I’ve been writing fundraising copy for a long time. And from the very start, I faced one problem over and over and over again.
- A weak ask?
- No good story?
- No urgent need?
No. Though those pop up all the time.
What has consistently gotten in the way is interference from people who aren’t focused on fundraising.
It might be the boss. Or the well-meaning communications folks. Or a board member.
Though they all care a lot about your organization…
They don’t know fundraising like you know fundraising.
They don’t know that your job isn’t to show off the organization.
They don’t know that yes, we do use contractions. ALL. THE. TIME.
They don’t know that a longer letter does better. Or that it doesn’t really have to sound like them, so long as it sounds like someone the donor will relate to.
And they don’t understand that you have to show a problem. Not how your organization solved one in the past. But something that needs fixing, now. It doesn’t mean your organization isn’t doing its work.
Donors are your partners and they want to solve problems
Your work is meant to be done with caring people who give. And that your organization doesn’t need kudos, it needs money.
I feel like I’ve said this so often, but here we go, one more time: your brand isn’t your new logo or colors. Your brand isn’t some identity statement.
For fundraising, your brand is how people feel about your organization.
Your job as a fundraiser isn’t to make your organization famous. It’s not really about clicks. Definitely not about impressions.
It’s about relationships. And yeah, it’s about checks.
The thing about fundraising is it’s measurable. I mean, down to what’s in the checking account measurable.
So good fundraisers track a lot of metrics. Response rates, average gifts, the number of active and lapsed donors… there are lots of ways to track just how successful you are.
Solid ways. There’s no real room to fudge in fundraising.
So everyone not involved in raising actual dollars? Step back.
What if you’re the CEO?
And if you’re the CEO, your job is to hire good fundraisers. People who know their stuff.
And let them do their work.
Keep other staff members and board members off their backs.
Do you hover over the plumber and tell her how to do her work? Do you second-guess your surgeon?
Trust your fundraisers. Back them up. Let go of the need to have three sets of non-fundraiser eyes on everything that goes out.
At best, you’re slowing the process down.
At worst, you’re killing your fundraising.
Photo by Katt Yukawa on Unsplash
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