Young Nonprofit Professionals Network Learning Circle The Essentials of Fundraising

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Young Nonprofit Professionals Network Learning
CircleThe Essentials of Fundraising Donor
DevelopmentWeek 5 - Solicitation Stewardship

• Jessica Haynie
• October 25, 2011

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Todays Agenda

• Exercise - elevator pitch
• Presentation on solicitation and stewardship
• Discussion on topics for next weeks class

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Review of donor stages

• Identification
• Qualification
• Cultivation
• Solicitation
• Stewardship

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Five Principles

• People give to people to help people
• People give relative to their means
• Those closest must set the pace
• The 80/20 rule is becoming the 90/10 rule
• Fundraising programs need balance

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People Give to People to Help People

• People, not institutions, make the decisions to
  donate or not to donate
• Donors make their investments based on their
  relationship to the asker donors give to people
  they trust
• From a donors viewpoint, institutions do not
  have needs, people do.

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People Give Relative to Their Means

• Offer gift amount categories
• Suggest amount to give
• Use gift range charts

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Those closest must set the pace
Former Participants
Clients
Members
Board Manag. Staff Major Donors
Volunteers General donors Employees
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The 80/20 rule is becoming the 90/10 rule
Often 80 or more of the funds raised will come
from not more than 20 of the donors.
Major Gifts 10 donors Upgraded Gifts 20 of
donors Base 70 of donors
90 of 10 of
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Fundraising programs need balance
GuideStar - The Fundraising Methods That Worked
Best in 2010 - and Could Work Best in 2011
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Direct Mail Appeal Package

• Outside envelope
• Appeal letter
• Response device
• Return envelope
• Other (brochure, lift notes, news articles)

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The Letter

• Grab attention in first sentence
• State the problem, tell a story
• Pose a solution
• Tell how the reader can help
• Tell benefits to reader if help
• Ask for a gift - today
• Be specific about gift requested (suggest gift
  amount at least 25 higher than previous gift)
• Say thank you (2 or 3 times)
• Use a postscript
• Be personal (use you, we, I)

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Best Letters, in general

• Short, indented paragraphs
• Underlining or bolding for emphasis
• Short sentences, no compound sentences
• Short, direct words
• Active voice
• Simple
• Personalized, if within budget
• Signature in different color ink
• Black ink for body of letter

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Direct Mail Dos and Donts

• Do
• Invest time to update donor database
• Include CLEAR call to action
• Use an emotional hook
• Personalize your letters (Dear Jessica)
• Pay attention to detail (Mr. Jessica Haynie)
• Carefully follow postal regulations
• Dont
• Make it sporadic
• Make solicitations your only form of
  communication
• Neglect to test your mailing before going mass

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Generate a feeling of

• Excitement
• Sense of Proximity
• Sense of Immediacy
• Sense of Hope
• Meaning
• Sense of Reasonableness

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Segmentation

• Current donors (second ask or special appeal)
• Non-renewed donors (last year but not this year)
• Lapsed donors (gave over 2 years ago)
• New donors (never gave to the organization)

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Face-to-Face Ask - why?

• The most productive means of raising money. This
  is the basic building block upon which to create
  a relationship between donor and the organization
• Will consistently result in higher dollar amounts
  per contact
• Is the most cost efficient means of raising money

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Elements of a Successful Ask

• Select a comfortable, quiet location
• Make sure the asker is also a donor
• Give a reason/purpose
• Be clear and convey exactly what you want
• Be gracious in receiving a gift
• Be willing to be turned down
• Spend 20 of the time talking and 80 listening

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Face-to-Face Ask Rejections

• If people arent saying no, youre not asking
  enough!
• The best way to handle a rejection is
• Dont take it personally
• Understand why not, and can you counter offer
• Dont debate
• You can correct any incorrect information
• Dont get distracted
• Still thank them for their time

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Stewardship

• What do donors say they want?
• Prompt, personalized acknowledgement of their
  gift.
• Confirmation that their gifts have been put to
  work as intended.
• Measurable results on their gifts at work prior
  to being asked for another contribution.

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Stewardship

• How to give donors what they want
• Formal annual report
• Letter/email from CEO
• Memo from staff member or volunteer working in
  the field
• Site visit
• Internal or independent analysis of programs
• Personal update (by phone or in person) from CEO
  or board member
• Organizational publications

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Stewardship

• Setting stewardship priorities
• Develop a system in place to get personalized
  thank you letters out in less than one week
• Refresh content of thank you letters, segmenting
  for donors giving to different programs
• Map the donor experience to look for weaknesses
  and opportunities
• Develop a plan to demonstrate donor gifts at work
• Thank a donor every day (more than good
  stewardship, its a good for fundraiser morale)

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Stewardship
1-99 100-249 250-499 500-999 1,000
Thank you letter X X X X X
Newsletter X X X X X
Emails X X X X X
Invitations to events X X X X X
Annual Report X X X X
Phone call thank you X X X
Personal thank you note X X
Holiday cards X X
Annual visit by ED X