The crud!

I've spent the last week felled by a spring cold my toddler brought home. (He's so sweet to share...) But I'll be back next week with some good tips and random thoughts.

Enjoy the holiday weekend!

The Dreaded Ask

I hate asking for favors. I don’t want to impose on others’ valuable time and effort, and I always feel a twinge (OK, maybe crushing sense of humiliation is more accurate) when someone says “no.”

Which is pretty ridiculous since I spend nearly every day asking strangers for money.

But I’d say I’m not alone in my dislike of asking people for favors. In fact, I’ve come across quite a few organizations that seem like they would rather pray for money to fall from the sky than to ask their donor base to give.

Here are a few of the excuses I’ve heard over the years:

“Our Members already pay an annual Membership fee…we can’t ask them for more!”

“We do send out a special holiday letter asking for support. Isn’t that enough?”

“Well, they get our magazine when they renew. Why would they give more if they don’t get anything else?”

I want to let you in on the secret that keeps me – and the most successful organizations – asking away: when you’re addressing your supporters (or a carefully selected group of people who could be your supporters), they already want to give you money.

Yep, they do. Just give them a reason.

You can put your ask in terms of a special project they’ll help fund. (Mounting a new exhibition? Hosting a major event? Ask your donors to help.) Launch a new campaign related to your mission. Remind your donors of all the things you do, day in and day out, all year long, that need their support. I work with a lot of activist organizations that use their special appeal programs to inform their supporters about current events and ask for help responding to them.

Above all, remind them what they get out of their commitment to you -- not just the tangibles, but their valuable contribution to the good work you do.

Oh, and thank them, in advance for their future gifts, and for their past generosity. Be gracious, be informative, be passionate.

Check out this article from Philanthropy.com for a take on asking from the donor’s perspective.

And then go ask. Your donors want to help. Really.

Put Your Head Down and Power Through

The other day, I received an e-mail from the executive director of a small organization I work with once or twice a year. They’ve had a tough time lately. She wrote, “The economy killed us and it’s a miracle we’re still alive.”

Their last couple of mailings had a tepid response; their supporters simply weren’t giving like they had in the past.

Time to give up, right? Nope. I’m going to reveal my deep and abiding love for the late, great Arrested Development by quoting Michael Bluth: “We’ve just got to put our heads down and power through, people.”

My client downloaded the organization’s last six months to me. They have a lot of great things happening, despite the hardship. Demand for their flagship program is skyrocketing, and their nuts-and-bolts services haven’t slacked off, either. In fact, the only thing down about them is their income!

We put our heads together and came up with an “emergency” ask highlighting the tremendous success they’ve had with their flagship program. We’ll remind donors what the program is and tell them the tremendous, personal impact it’s having on communities nationwide. We’ll explain that the only way to keep this effective work going is if the donors help.

It’s too early to know yet whether their supporters will come through on this special appeal, but we’re all hopeful. (I’ll try to remember to keep you posted!)

But the thing that was so inspiring to me about this mailing was the fact that they never gave up. So often, when groups see their fundraising efforts tanking – even when they know there are external factors like a crummy economy or competing asks at work – they stop everything.

And that’s completely understandable. We all want to pull back and contract when the going gets tough.

But you won’t raise much money if you don’t ask.

So you’ve got to be more aggressive, more tenacious and more thorough. You’ve got to keep trying until you hit the giving sweet spot.

It may mean changing your approach. Sit down and look at all the ways you ask your donors for support and see if there’s any way you can improve them. Do your due diligence, then jump right back in. Sometimes, you just have to “put your head down and power through.”

Your Passion

"Passionate people are the only advocates which always persuade. The simplest man with passion will be more persuasive than the most eloquent without."

~Francois de La Rochefoucauld

You are the best advocate for your organization.

Which means that everyone at the organization – from the receptionist, to the IT person, to the program staff, to the Executive Director – is a fundraiser.

Daunted? Don’t be.

I’ve been writing direct mail fundraising letters for thirteen years, gradually branching out into web copy, informational brochures and other marketing pieces. And as I’ve talked to countless staff members, trying to gather the information needed to produce a blockbuster piece, there’s one question I’ve learned to ask first:

Why are YOU so passionate about this issue/problem/organization?

Because when you’re trying to raise support – whether it’s time, money or energy – for your organization, you’re talking to people. And people want to hear the good stuff before putting that all-important signature on the check.

They want to be moved. They want to feel they can make a difference. They want to connect with their tribe and feel they’re part of something greater than themselves.

And if you’re trying to get their money (or time, or referrals, or anything else), you’ve got to convince them that you can give them what they want. The best way I’ve found to do that is to convey your passion.

That’s one of the things I love about direct mail. It’s personal, it’s impassioned, and it conveys key things about your organization, its mission and its issues in a concise and friendly way. While asking for money!

I’m going to spend the first few entries talking about some of the things writing direct mail has taught me about effectively “selling” non-profits and how those lessons can be applied across-the-board in all communication for your organization.

But it all starts with your passion. What do you love about your work? And why should it matter to the rest of us?