Are you available to donors? Can they reach you when they want to connect?
I’ve written about a few badly done gift acknowledgments, here and here. I didn’t want to shame the organizations, so I omitted their names. But after each post, a colleague urged me to contact the offending organization. These organizations deserve to know, they said.
They were right. So I set off to find a phone number or even email address for the person at each organization in charge of fundraising.
It wasn’t easy.
Why would you hide from your organization’s donors?
These organizations have marvelous, complex websites. Colorful, functional… and inviting, but only up to a point. Because locating a staff person to actually speak with was impossible. Intentionally so, I presume.
In the first case, after a lot of sleuthing, I found a phone number. It connected me to a call center operator. She was able to take my message, but couldn’t direct me to a responsible person.
In the other case, I had to find their annual report buried on their site. Then I used LinkedIn and tried to piece together a likely staff person. Finally, I made a guess at the email address, based on the way others were formatted.
That’s just ridiculous.
Relationships are not one-way
If your fundraising has gotten so “sophisticated” that you’re not available to the public – to the people who support your nonprofit – then you’ve missed the boat. You’ve raised tactics and automation to a high level. But you’ve forgotten what we do is about relationships.
And if your message is that the relationship works one way – that is, send us your money and then leave us alone – that’s a sad commentary on your philosophy of giving.
Why are fundraisers hiding?
I looked at 16 of the largest charities in the U.S. as judged by Forbes and the Christian Science Monitor. (Nothing very scientific here – I grabbed the first couple of lists I found.) I wanted to see if they also opted to hide the chief fundraiser’s name or contact information. Out of the group, only 6 list senior staff. But even they use obscure titles that make it difficult to be sure. The other ten either have general contact forms to fill out, or nothing listed at all.
I understand these are large organizations, most with local branches or affiliates. But if the gift is solicited by a national charity, the donor ought to be able to contact someone there, don’t you think?
I also understand the demands on senior fundraisers’ time. We’re all busy. But if you won’t prioritize connecting with your donors, hire a staff person to do it. And then list that person’s name and contact information where it can be easily found.
Treating fundraising like a business – transactional, formalized, automated – makes it very difficult for living, breathing donors to make a personal connection.
Even if you have a great website.
greatergoodfundraising says
Mary, I really enjoyed this post because you hit on a very important point. For organizations who are supposed to be building strong relationships, they seem to do everything in their power to avoid having any sort of real contact with them. I consider myself fairly savvy when it comes to exploring websites, but there have been many that do not list their staff members or provide contact numbers. Emails, when provided, get answered days later, if at all. Whether you are trying to contact development staff, human resources, or an executive director, getting through to a person is minimal. Things must change if organizations are going to grow donor support for future success.
Mary Cahalane says
Absolutely! Thanks, Richard.
Michael J. Rosen, CFRE says
Mary, I congratulate you for writing another excellent post! Like Richard, I’m amazed at how many development professionals intentionally avoid having any kind of relationship with donors beyond the transactional.
I once spoke at a fundraising conference where I told my audience, “Make it easy for people to contact you.” I told the audience to provide their name, title, and FULL contact information (including phone, email, and snail-mail address) whenever communicating with people. I told the group:
1. People are more likely to reach out to a name than to a faceless institution. So, give them a name to contact.
2. Give people your full contact information. Some people will prefer reaching out to you one way while others will prefer another medium.
3. Don’t assume they already know who to contact and how. ALWAYS provide a name and full contact information.
Interestingly, one person in my audience challenged me in front of the whole group. She said she read an article that stated that email signature blocks should NOT contain one’s full contact information. As we went back and forth, she again cited the author of a magazine article she had read who espoused that belief. At that point, I actually screamed, “HE’S WRONG! AND YOU CAN QUOTE ME ON THAT!” Then, I added, “Why on Earth would you make it difficult for people to give you their money? If you want people to give, don’t ask them to first hunt for your contact information. If you make them hunt for it, they won’t. And you’ll lose the gift. Instead, make it easy for people to give you their money.”
Why do so few development professional recognize that their job is to develop relationships?
Mary Cahalane says
I really don’t know. But if they don’t want all those “bothersome” donors, I’ll take them gladly.
myersbowman says
It’s corporate philanthropy following the dictates and practices of corporate America. It may be philanthropic, but it’s big business.
Mary Cahalane says
You’re absolutely right. It sure makes you feel warm and fuzzy, doesn’t it?
Funny thing is, they’ll spend millions coming up with heart-wrenching campaigns that tell such emotional stories. Then at the same time, hide behind systems meant to discourage any human contact. Even looking at it unemotionally, that doesn’t add up!
Shannon says
Thank you so much for bringing this up! To be honest, when I am looking to work with a nonprofit, I look to see what information they make available regarding their staff. When I see it, whether a bio or a just email/phone, it tells me that those individuals are valued team members and there is greater investment both by them and in them. When there is no contact information for individuals, that tells me employees are just cogs in the wheel and don’t ahve anything of value to contribute to the organization’s mission. At least that’s my perception.
Mary Cahalane says
Very smart, Shannon! It does say something about the entire organization, doesn’t it?