Do any of these nonprofit fundraising challenges sound familiar?
- We need to raise more money from our individual donors
- But we don’t have lots of money to spend
- I’m sure our communications could be better, but we can’t afford to hire a big agency
- Our response rates are low, even with our active donors
- We get first-time donors, but then they drop off
- Help! Our donor list is shrinking
Does any of this sound familiar?
I get it. That’s been me, for years, working with small to medium-sized nonprofits, and struggling to build a stronger donor base.
Let’s look at some of the root problems that put you in this spot.
- Nonprofit starvation cycle
- Under-resourced and over-worked staff
- Limited donor communication
- Poorly kept (and understood) donor information
Fundraising challenge: Starving for good
In most organizations, fundraising is the key income source. (That may be different for some… my beloved arts organizations may bring in more revenue from ticket sales.)
Fundraising is critical to an organization’s existence. Yet… too often, fundraisers are expected to work magic. You’re given few resources, no training, and too much on one person’s plate to do anything well.
Too real?
Starvation thinking
We focus on starvation (what we can’t have or spend) rather than abundance (if we invested, we’d have the funding we need). A healthy organization invests in itself. You have to feed yourself or you won’t be able to feed others. (You already know that.)
But you don’t control the operating budget. So, now what?
Abundance thinking
There is a wealth of information available online, of course. Some of it is valuable, some is not. I can’t list every good source of learning, but here are some sources I turn to.
You’ll also need to lobby from the inside. Tie every new or improved skill to improved results. Draw that line clearly for the powers that be. Show them why investing in fundraising is the smart, and financially wise, move.
Fundraising challenge: Good staff means good results
Tight budgets affect not just what you can spend on fundraising, but who you can spend it on. And if you lead your team, you already know that a great staff member is worth the money.
So when you’re hiring, make the case for a decent salary and benefits. Find the best person. Then treat them well. Your team is only as good as the people you work with.
Offering learning opportunities to your staff also helps. They want to know more, to do better, just like you. And that investment should result in more donations.
Fundraising challenge: Ghosting on your donors or potential donors
So, your budget is tight. You’ve decided to depend on email or social media because it’s “free.”
The fatal flaw is that choosing “free” doesn’t consider your donors’ communication preferences.
Mail – the old-fashioned, on-paper, stick-a-stamp-on-it, communication – still matters, very much. Paired with email, it’s at its best.
Email alone may seem like a bargain, but you’re shouting into the abyss if people don’t respond.
And if you’re keeping your mailings down to once or twice yearly, you’re disappearing from donors’ minds. Let’s face it, your organization won’t stay top of mind (family, their jobs, health worries… the list can be long). That’s unless you communicate regularly. AND in a way that captures their interest. And if you do it well, their hearts.
Small shop? Make small your superpower. If you only have a small number of donors, you can treat them like dear friends. They won’t mind if your paper isn’t fancy. And they’ll respond if you speak to them personally, and often.
There’s a simple cycle of communications you should focus on: ask, thank, report. You can add a different kind of ask in there, too. Ask for information with a survey.
Repeat this cycle throughout the year.
Good communication is the heart of fundraising. Don’t skimp. Make it emotional and personal. Tell stories. Be direct. Better response rates and retention should follow.
Fundraising challenge: If you don’t know where you are, how can you plan?
Keeping good data is so important. It may seem boring, but that data is each of your donors, condensed. You wouldn’t want to treat them poorly, would you?
Find a good system. There are so many out there – priced from very high to affordable. The price is not always a good way to rate them, however.
You need something that keeps the information you need. A system that’s easy to learn and use. One that gives you the reports you need.
You may want extras, like wealth-screening. But nail the basics and you’ll be in good shape.
Then, of course, GIGO… make sure whoever does your data entry does it meticulously. It’s amazing how a few mistakes can make a mess of all your information!
Supported staff, good communication, clean data… that’s the answer to nonprofit fundraising challenges.
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