It may be fundraising season, but we don’t have to name it that
- Thu, October 20 2011
- Filed under: Fundraising essentials
Ah, Autumn. The crunch of falling leaves under your feet. The crisp, cool air. Football. And the start of – you guessed it - fundraising season.
This year, like every other year, I fully expect my mailbox and inbox to be chock-a-block with the kind of clichés I just used. You could call it moldering messaging.
It’s time to turn over a new leaf.
The number one cliché we need to banish this Fall is the “it’s fundraising season” or “it’s that time again” appeal. I’m amazed by how many of these I get. The first paragraph is often about the weather! You can call your campaign the “fall appeal” inside your office, but don’t lead your messages with it.
The problem with this framing is that the time of year is not a reason to give, unless it’s the last week of December, in which case there is a tax year deadline relevant to donors. We may live by the campaign calendar, but our audiences do not. They don’t care if it’s time for our annual appeal. That’s why they don’t work in our development department or put our campaign dates in their Blackberries and iPhones. They have other lives.
Fortunately, it’s easy enough to fix this problem. The remedy, of course, is to stop waving the fundraising calendar and start looking into our donors’ hearts and minds. We need to explain to donors why giving now makes sense for them. Tell them what urgent, compelling, fascinating thing can they achieve with their gift. Express how their money will go further right this instant. Spin them a story that engages them on their terms.
This approach will create a sense of urgency far more burning than our budget cycle. And a sense of urgency is essential to getting people to give.
Comments
Hallelujah!!! This is a personal pet peeve of mine too. So glad you went public with it.
Loved this simple yet clear (and wise) admonishment. Sometimes it sounds like we’re talking to ourselves when we mean to be talking to our donors. Loved this post (and found it through Kivi’s blog). Thanks!
Good for you. I have long suggested we stop calling it the Annual Fund, the Year-end Appeal, and other non-inspiring things. For that matter, your membership renewal mailing. We need to keep asking ourselves, “what is the change we are inspiring”—that is the point, right?
I think before people start dreading this time, just remember why you’re contributing to whatever organization. I think people need to think of new creative ways to raise awareness and funds for their organization. The perfect example are the LiveStrong wristbands.