fundraising

Do You Have Good Stories To Tell?

Ann Green brand identity, Communications, fundraising, marketing, writing


Photo by UNE Photos via Flickr
If you are making a difference in someone’s life or in the community, you have good stories to tell. The best stories are ones about the people you serve and not about your organization. You can tell your stories in writing, in a video, and in pictures.

Written Stories
When writing a story use classic storytelling devices. Give it a beginning, middle, and end.  Good stories also include conflict or a struggle.

If you are writing about people, use names to make it personal. You can change someone’s name to protect the person’s privacy if needed.   

You need to grab someone’s attention right away. Your stories should also capture emotion. In the words of Maya Angelou – “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

Keep your stories short and limit the use of statistics. You can follow up your story with a statistic, if you want to. Try something like this:

Every Wednesday Sarah wakes up at 5:00 a.m. to catch the #45 bus to try to get to the front of the line at the community food bank by the time it opens. Mornings are hectic and she also needs to get her kids ready for school.

If Sarah misses the bus, the next one doesn’t come for another hour. If she arrives at the food bank too late, she finds the shelves contain slim pickings. Sarah is just one of the X number of town residents who rely on the food bank.
Include stories in your fundraising and marketing materials. You could open your fundraising appeal with a story like the one above and then lead into the ask.  Put stories on your website. This is often a place where newcomers visit, and a story is a great way to introduce your organization.  Include a client story/profile in your newsletter. I used to work for a mentoring organization and we would a feature a different mentor/mentee match each month.

Work with your program staff to find these great stories. They can refer you to people to interview and help get any necessary permissions.

Here are some more tips on creating stories.

4 Ways Stories Can Help Build Your Cause

Six Common “Character” Flaws in Nonprofit Storytelling (Part I)

Six Common “Character” Flaws in Nonprofit Storytelling (Part II)

Put Persuasive Storytelling to Work for Your Nonprofit

Video
You can take some of your written stories and transfer them to video. Showing footage with a voiceover is the most compelling. You could film Sarah’s journey and condense it to a few minutes.  Record action footage of the people you serve, such as kids participating in an afterschool program or tutoring sessions.

You can interview clients and have them tell their story. Sometimes this works and sometimes it doesn’t. Not everyone is a future TV star.  Find compelling subjects who are good on camera to ensure that you have an interesting video. 

If you are going to produce a video, make sure it’s good quality. Find an experienced person to shoot and produce it. If cost is an issue, you may be able to find someone to a produce a video at no cost.

Most importantly, keep it short. Videos on your website or social media should last just a few minutes. You can create longer videos to use at fundraising or recruiting events, but stick to 10 minutes or less.

Video Resources 
8 great examples of nonprofit storytelling

Nonprofit storytelling tips from the pros

Winners From 2011 DoGooder Nonprofit Video Awards
Photos
Photographs can tell a story in an instant. People may not take time to read a story or watch a video, but they shouldn’t be able to miss an engaging photo. 

Every year or two take a set of photos and use them on your website, annual reports, fundraising letters, newsletters, and social media.  It’s okay if you use some of the same ones.  It helps with your brand identity. 

Choose compelling pictures of the people you serve. When using action shots, make sure you can see peoples’ faces and not the backs of their heads. Give some thought to the layout, too. Don’t make it random. 

And make sure they are good quality. Invest in a good camera and photographer. You can often find professional photographers willing to work pro bono, if cost is an issue. 

Here are some tips of what to do and what to avoid.
Photos Rule in Content Marketing for Your Nonprofit
More information on creating good photographs,
Great Nonprofit Design from Save the Children
Two Things You Can Do to Make Your Photos Look Awesome

Nine photo tips for nonprofit storytelling
Again, if you are making a difference, you should have good stories to tell.  Share your stories!

How do you tell your stories?

Finding Quality Donors and Keeping Them

Ann Green donor relations, fundraising, marketing

Photo by roboppy via Flickr

Some nonprofit organizations are very focused on raising lots of money and having as many donors as they can get. Of course, this is important.  Nonprofits generally rely on fundraising for a bulk of their revenue.  But what’s also important is the quality of your donors. You could have one donor who gives you $100 and never gives again. Likewise, you could have another donor who has given you $25 each year over the last couple of years and also gets their friends to donate. 

Many donors give once and never give again. There are several reasons for this. One might be that some donors care more about your organization than others do.  Another is that you are not building relationships with your donors.

Why do people donate to YOUR organization?
Some may be very invested in your organization’s cause. Others may donate because they are a friend or family member of a board or staff member. These donors are fine until the board or staff member leaves, and then they often stop donating.

Others may donate for reasons unrelated to your cause. Let’s say you hold an event where a well-known person speaks. You charge $50 a ticket and raise lots of money, which is great, but some of these donors never give again because they were more interested in seeing the celebrity than in your cause.

Keep that in mind when you decide how you are going to raise money. Ideally, you want to find donors who will donate more than once.

Build relationships
Just reaching out to potential donors who you know will be interested in your cause is not enough. You need to build good relationships with your donors so they will donate year after year.   

This starts with showing appreciation and communicating with your donors on a regular basis in ways in which you are not asking for money.  Send a thank you letter and welcome packet for new donors within 24-48 hours.  In the thank you letter, invite donors to subscribe to your email list and join you on social media.  

Do not add your donors to your email list without their permission.  If you do, you are spamming them. Your newsletter articles and social media posts should emphasize how your donors’ support is having a positive impact on the people you serve and in the community. 

Be known, but don’t be annoying
Send out your donor-centered newsletters once or twice a month. You can also connect by sending out advocacy alerts and brief updates. As a general rule, try not to send out email messages more than once a week. You can post to social media more often, but remember everything needs to be of interest to your donors. And as much as it may pain you to do this, let your donors unsubscribe from your list if they choose to. 
It’s easier to focus on building relationships with your current donors than trying to find new ones.  This is especially true in an uncertain economy.

Easy cultivation tools
Not everyone who is getting your newsletter or following you on social media is a donor, but if you keep sending out material focusing on how you are making a difference, you might be able to convert them into donors.

Again, you want donors who will stick with you for a while. That means not only finding people who are committed to your cause, but also building relationships that show how much you appreciate their support.

Here are some ways to keep your donors engaged all year round. 
It’s All About Your Donors

More on donor relations

Donor Relations
7 tips for welcoming new donors


To Print or Not to Print

Ann Green fundraising, marketing

Photo by Portland Afoot via Flickr

Nonprofit organizations are doing more of their marketing and fundraising electronically – by email, on their website, and through social media.  It makes sense. It’s more cost effective, good for the environment, and most of us are very connected to our computers and mobile devices.

Does this mean that print is obsolete? No. Print still has a place in your marketing and fundraising. How much depends on your audience. If your donors and other supporters are older, they may respond better to print pieces, although many of us are now connected electronically.

Often you’ll want to use print and electronic mediums together in your marketing and fundraising campaigns. This means all your messages need to be consistent.

Are there times that you should still use print pieces?  Sometimes, yes.  Here are a few examples:

Fundraising letter
I think you should still mail out a fundraising letter. Direct mail fundraising continues to be strong, although online giving is on the rise.  According to a study by Target Analytics, 81% of 2011 gifts came in through direct mail. If you only send out your fundraising appeal electronically, it could get lost in your donor’s barrage of email messages. We get far more email than print mail.

This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use electronic methods as well. You can send out an email message telling donors to look out for your latest fundraising letter. You can also send out reminders by email and social media and post donation appeals on your website.

Thank you letter
Even if someone donates online and gets an electronic acknowledgement, I think you should mail out a thank you letter or card (within 48 hours, of course). The email receipt is more of a reassurance to the donor that their contribution didn’t get lost in the netherworld.  The advantage of a letter is that you can personalize it with a handwritten note.  A letter or a card is always more personal than email.  
Event invitation
If you are holding a fundraising event, I would recommend a print invitation over an evite. Your higher dollar, older donors may respond better to a print invitation with a reply card. And, and if done well, it can look really classy.

Again, this doesn’t mean you can’t use electronic channels to promote your event.  You can email out a save the date announcement. Of course, you should also have an option for people to reserve and pay online, and you can promote your event by email, on your website, and through social media.

If cost is an issue, you could get a printer to create your invitation pro bono or ask a business to sponsor it.

Brochure
I still think nonprofit organizations should have a brochure or some type of information piece to hand out to donors, potential volunteers, people who visit your office, or event attendees.  It doesn’t need to be fancy, but it should be eye catching and look professional. You could even do it in house.  I realize most organizations have a website, but if you are at a recruitment event and only give a potential volunteer a link to your website, they may not go there.  A brochure can capture the highlights of your organization in an instant.

These are a just a few examples of marketing and fundraising materials that can work well in print. What types of materials do you still print?

How You Can Create A Welcoming Website – Part Three – Your Donation Page

Ann Green fundraising, marketing, website, writing
Image by S1m0nB3rry via Flickr

How You Can Create A Welcoming Website – Part One – Your Home Page

How You Can Create A Welcoming Website – Part Two – Your Entire Website

How You Can Create A Welcoming Website – Part Four – Writing For The Web

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been writing about ways you can make your website welcoming and audience-centered. In this post, I’d like to go into a little more detail about your website’s donation page. According to Convio, online giving grew by almost 16% in 2011. It is likely to increase even more in 2012.

Most people will be coming to your donation page because they have been led there by your electronic or mailed fundraising appeal. They may have also been drawn there by social media. To get them there in the first place, be sure your appeal has a compelling message.
Make it simple
Now that you have a potential donor on your donation page, you want them to stay. It’s very important that you create a donation page that’s easy to use, easy to read (no clutter), and has a strong call to action, using the same messaging you have in your annual appeal (to stay consistent).
Make sure you have an easy and secure online donation form. Show how the donation will be used and what different amounts will fund. You can set up a form with different giving levels ($25, $50, 100, etc), but include an “other” field so your donors can give any amount they choose.
Not everyone is comfortable donating online; therefore you need to include your mailing address so your donor can send you a check. Include a downloadable donation form that your donors can print and mail in with their checks. 
In addition, add your phone number to the donation page in case donors want to call in with a credit card number or just ask a question. You should also include a link to other ways of giving, such as planned giving, donating in someone’s honor, or in-kind donations.
Don’t forget to say thank you
After someone has completed their online donation, they should be taken to a thank you landing page so they know that you received their donation and it didn’t end up in the netherworld. They should also receive an e-mail acknowledgement. 

Make sure your message is friendly and personal and doesn’t resemble a receipt you would get after checking out on Amazon. This does not let you off the hook from sending out a thank you letter, which you should mail no later than 48 hours after receiving the donation.
A picture says a 1000 words
Find a compelling photo that captures what your organization does, and put that on your donation page. In the few seconds it takes to view that photo, your donor should get a good understanding of your work.
Recurring gifts
One feature of some online giving platforms is recurring gifts. This is a great way for your organization to raise additional revenue by enticing donors to give larger gifts. A $200 donation might seem more feasible over the course of a year. It also allows you to receive revenue throughout the year instead of at the time you do your annual appeal.
What else to include on your donation page
You can include a link to your annual report on your donation page.  This is an easy way for your donor to look at a list of your accomplishments over the past year.  If your annual report doesn’t have a list of donors, you can put one on your website with a link on your donation page. Be sure to give people the option of not being included on your donor list.  For corporate and foundation donors, consider displaying their logos.  
You can also include links to your 990 forms and any Charity Navigator or other outside reviews you might have.
Online giving will continue to be more prevalent. Make sure your organization is keeping up with the times and has a donation page that is welcoming and donor-centered.
Online Donation Resources

Elements of a Fantastic Donation Page 
Fix that fundraising landing page!

11 Donate Now Best Practices for Nonprofits

Online Giving Grows as Fast as Shopping
Helping Donors Help You: How transparent is your website?
10 Tips That Will Increase Online Donations


It’s All About Your Donors

Ann Green donor relations, fundraising


Image by worldlywonderworks via Flickr 


Most nonprofit organizations rely on fundraising for a good portion of their revenue. They spend a lot of time strategizing and working on sending out appeals,and then it kind of stops. 


Of course,these aspects of fundraising are important, but you need to spend just as much time on donor relations, because it’s all about your donors

Thank your donors right away
Every single donor, no matter how much they have given or whether they donated online, gets a thank you letter mailed to them. Thank you letters should be sent out no later than 48 hours after you have received a donation. This shouldn’t be hard to do. Carve out some time each day you get a donation and send out your thank you letters.

Send out a great thank you letter
Spend as much time creating your thank you letters as you do your annual appeal. Make sure your thank you letters are addressed to a person and not Dear Friend. Instead of the usual,Thank you for your donation of $50….., get creative.  Try something like –
                
—You are amazing. Your generous donation of $50 will provide Sarah and her brother Michael with brand new coats this winter. Thank you so much.—

This lets your donors know how much you appreciate them and highlights what your organization is doing with their donation. 

You can also invite donors to sign up for your newsletter, visit your website, or call if they have any questions. Whatever you do, don’t ask for another donation in your thank you letter.

Add a personal handwritten note to the letter, preferably something that pertains to that particular donor. For example, if the donor has given before or attended one of your recent events, you could mention that. 

In addition, make sure all the letters are hand signed. Again, this shouldn’t take your Executive Director too long if you are generating thank you letters on a regular basis, as opposed to letting a huge pile of them accumulate.

If possible, consider sending out handwritten notes, but if you can’t do that, send a great printed letter. Here are some examples.

Donation Thank You Letter Examples
Does Your Organization’s Thank You Letter Suck?
Tips for Better Nonprofit Thank You Letters

Take an extra step and make thank you calls
Making thank you calls to your donors is a great extra step. This is something your board can do.  Here is more information on getting your board to make thank you calls.
How Your Board Can Increase Donations by 39%
Donors really appreciate thank you calls and it’s a good way to engage your board.

Show appreciation all year round
You don’t want your communication with your donors to end after you send out the thank you letter. Communicate often, between once a week and once a month, sending out messages in which you are not asking for money. A newsletter is a great way to do this. Make sure your newsletter is donor-centered and focus on success stories that demonstrate how you are making a difference with your donors’ contributions. For example, I used to work for a mentoring organization and we would feature a different mentor/mentee match each month in our newsletter. 

Another good way to show appreciation to your donors is to hold an open house at your organization. Offer tours so your donors can see the inner workings of your organization. Make your open house informal and fun,and provide food. Have a brief program that might include a video/power point presentation or a few words from a client. If cost is an issue, you could have food donated.

If you can’t have a gathering at your organization, consider asking a restaurant donate space and some food. Either way, highlight your accomplishments and be sure to thank your donors for have all they have done. Even if your donors don’t come to your open house, they will appreciate the invitation.

Remember, it’s all about your donors. If you treat them well, they’ll treat you well the next time you send out your annual appeal.




The Board’s Role in Fundraising

Ann Green board, fundraising
Photo by 401K via Flickr

I recently wrote a series of posts detailing ways nonprofit organizations can ensure effective and engaged board members. How to Ensure Effective and Engaged Nonprofit Boards I would like to expand on this a little and discuss the board’s role in fundraising.  


Board members should know their fundraising requirements before they join the board. These requirements can include giving a contribution, getting others to donate, and attending fundraising and cultivation events. Whatever requirements you have should be included in your organization’s board agreement, which the member will sign before joining. Board Expectations and Requirements The amount of money you expect the board to raise should also be included in your annual fundraising plan.

Board members should make a donation
Even if you don’t have specific fundraising requirements, board members should give a significant donation, depending on their financial means, to your organization. Board members have chosen to serve on your board because they are passionate about what you do. They should want to donate. As ambassadors of your organization, they need to support you in any way possible, and that includes a financial contribution. Another motivator, grant funders like to see 100% giving by the board.

How much should board members give?
As I mentioned above, it should be a significant contribution. If they have the means, board members should give at the major donor level. Depending on the organization, that could start at $250, $500, or more. One way to make larger donations easier is to have board members give a monthly gift. A $500 donation may be more feasible if it is spread out over a year. Of course, if a board member is unable to contribute at a higher level, they shouldn’t be expected to, but they still need to give something.

Development Committee
If your organization relies on fundraising revenue, you must have a Development (aka Fundraising) Committee. The role of the Development Committee is strategic. They design and implement your fundraising plan, which will be carried out by the whole board and staff.  Here is more information on the role of this important committee. Role of the Nonprofit Board Fundraising Committee

Major donors
Board members who have connections to major donors should be involved in soliciting them. Securing major gifts is not something that can be done overnight and involves research and cultivation. If board members are meeting with prospective funders, they need to be well prepared. That includes being trained in fundraising and knowing how to talk about your organization. Here are some  ways your board members can help identify major donors. How to Get Your Board Members To Help Identify Major Gift Prospects

Annual appeals and events
Not all board members will know potential major donors, but they can solicit annual appeal donations. Encourage them to send a personalized annual appeal to friends and family. They should also encourage friends and family to attend or donate to your fundraising events.

Thanking donors
Donor relations is an important part of the development process. A great way to involve the board is for them to make thank you calls to donors. Donors are impressed by these calls, but nonprofit staff rarely have time to make them. The link below highlights examples of how making donor thank you calls can be successful and how to prime your board to do it. How Your Board Can Increase Donations by 39%

Other ways to get the board involved in fundraising
There are plenty of ways for the board to be involved that don’t include asking for money. They can identify prospective donors. They can also accompany the Executive Director, Development Director, or other board member when meeting with a prospective funder. I mentioned earlier that grant funders like to see 100% giving by the board. They also like to see board involvement. These links include additional ways your board can be involved in fundraising.

Getting the Board involved in fundraising
9 Ways Board Members Can Raise Money Without Fundraising

Your board needs to be involved in raising money for your organization. In whatever ways they are involved, they should know what is expected of them and be well prepared to carry that out.

Here is even more information about boards and fundraising.

Leadership: The Board’s Mythunderstood Role in Fundraising
How Board Members Can Become Effective Fund-Raisers