Are you headed down the humanization highway?
- Sun, July 03 2011
- Filed under: Marketing essentials
Today, I’m continuing my look into customer service insights that help us better engage with our donors.
In the book The Now Revolution, Jay Baer and Amber Naslund describe what makes a responsive business with stellar customer service. They describe something called the “humanization highway,” developed with Radiant6, which lays out a spectrum of consumer engagement, from ignoring what everyone says to engaging in storytelling with a community.
I think this is a useful continuum to apply to donor relations. Where are you on the spectrum?
1. Ignoring: You barrage your supporters with solicitations. You want their money, not a relationship. If a donor said something about your organization, you would have no idea.
2. LIstening: You ask donors for feedback, and you pay attention to what’s being said about you online.
3. Responding: You respond to what you hear, answering questions, providing ideas, sending thanks.
4. Participating: You are actively engaged, creating content and communicating issues that your donors value - rather than just self-promotional drivel.
5. Storytelling: You are fully human, describing what’s going on at your organization and with your donors with engaging stories.
Don’t forget: the more human you are, the better. People will bond with you in a way they never good with an organization, and they’ll always be more loyal to a human being than a cause.
I hope you’re at least at #3. If not, try to make progress. Donors won’t put up with being ignored forever.