fundraiser. I am also envisioning passports with QR codes linked to YouTube videos containing clues, instructions and cultivation/stewardship info.
How can you get your Millennial aged donors to participate in the act of allocating where their donation goes? Are we at the threshold of entering “The Restricted Gift” era? What can you do to involve donors as volunteers in programs that their contribution helps support?
What tools will your fundraising volunteers need in their toolbox if they are going to evangelize you mission online and solicit people in the virtual world? Will those strategies need to look different than the current structured campaigns we’ve been running in the physical world? If so, what accountability and urgency strategies will fundraising professionals need to develop in order to drive productivity?

Does your head hurt? I know mine does. So, let’s focus on one simple question: “What two or three things can you and your agency do to start transitioning your resource development program into alignment with the new ‘Participation Economy’?” Please scroll down and share a few thoughts in the comment box below.

Here’s to your health!

Fundraising professionals say “Open sez me”?

April 23, 2013 erik Donor-centered fundraising, Fundraising

When I was a kid, I loved to watch cartoons. One of the first cartoons I fell in love with was Popeye. It was because of this early childhood idol that I first ate my spinach. It is also why I’ve been struggling with something I recently read in Tom Ahern’s “Love Thy Donor” eNewsletter.

First things first, here is the passage I’m referencing in Tom’s recent publication:

Last year, my colleague Jen Shang, “the world’s first philanthropic psychologist,” as the New York Times dubbed her (and wife of chief fundraising researcher, Adrian Sargeant) was quoted. “Seven adjectives define what Americans see as a ‘moral’ person,” Jen told the reporter. Here are those seven words, in a sterling silver bracelet custom-crafted by Roxysjewelry.com. The adjectives: kind, caring, compassionate, helpful, friendly, fair, hard-working, generous and honest.

So, what does Popeye have to do with any of this for me?

Well, there is an episode where Popeye meets Ali Baba’s Forty Thieves and one of the lines of dialog is:

“Open sez me!”

These were magic words that opened something like a cave or possibly his can of spinach. The bottom line is that these were magic words.

When I read Tom’s eNewsletter, all I could hear was Popeye reciting those nine magic adjectives: kind, caring, compassionate, helpful, friendly, fair, hard-working, generous and honest.

Here were some of my initial thoughts:

Jen Shang told the New York Times reporter that there are “seven words,” but I could “nine words” on that bracelet. Where did the extra two words come from? Hmmmmm? I smell a mystery! Perhaps, this is where Scooby Doo and his meddling friends enter the picture?
Wow! How can I use these magic words in my donor communications? If I use them in a solicitation vehicle (e.g. mailing, email, social media campaign, annual campaign case brochure, etc), will they be as magical as when Popeye uttered the words “Open sez me“?
Is it the use of the those words or are these feelings and conditions I need to establish in my donor communications?
A little voice inside my head is starting to crowd out Popeye, and the name of that voice is Penelope Burk. I’m beginning to worry that this doesn’t feel very “donor centered”.
Maybe I should start getting concerned about all of these voices in my head! 😉

OK, OK, OK . . . I think I can reconcile my concerns about magic words and donor centered fundraising. However, that is another topic for another blog. I suspect a case can be made for the nine adjectives being the essence and soul of donor centered fundraising if you use them as guiding principles rather than magic words in a direct mail solicitation.

Let’s keep today’s blog post at 50,000 feet and end it with the following questions:

How do you instill any (or all) of the nine magic words as principles into your donor communications? In other words, what do you do and how do you say things to make a donor feel like they are being: Generous? Helpful? Honest? Compassionate? etc

Can you share some examples? If so, please do so in the comment box below.

Here’s to your health!

Can you read your donor’s mind?

April 22, 2013 erik Donor-centered fundraising, Fundraising

Ever since the first day I was introduced to the concept of fundraising, I’ve seen lots of people around me struggle with one basic question: “Why do people make charitable contributions to non-profit organizations?” Maybe it is just me, but I think our profession is obsessed with finding an answer to this question.

Here are just a few examples of situations where I’ve seen a version of this question debated:

Board volunteers who are reluctant fundraising solicitors trying to rationalize why they won’t make an ask,
Fundraising volunteers who are grappling with an organization’s internal case for support document, and
Fundraising professionals and non-profit executive directors who are trying to craft a strategy or develop a resource development plan that results in increased revenue.

This question reminds me of the plot in “Moby Dick“. The characters I just described above are Ishmael, and the answer to the question that I posed in the first paragraph is Moby Dick. Am I off base? Or is this one of those age-old questions that are elusive and difficult to really answer?

Last night I was back in my basement unpacking boxes and I came across more training materials from the Boy Scouts as well as Boys & Girls Clubs of America. Those two documents got me thinking about this topic.

The following are the “six reasons why donors give” according to my Boy Scout training material:

They are asked.
They believe in the ideas of the organization, and care.
To achieve prestige and recognition.
To seek power and influence.
Because of peer pressure.
For tax consideration.

When I looked at the Boys & Girls Club’s training handout, it was based on survey research found in Jerold Panas’ book “Mega Gifts“. In that book, he listed TWENTY ONE reasons donors give (e.g. major gifts individuals who give more than $1 million) to non-profit organizations and he listed them in the order these individuals ranked them. I won’t give you the entire ranked list (because you need to click the link above and buy his book), but here are the top six for comparative value to the Boy Scout’s list:

Belief in mission of the institution. (1)
Community responsibility and civic pride. (15)
Regard for staff leadership. (17)
Fiscal stability of the institution. (20)
Respect for the institution locally. (4)
Regard for volunteer leadership of institution. (9)

After each of the ranked reasons, I provided a number in parenthesis. The number in parenthesis is where fundraising professionals ranked the same reasons they believe donors give to their charities.

What conclusions can we draw from all of these lists? Here is what I think:

Generalizations are dangerous, and we need to stop stereotyping donors’ intentions.
I believe donors are like snowflakes. While there might be a few generalizations we can make, we need to invest time into getting to know our donors and understanding their individual motivations.
Reviewing all of the lists and rankings, we apparently don’t know as much as we think we know.

What strategies and tactics do you and your organization use to figure out donor intent on an individual level? Are there big reasons you believe donors give to your agency that aren’t on any of the aforementioned lists? Please share your thoughts and ideas in the comment box below because we can all learn from each other.

Here’s to your health!