Hands-On Fundraising

Donor Communications

  • About
  • Blog
  • Services
  • Contact
You are here: Home / Blog / The Oprah Syndrome

The Oprah Syndrome

English: Oprah Winfrey at the White House for ...
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I think of it as The Oprah Syndrome.

And if you raise money for a nonprofit, I’m betting you’ve run into it, too.

Picture this: you’re at a board meeting. The topic of discussion is a forecast deficit for the year.

“What are we to do?”, the finance chair moans.

Board members look around, hoping someone else will have a great idea. Otherwise, there will be tough choices. And those are so messy!

Suddenly, one member raises his hand. “Why don’t we ask Oprah for money? She’s got so much! And I’m sure she’d really care about our work.”

Thud.

(That’s the sound of the development director‘s head hitting the table.)

There you have it. The Oprah Syndrome.

The quick fix. The silver bullet. The easy answer to all your money woes.

It’s not just the board, though. I’ve seen staff do it, too. And sometimes, there’s no national celebrity involved.

“If we could just call that CEO… I just read in the paper that he makes 10 million a year! Surely we should get some of it?”

Now, if you can find a connection to the CEO, and if he has any interest in what you do – well, then maybe it’s not such a bad idea.

But chances are, you can’t.

And I find the mindset sort of troubling.

It’s not very donor-centric to assume that great wealth means an obligation to give to your organization. Even a billionaire doesn’t want to be loved only for his money.

The other reason this syndrome worries me is the wishful thinking. It’s just plain wasted time and energy. There aren’t really shortcuts.

Fundraising is much more about the daily small steps than about a moon-shot.

While you’re chasing Oprah, you’re not doing the real work of connecting to donors.

So, by all means, work on building connections. That should always be part of it.

Just don’t get sidetracked by sparkly things.

(Though, if you DO know Oprah… would you send me her address? I’ve got a GREAT program that she’d just love…)

Related

Filed Under: Annual Giving, Blog, Donor communications Tagged With: Donors, fundraising plans, Oprah Winfrey, relationships, strategic planning, wishful thinking 14 Comments

Fundraising advice served fresh to your inbox

Get yours here:

Comments

  1. greatergoodfundraising says

    March 11, 2014 at 9:20 pm

    Mary, I know exactly what you are writing about. I have dealt with those kinds of boards and staff members too. They are as bad as those who spend an incredible amount of time entering the big charity “contests” that are run by big banks like Chase. Donor centered approaches will get you much farther.

    Reply
    • Mary Cahalane says

      March 11, 2014 at 9:25 pm

      Oh, those contests! As you say, it’s the day to day, every day, building of relationships that matters in the long run.

      Thanks, Richard.

      Reply
  2. Gelinne Deirdre says

    March 11, 2014 at 10:38 pm

    Good one, Mary!

    Reply
    • Mary Cahalane says

      March 12, 2014 at 11:21 am

      Thanks!

      Reply
  3. Tracy Moavero (@TracyMoavero) says

    March 12, 2014 at 6:26 am

    An organization with many small donors has more power to effect change than one with a Fairy Godmother mega donor — or a heavy reliance on grants, for that matter. Not only is a strong base of smaller donors more stable, it has many supporters to spread the word about the org’s work, to take action on policy matters, to provide feedback and much more.

    Reply
    • Mary Cahalane says

      March 12, 2014 at 7:56 am

      Absolutely! It’s crazy to bypass the investment in a strong base of support for a quick fix.

      Reply
  4. The Other Bottom Line says

    March 12, 2014 at 11:21 am

    I love how much you say in so few words Mary – thanks for this timely post!
    Diana

    Reply
    • Mary Cahalane says

      March 12, 2014 at 11:22 am

      Thank you, Diana!

      Reply
  5. Gingerheaddad says

    March 12, 2014 at 2:25 pm

    I now have a term for that moment that always makes me go “Doh!” I have learned to always follow it up with “who can call that person to get a golf twosome for tomorrow morning.”

    Reply
    • Mary Cahalane says

      March 12, 2014 at 3:39 pm

      Exactly, Jim. So, you’ve had this “brilliant” idea… how is it *you* will be making it happen?

      And what will we be doing in the meantime?

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. The Nonprofit Wrap-Up – March 2014 says:
    April 5, 2014 at 5:13 am

    […] The Oprah Syndrome – “There aren’t really shortcuts. Fundraising is much more about the daily small steps than about a moon-shot. While you’re chasing Oprah, you’re not doing the real work of connecting to donors.” Read now >> […]

    Reply
  2. Honestly? Why you can’t raise money | Hands-on Fundraising says:
    July 1, 2014 at 8:24 pm

    […] a LOT of money!!” without actually making plans toward those goals. You risk a full-blown case of The Oprah Syndrome – “We’ll find someone with a lot of money and they’ll fund […]

    Reply
  3. How to raise more and spend less money – Hands-On Fundraising says:
    November 17, 2015 at 11:48 am

    […] it this way, or I’m not comfortable with us sending another solicitation in the same year, or maybe you could just call Oprah…) is easier than actually dealing with […]

    Reply
  4. Why you’re not raising more money ⋆ Hands-On Fundraising says:
    October 5, 2021 at 11:48 am

    […] you’ve been hoping that a few very wealthy people will feel they owe you a gift, you’re not building on a strong foundation. Oprah isn’t coming […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Fundraising advice served fresh to your inbox

Get yours here:

Search

Recent Posts

  • Are you nervous about 2023? Here’s what you can do
  • Why aren’t nonprofits getting the recognition they deserve?
  • How details help draw attention
  • Trust, more valuable than money
  • 3 Tips for Preparing Your Website for End-of-Year Giving

Work with me!

Let's talk about how I can help your organization raise more money.

Contact

  • Donor communications
  • Fundraising Strategy

Copyright © 2023 · Mary Cahalane · Hands-On Fundraising · 847 S. Main Street · #183 · Plantsville, CT 06479