Let’s Work Together – The Importance of a Good Relationship with the Program Department

In my last post, I wrote about the importance of a good relationship between the development and marketing departments.  Now I’d like to go a step further and explore the importance of a good relationship with the program department. Of course, you want a good relationship between all staff, but I am going to focus on marketing and development’s relationship with program.

Don’t create silos. Always remember that you are all working for the same mission.

Process vs. results
One key to a good relationship is to understand how the different departments work.

The program department focuses on the process – serving the people in need, while development and marketing are more concerned about the results – how you are actually making a difference.  It’s all important.

Sometimes there is a conflict between process and results, but you can’t have programs without fundraising and marketing, and you can’t raise money and awareness without strong programs. The departments need each other. 

Sharing success
The heart of fundraising and marketing messages is how you are making a difference for the people you serve.  The program staff is your connection to get stories, photos, and even videos to share with donors and potential donors.    

It can get tricky. Development and marketing need to be updated with client numbers and accomplishments, so they can share them with donors.  But program is busy serving clients and may not see that as a priority.

Plan ahead
You need to be respectful of the program staff’s time.  Don’t approach someone the day before your newsletter needs to go out and ask for a success story ASAP.

I always recommend nonprofits have an ongoing collection of stories, profiles, and photos to use, so you aren’t scrambling at the last minute.

If you get grant funding, you must work with program staff to determine what outcomes you will measure in the grant. Also, program needs to know when your grant reports are due, so they can give you results.

Again, don’t wait until the last minute.

Come up with a system
You need to come up with a system where the departments can work together without feeling overburdened.  This could mean sharing success stories at staff meetings; regular meetings between the departments to discuss stories, accomplishments, and funding needs; or program providing written monthly updates of client numbers and accomplishments. 

Seeing your programs in action
Development and marketing can sometimes be removed from the program work of your organization, especially if it’s done offsite.  If possible find ways for other staff to meet clients, visit your community center, or volunteer at your food bank.  

The more you know how the programs work, the easier it is to put this in human terms and share it with donors.  I used to work for a mentoring organization and staff were required to take the mentor training and encouraged to attend group activities with the mentors and mentees.  Doing that gave me a deeper understanding of the organization’s mission.

Working together
If you can create an atmosphere where the departments understand each other’s role, realize that program needs to share success stories with development and marketing, and know that those departments need to spend time seeing the programs in action, you will have a better chance of working together to accomplish your mission.

Here’s more on the importance of working together.
How is the relationship in your organization?

Let’s Work Together – The Importance of a Good Relationship Between Marketing and Development

If your organization has separate marketing and development departments, how well do you work together?  Do you even work together, or do you get territorial about responsibilities?


Remember, it’s not a competition between departments. There is a huge amount of overlap between fundraising and marketing. You are all working for the same mission. If you distance yourself from each other, what is popularly known as siloing, you are not doing what’s best for your organization.

Here are a few things to keep in mind.

Everyone in your organization has a role in marketing
All staff, board members, and volunteers are brand ambassadors for your organization.  You should have a consistent set of messages that you use in all your materials.  If you don’t, here’s some information about creating a message platform.  Make Your Messages Clear and Consistent 

Everyone should have an elevator pitch and be prepared to share your organization’s messages.

Everyone in your organization has a role in fundraising
Fundraising is the lifeblood of all nonprofit organizations.  Creating a culture of philanthropy Building a culture of philanthropy in your organization lets everyone know the importance of fundraising. 


Your role as an ambassador includes fundraising as well.  Depending on the size of the organization, sometimes it can be all hands on deck during annual appeal time as everyone pitches in to get it out.  Staff might be asked to send annual appeal letters to family and friends, as well as invite them to events.

PROBLEM AREAS AND HOW YOU CAN WORK TOGETHER
There may be times when the two departments might clash.  Here it’s important to go beyond what is development’s responsibility and what is marketing’s responsibility, and remember you are all working on behalf of your mission. 

I like this quote from donor communications expert Tom Ahern – “The heads of development and marketing have to accept that they are oxen pulling the same wagon, a wagon labeled ‘increasing community support’.”


You need clear and consistent messages
As I mentioned before, your organization needs consistent messages in all materials, fundraising and others.  Your messages also need to be conversational and easy to understand – no jargon. 

There may be a case when someone in marketing makes edits to your fundraising letter so that it includes your organization’s messaging and that it is easily understood by your donor. It’s important not to take this personally.  It’s not your writing, it’s your organization’s.  Your fundraising letter needs to captivate your donors.

You need control of your communication
A large part of fundraising is building relationships with donors and one way to do that is to share success stories and updates by email, social media, and on your website.

Marketing and development should work together on an editorial calendar that includes fundraising campaigns and events, along with newsletter submissions and other updates.  You can’t have people sending out three different messages one day and then not communicate again for three weeks.

In many organizations one person is in charge of controlling the flow of communication that goes through the channels listed above and often that is someone in marketing.  That doesn’t mean that someone in development can’t send out fundraising messages, but you need coordination so that you are sending out the right amount of messages.  This person also needs to know how use the platforms (especially the email template) so everything you send out has a consistent look.

Development needs understand that most communication goes through marketing.  Marketing needs to understand that one of the main purposes of the newsletter and other updates is to communicate with donors and potential donors.  See how the two departments are so interconnected?

The links below provide more insight to the importance of a good relationship between development and marketing. One key is support from leadership.

How is the relationship in your organization?

In my next post I’ll write about the importance of a good relationship with the program department.

The Personal Touch

I recently received a mailing from a nonprofit organization highlighting its 2012 accomplishments.  As I read it, I was struck by the impersonal tone and that the organization wasn’t focusing on the people they serve.

I don’t mean to single out this organization, because I know others are guilty of the same thing. This organization does great work and to their credit they did try to engage with their donors, they thanked their donors, and they didn’t ask for another donation. 

That said I would have recommended something more personal. Here are a few things to keep in mind when you communicate with your donors. 

Not all donors are the same
The mailing seemed more appropriate for grant or corporate funders.  This organization specializes in cancer treatment and research. Some of the accomplishments they featured were advances in their research, grants received, and their national and local rankings.

The only donation I ever made to them was when I bought their holiday cards.  I was drawn to the organization and their work because I lost a beloved uncle to cancer last fall.

People donate to nonprofit organizations for a variety of reasons, but many give because they have a personal connection to the cause.  These donors are going to want to hear how you are helping people.

Be conversational
In this mailing, the organization referenced a new community cancer care clinic they opened at a local health center, located in what they referred to as a “medically underserved community.”  That’s a great accomplishment, but the word underserved sounds like jargon to me.  

I think you should be conversational with donors and not use jargon or clinical sounding words.  Imagine yourself talking to a friend and use everyday language. 

How are you making a difference?
The organization shared a list of accomplishments that focused much more on their success than the specific impact they had on the people they serve.

I would have liked a story about a person whose life benefited from this new clinic.  Perhaps they could have highlighted a patient who used to have to travel miles to get care and now it’s available a few blocks from her home.

The organization also emphasized its “compassionate care”.  What does that mean?  Maybe they could have included stories and testimonials demonstrating that.

Use engaging photos
All photos in this mailing were black and white and most of them were pictures of researchers.  I know you can’t always include photos of patients, but maybe feature some who had successful treatments, along with their stories. 

They did include a photo of kids hanging out with some baseball players.  More photos like this would have been better.

Finally, photos are usually more captivating when they are in color.

What are you sending out? 
Take some time to look at the messages and materials you are sending out.  Are they appropriate for each donor group?   Are you focused on thanking your donors and showing how you are making a difference for 
people you serve?

You’ll do a better job of engaging your donors if you can be personal.

Your Attention Please

Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve written about the importance of engaging your donors.  One way is regular communication with them.  You may have created a plan and chosen donor-centered content, which is great.  Now you need to get their attention to get your messages across. 

Think short
You might have better luck with shorter more frequent messages.  Aim for every week or every two weeks.  If you only send out a monthly e-newsletter, your donor might miss your email due to a number of reasons – vacation, work, family.

You only have a few seconds
When sending email choose subject lines that will capture your donor’s attention.  February Newsletter is not as enticing as Learn How You Can Help Prevent Childhood Hunger.  The same goes for headlines in your newsletter and website.

Consistency is key
All your messages and materials, both electronic and print, should have a consistent look.  Your donors will start to recognize your brand, and hopefully see you as a reputable source.

Make it easy
Your donors are busy and are receiving messages from a variety of different sources besides your organization.  In most cases, they are going to scan your message, so make sure they still get the gist of what you want to convey.

Your messages should be easy to read and scan.  Use a white background with black type.  Use lots of white space and bold headings.  In addition, use at least a 12 point font (bigger is better).

Make it visual
Photos and graphics can tell a story in an instant, but in certain venues such as email, they can create problems.  Here are some ways to prevent this. Top Five Worst Nonprofit Email Marketing Mistakes: #3 Assuming Users Will See Your Graphics and here is a creative way to enable images. How to get donors to enable images in email
Photos are great in print pieces and on Facebook.

You need good content
That might seem obvious, but if your donor has come this far and is ready to read your message, don’t shortchange them. Put yourself in your donor’s shoes.  What would they be interested in?  In most cases personal stories triumph over a bunch of statistics.

When creating content, remember the four Cs – be clear, concise, conversational, and compelling. The 4 Cs of Writing Good Content 

Think multichannel
Use different channels.  Besides email, communicate by social media, on your website, and through the mail.  Measure which channels work best for you.  You can communicate the same message through different channels. For example, include links to your newsletter on social media.

Be mobile friendly
Many people read email and look at social media and websites on their mobile devices or tablets.  I am not a technology expert, but I do know that when I read content on my iPhone, I’m much happier when it fits nicely on the screen.  This will make your donors happier too, and that’s what you want.

Here are some resources about going mobile.

Be known but don’t be annoying
Some organizations are afraid of annoying their donors by communicating too often, but most don’t communicate enough.  Remember your donors might miss some of your messages. 

Staying in touch once a week and sending out short, engaging messages will help you get your donor’s attention.

Show Your Donors The Love

Valentine’s Day is coming up. This is the perfect time to thank your donors and show how much you appreciate their support.   It’s also timely if you haven’t thanked them since you sent a thank you letter after you received their annual appeal.  You did send thank you letters after your annual appeal, didn’t you?

In my last post, I wrote about finding ways to engage your donors and one suggestion was thank you messages.

If you want to send out a thank you message on Valentine’s Day, you may not have time to do cards or a video, but going the electronic route is fine.  Send an email and post something on social media.  

In addition, put a thank you message on your home page. Keep it up all year, although you can change it periodically.  Phrase it something like this.
    
Thank you to all our donors! Your support makes it possible for us to (list ways in which you are helping the people you serve). 

If you prefer not to acknowledge Valentine’s Day, I still think February is a good time to send out an upbeat thank you message.  Unless you live in Florida or California, it’s cold and snowy, and kind of bleak.  People may be getting tired of winter and need some cheering up.

Share an update or success story 
Besides saying thank you, share a brief update or success story.  Emphasize how you couldn’t have helped someone without the donor’s support.  If you included some 2013 goals in your annual appeal, sharing regular updates of your accomplishments is a great way to engage.

Get creative
Make your thank you message really positive and fun.  One idea is a photo of people holding up thank you signs.  I’ve included links with a couple of examples below.  The first one is actually a video, but you could do the same thing with a photo.  By the way, this is a great example of a video.  Not only does it say thank you, but it showcases the work the organization does and the people they serve.


Of course, it doesn’t hurt to feature cute kids.

Visual messages are a great way to engage.  Besides photos, create a thank you illustration, infographic, or word cloud. 

Keep it up
Keep thinking of ways to thank your donors!  You really can’t say thank you enough. 

If your budget allows it, think about sending out cards or creating a video. 

At certain times of the year, like Valentine’s Day or Thanksgiving, people expect to receive messages of gratitude, but imagine how surprised your donor might be if they receive something in May or August?

And if you are looking for creative ways to say thank you, maybe these posts will inspire you.

How are you thanking your donors?

Find Ways To Engage With Your Donors

This post was featured in the February 2013 Blog Carnival

Have you heard the dismal news about donor retention?  It doesn’t need to be that way.  One solution to keeping your donors is better engagement.

Try to engage with your donors by email once a week.  If you use social media, you can communicate more often  –  generally once a day on Facebook and a couple of times a day on Twitter.

Quality counts
Whatever you send out, make it donor-centric.  Focus on success stories.  Show how the donor was part of that success.  And always show gratitude. 

Be welcoming
If you are not are already doing this, send a welcome message to your new email subscribers. Personalize it, say thank you, and give a brief summary of what types of information they will receive.

What about my newsletter?
Perhaps you send out an email newsletter once a month or every two weeks, and that’s fine.  While it’s generally recommended that nonprofits communicate with their supporters anywhere between once a week and once a month, I would aim for closer to once a week.

One issue with e-newsletters is that they are too long.  If you are sending out a monthly newsletter, keep it to a few articles.  People have short attention spans.

Testing time
Here is a good opportunity to test.  Measure to see how people respond to short weekly updates as opposed to your longer monthly newsletter.

You can still send out newsletters, and supplement them with short messages in between. 

What should I send out?
Remember to keep your audience in mind.  Also, keep your messages short.  Make them easy to read and scan.  Besides providing updates, here are a few other ways to keep your supporters engaged.

Surveys
Send out short surveys.  You can ask people their opinion on an issue or something else relevant to your work.  Make people feel included.  One nonprofit I know of that sells holiday cards asks folks to vote on their favorite designs.
If people respond well to your short surveys, perhaps you could do one a month.

Here is more information about creating surveys and other ways to get feedback from your supporters. HOW TO GET FEEDBACK FROM YOUR SUPPORTERS

Advocacy alerts
Send out an advocacy alert on a piece of legislation that affects the people you serve.

You’ll have more success if you make it easy to take action.  Provide a sample phone script, letter, or email template.  You could send out an existing advocacy email from another organization, if it’s too hard to create your own.  Be sure to credit that organization.

Another way to engage is to report back results on that legislation.

Say thank you
Why not make a point to send a thank you message to your donors each month.  Share a success story and let them know that you couldn’t have accomplished that without their support.

Always find ways to say thank you.

Invite people to join you on social media
Send an invitation via email to join you on Facebook and Twitter.  But don’t stop there.  Show your supporters what they will get out of it.

Remember that social media is social, so ask questions to engage folks.  Start a conversation.

Here some ways to build a community on Facebook. 7 reasons your nonprofit Facebook page has no fans 

Share photos and videos
Share photos of the people you serve.  Not all email providers display photos, so you’ll want to include a link to link to your website. Facebook is great for sharing photos.

You might not have the capacity to create a video, but if you do, make it high quality and short.  Share videos of the people you serve participating in activities or better yet saying thank you to your donors!

Other ideas include sharing testimonials and quotes.  I favor stories over statistics, but you could share some interesting statistics with a link to a story.  Phrase it, Did you know…..?

Get organized
If you use an editorial calendar, you shouldn’t have a problem coming up with and organizing your content.  Make it cross channel and include email, social media, website, and print.  Figure out what to send out and when.  Here is more information on creating editorial calendars.  Your Most Powerful Social Media Tool for 2013 

Keep measuring how people respond to your messages.  If you are not getting much of a response from your surveys, either do them differently or find another way to engage.

All roads lead to your website
While I’ve been emphasizing email communication, and to a certain extent, social media, often these messages include links to your website.
Keep your entire website up-to-date and engaging.  You never know if your supporters will travel from your web link to another page on your website.

It’s very important for you to communicate with your donors regularly and keep them interested and engaged in your work. 

Let’s hope next year at this time we won’t be reading all these dismal statistics about donor retention.

Your Audience Isn’t Everyone

Have you or someone in your organization ever said “We want everyone to know about us.” Everyone, really?  I hate to break it to you, but EVERYONE is not interested in your organization, even though you may be doing great work.

Kivi Leroux Miller of Nonprofit Marketing Guide.com points out there is no general public, and when you try to reach out to everyone, you reach out to no one.

In addition, just saying you want people to know about you (e.g. raising awareness) is a vague goal.  You need a call to action, such as donating, volunteering, contacting your legislator, or attending an event. With a clear call to action,you will also raise awareness.

Who is your audience?
Take some time to put together audience profiles or personas.  You can survey or interview your supporters, or just put together a profile to the best of your knowledge.  The more accurate you can make it, the better.

Here is more information on putting together audience personas.

Make a point to get to know your audience.  Listen to what they have to say about you.  Social media is a great platform for that.  

Communicating with your audience
Once you figure out who your audience is, visualize yourself communicating with them, or better yet, with one person.  Your messages should meet their needs and interests.

Remember that one size doesn’t fit all. Messages to donors will be different from messages to volunteers.  Come up with content which will persuade that group to take action. Create clear, concise, conversational, and compelling messages.  The 4 Cs of Writing Good Content
Your audience is a great resource
As you plan to find new donors, volunteers, and other supporters, you usually don’t have to look very far.

How many people who subscribe to your mailing list and follow you on social media are donors?   If they aren’t, they are great candidates to become ones.  Much more so than people who don’t know you.

Your volunteers are potential donors and your donors are potential volunteers.

Also, social media makes it easy for supporters to share information such as attending events, volunteering, and even donating with their friends.

You often don’t have to go far to find new supporters.

Track your audience
Of course, you will need to expand your audience and your best bet is people who will be most likely to support your cause.

Keep track of how your audience responds.  Who donated to your annual appeal?  Was it current donors, mailing list subscribers, or event attendees?  Who is more likely to volunteer – seniors, people in faith communities or colleges students?

Keep this in mind as you seek to expand your audience.

Finding an audience through media coverage
Getting media coverage is not as essential for publicity as it was in the past.  Now you can also communicate the same information via your website and social media.

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t seek media coverage.  But plan carefully.  Besides coming up with a newsworthy story, choose publications that will be most likely to publish it and ones that have a similar audience.  Sometimes small and local will bring you better results.

Always remember that your audience isn’t everyone.  The more you know who your audience is and can create messages they will respond to, the more successful you will be.

Resolutions Nonprofits Need to Make

Happy New Year! 

The New Year is a time when many people make resolutions in their personal lives. I’ve never been that fond of making personal New Year’s resolutions, but try to strive for continuous improvement throughout the year.

Nonprofit organizations do need to make resolutions. You have to plan and strategize in order to be successful. 

Here are some resolutions for you and your organization to make and use throughout the year.

Stick with your plan
One of the biggest problems with making New Year’s resolutions is that people don’t keep them.  In my last post I wrote about creating plans and strategies to prepare for 2013.  Do you create fundraising and marketing plans and then ignore them?

Make a resolution to stick with your plans and monitor your progress.  If something is not working, you can always make adjustments.

This Dashboard can help you monitor your progress. Library of Sample Dashboard Indicators 

Be realistic
If you want to lose weight, it’s unrealistic to say you will lose 20 pounds in a month.  It may also be unrealistic for your nonprofit to hold a huge gala or produce a glossy print newsletter. Figure out what will work best given the resources you have.

Make room for growth
In our personal lives, we might want to learn a new skill or take a class.  This should apply to our professional lives, too.  Make a resolution to learn something new or build on existing skills.

Your organization should also take advantage of new opportunities. Be realistic, of course.  As you look to increase your donor base, reach out to people who will be receptive to your cause.

Do your best
Always strive to do your best within your capabilities.  If it’s only feasible to send out a monthly e-newsletter, make it the best newsletter you can produce.  Give your readers interesting stories that show how you are making a difference. 

Be nice
Many people want to improve their personal relationships, and this should also apply to professional ones as well.  If you want people to be nice to you, you need to be nice to them first.

Be nice to the people who support you.  Send thank you letters right away.  Keep your supporters engaged and interested in your work.  Make your messages positive and conversational.  Always be warm and friendly.

Don’t give up
If something isn’t working, don’t give up.  Perhaps you need to do things differently.  Take a moment to assess what you have done.  Maybe your fundraising campaign didn’t do as well as expected because you targeted the wrong people or didn’t use engaging messages.

Figure out what adjustments you need to make and keep going.

Relax
Some of us work on reducing the stress in our personal lives, and the same should be true in the workplace.

You have a lot to do this year.  But that doesn’t mean you have to work every single minute and stress out about your to-do list. Take breaks and time for yourself.  Creating a better work-life balance will help make you more productive.

Remember that these resolutions are just as important in June as they are now, so keep them up.

Do you have any resolutions to add?

Best of luck for a successful 2013!

Get Ready for the New Year

It’s hard to believe the New Year has arrived.  I hope 2012 was a successful year for you.  But if your marketing and fundraising didn’t go as well as you would have liked, take some time to analyze what worked and what didn’t, if you haven’t already done so.

Creating plans and strategies can help. Here is some information that you can use as you can continue to prepare for 2013.

Marketing Plan
If you have never created a marketing and communications plan, now is a good time to get started.  A few things to keep in mind – Raising awareness is a vague goal.  You need a call to action, such as donating, volunteering, attending an event, or contacting your legislator.

Also, your audience is not everyone.  Target the people or groups who will be most receptive to your message.

Finally, don’t forget to measure your progress at least once a quarter.

Fundraising Plan
You also need a fundraising plan, and it needs to include a donor relations component.  

Plan to raise money from a variety of sources and be realistic about what makes sense for your organization.

Map out each step of your annual appeal or an event.  And, remember to monitor your progress.

Donor Relations
You should spend just as much time on donor retention as donor acquisition.

Come up with ways to thank your donors all year round.  Of course, you must send a great thank you letter immediately after receiving a donation. 

Other ways to show gratitude include seasonal (Valentine’s Day, spring etc.) thank you notes or email messages, holding an open house or some other type of event for your donors, creating a thank you video, and providing donors with regular updates via a newsletter and social media.

Ideally, if you keep your donors engaged and interested in your work, not only will they give again, but they may give at a higher level.

Editorial Calendar
Does the idea of coming up with content to share with your supporters on a regular basis stress you out?  Don’t worry, it doesn’t have to.

Create an editorial calendar that lists important dates and events, as well as “evergreen” content – stories you can use at anytime. 

Be sure to have a collection of stories and profiles you can use in your newsletter or website.  

Remember that your updates need to focus on success stories that show your donors and other supporters how you are making a difference.

Taking the time to plan, strategize, and monitor your progress is time well spent.

Best of luck to you for a successful New Year!

Is Your Website Donor-Friendly?


December is the busiest month for fundraising, which means your website will be receiving an increased number of visitors.


Even if you mailed an annual appeal letter, many people donate online.  If you are sending out reminders by email and social media, you are also including a link to the donation page on your website. 

Are you ready for all your website visitors?  Here are some ways to ensure that your website is donor-friendly.

Your donation page
Take a moment to check your donation page.  Is it easy to use and navigate? Does it have a compelling message and photo?  Is that message consistent with the one in your annual appeal letter?

Read on for more information on creating a great donation page. 
Your home page
Let’s say you have a donor who wants to contribute, but doesn’t have immediate access to the link to your donation page.  That person will Google your organization and be taken to your home page.

This means your home page should not only have a prominent Donate Now button, but a friendly message letting people know your annual appeal is underway.

More information please
Having a donor-friendly website applies to all your web pages.  What if someone wants to know more about a program you mention in your annual appeal?  Does your site have that information?   Is it easy to read and understand?

Maybe you have a prospective donor who wants to find out more about what you do before they give.  Do you have some compelling stories and accomplishments to share?

Perhaps someone else wants to volunteer.  Do you have up-to-date and clear information on how they can get involved?

You never know what will happen once someone enters your website.  You need to be prepared for them to visit multiple pages, and of course, you’d like them to.   

Are all your web pages up-to-date and audience-friendly?  Use this website checklist to find out. A Website Checklist

This information is relevant all year round, not just during a fundraising drive.

The internet is still a popular place to get information, and now it is becoming the preferred method of donating.  Don’t miss out by not having a donor-friendly website.