How to engage your donors in learning rather than boring them with facts
- Thu, October 14 2010
- Filed under: Marketing essentials
In our sector, we too often assume information will change opinions or effect change. Bad assumption. Facts and figures don’t generally lead to greater understanding, attachment to a cause, or investment of time and money.
I’m often asked by nonprofit marketing folks for an example of how to do our job better. Here’s one: yourtaxreceipt.org. Type in how much you paid in taxes and it shows where your dollars were spent. This interactive tool doesn’t TELL you where most tax dollars go—it SHOWS your where YOUR tax dollars go. That’s an important difference. If you’re trying to influence public opinion about deficit reduction (for example), it’s one thing to talk about how meaningless it is to chip away at earmarks to balance the budget—it’s another thing to show that social security, medicare/medicaid and defense consume nearly all of each person’s tax dollars. Suddenly it’s all clearer because it’s about our money. People instantly get it: Without cutting one of those categories - or raising taxes - you don’t make a dent in the deficit.
Check it out here.
Comments
I love this!
Transparency helps nonprofits so much in terms of accountability!
Wish there were a service nonprofits could subscribe to to translate their 990 forms into where the dollars actually went!
I wrote a post about digital transparency here:
http://www.wildwomanfundraising.com/work-arts-organization-read
Would love to continue the conversation!
Sincerely,
Mazarine
This is a very helpful reminder that stats don’t move people, engagement does. SHOWING people how their money is used, rather than TELLING them, is another way of engaging people, which ties into building a relationship with them.
And in my experiece, nothing will strengthen your donor base more than building relationships with the individuals within it.
The impact of 2005 earth quake in Pakistan was visible and hence registered to the nation and the world. However, the full impact of the devastation caused by the 2010 floods of Pakistan is yet to manifest itself. According to estimation 1/5th of the country is under water. Crops are no more. We do not know the correct death toll. We have no valid data. There is a looming threat of epidemics and malnutrition. This threat is just not restricted to the directly afflicted flood victims. It would probably seep through the civil society , lets say by october - december 2010, When it is estimated that the flood water would recede
Millions of homes in thousands of villages and towns have been destroyed. According to reports, over 20 Million people have been affected by this disaster - more than the 2004 Indonesia Tsunami, 2005 Pakistan Earthquake, and 2010 Haiti Earthquake combined and destruction is increasing each day.
Infrastructure such as dams, power stations, roads, bridges, schools, agriculture wells, and drinking water hand pumps have been severely damaged or destroyed.
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Over the course of July and early August 2010, Pakistan experienced the worst monsoon-related floods in living memory. Heavy rainfall, flash floods and riverine floods have devastated large parts of Pakistan since the arrival of seasonal monsoon rains on 22 July. Assessments of losses and damages are ongoing, but estimates place the number of affected people at more than 14 million. Over 1,200 people have died, and at least 288,000 homes have been damaged or destroyed.
The devastating flood in Pakistan had destroyed more than half of the economy of the country.The country which was already facing several other crises including terrorism,poverty,corruption,illiteracy has now hit by another challenge in the form of flood.At this crucial time ,the world has pledge to help Pakistan in any form .
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon arrived in Pakistan on Sunday August 16 2010 to boost relief efforts as concerns grew about the 20 million people made homeless in one of the worst disasters to hit the country.
Authorities said more flood surges were coursing down the River Indus and other waterways in southern Sindh province and were expected to peak later Sunday, causing fresh deluges. The river, which in better times irrigates the crops of millions of farmers, is 15 miles (25 kilometers) wide at some points — 25 times wider than during normal monsoon seasons.
This is a humanitarian crisis, and one should really not consider the nationality of the families dieing due to such a crisis. It is so unfortunate that people are considering nationalities when giving aid to individuals including little children. I think this is an opportunity for people, regardless of race, religion or color, to unite.
SWO is working with the technical support of Pakistan Medical Association in effected areas of Sindh from the first day with its team of Doctors, Technicians, Nurses, Health Visitors and Caregivers. We have organized our Camps in Thatta, Shikarpur and Khairpur Districts, it’s a challenge, we need help, we urgently need following items:
1. Mosquito nets.
2. Snake Bite Injections.
3. Food stuff.
4. Tents.
5. Drinking Water.
6. US Dollars 70000
We are now excepting Donations for this nobal cause, Your one dollar can make difference.
Mehtab Qureshi
President,
Saharo Welfare Organization (Regd)
www.saharo-pk.com
“I will never forget the destruction and suffering I have witnessed today. In the past I have witnessed many natural disasters around the world, but nothing like this.” - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
Thanks for sharing this idea. It’s a very useful tool. A lot of people will benefit from this.
I totally agree…fact, figures & statistics are not the way to get people on your side. Only about 7% of the general population make decisions based on facts anyway.
Building long-term communities/relationships is the key to future growth in the non-profit sector & you can’t do that if you are spouting percentages.
If you are willing to buy a car, you would have to get the mortgage loans. Moreover, my sister all the time takes a secured loan, which supposes to be the most rapid.