𝗚𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝘁𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲

Seth Godin writes, “It’s only when we decide to industrialize the process, to do it all at once, to boil it down to numbers—that’s when we begin to disconnect.” Marinate on that for a moment, my friend.

We mistakenly believe bigger is better. We get caught up in the busyness of business. That’s why we gamble on math by thinking that we should make a generic ask to 1,000 or 5,000 or even 10,000 people. And not only do our donors feel like ‘or current resident’ when they get that mass marketing appeal, it’s not exciting work for us to do either. In fact, it’s grueling…and boring. That’s why we begin to disconnect. The message gets watered down and so does our passion. Basically, you've Top-Gunned.

But Seth goes on to say (no, I don’t know him, but I feel like we’d be on a first name basis), that there is a simple solution to this mass marketing/mass disconnection dilemma.  Get ready, because this is a doozy. It’s counterintuitive. It even goes against ‘everything you learned in capitalism school’. He says you should ‘stake out the smallest market you can imagine. The smallest market that can sustain you, the smallest market you can adequately serve…it’s the simplest way to matter.’

I don’t know about you, but I want our nonprofit to matter to my donors.  And I want my donors to know that they matter to me.  Ultimately, I want to do work that matters.  I know you do, too. So, let’s do it, shall we?

One surefire left brain marketing method to help you do this is segmentation. While there is a ton that can be taught about how, when, and why to segment your donors, let’s talk about your numero uno donor segment. The hottest segment you have. The segment that has both an affinity for what you do and the capacity to give. You know them, you love them—they are your Board Members.

We often forget to ask our Board Members to give in meaningful ways. Of course, we’re thankful that they choose to share their knowledge with us. Many give us a great deal of their time, too. Perhaps we feel a bit guilty about asking for anything more. But you know the #1 reason that any donor gives to a nonprofit is because someone asks them to give! So, yes, you need to ask them. The old adage of the perfect volunteer giving time, talent, and treasure is just as true today as it ever was. (I like to add the sharing of their network and their knowledge in there as well, just for good measure.)

In fact, you know how I told you my niece said, “Aunt Dawn, we either need to go big or go home…and we’re already home”…well this is an action I’d recommend that you take to Go Big:  I don’t think you should ask any other donor to give until 100% of your Board Members have given. Boom!  There it is!  I said it. Ok, I typed it, but I meant it just the same. Think about it. How can a Board Member possibly encourage another donor to give to your nonprofit if they haven’t given themselves? That’s disingenuous. Now, I’m not dictating how much each Board Member should donate. That's up to you. This is how we say it in our Board of Directors Annual Outreach Expectations: Besides, it feels incredible to send an appeal out to a donor and tell them that 100% of your Board has already donated this year!  Even better, our entire staff donates, too.  So, when we sign our Gift Acknowledgement Letters (GALs), we sign them like this:That ‘and Donor’ part feels remarkable! This proves to our donors that we aren’t asking them to support something we don’t believe in ourselves.  It speaks volumes, don’t you think?

Now, if you focus on this Board Member segment throughout the year, you’ll be working with your most active donor group—A Triple A Donor.  One who is an Ambassador, an Advocate, and an Asker for your nonprofit.  They become an extension of you—your secondary marketing department. They are one of your most valuable assets; so, showing them the proper gratitude is important.

Part of our right brain marketing moxie is to surprise our donors with gratitude at least once a year. Now, when I say this, I don’t mean sending out a ‘thank you’ letter when they donate—that’s not a surprise, that’s a requirement!

Surprising them with gratitude is that one time a year when you are sending a thank you that does nothing more than that—it thanks!  It’s doesn’t report, it doesn’t ask, and it doesn’t educate. All it does is remind your donor that the work you do matters; therefore, their generosity matters to you.

I hope you have intentionally thanked your Board Members in a variety of ways. Christmastime is certainly as good a time as any to spread a little thankful cheer.

Last year—the year of Covid—we made Santa-tizers for the Board Members. VERY low cost and ah-mazingly cute!  I crafted them at home one night and Rocket only ate one pom-pom off a Santa hat and ½ of a beard. I’m sure they were both delicious. 😊 We mailed them in a padded envelope; and they got rave reviews:

This year we chose to give them a cup with hot chocolate accoutrements—they were distributed at a Board Meeting, so there was no mailing cost to us on this one.

We literally made a copy of a clipart snowman, wrapped it around the cup, and added a scarf with some burlap we had from an old project.  Ba-da-bing-ba-da-boom, 30-minutes later we had this army of cuties.

The bottom line is you don’t have to be baptized in busy. Do yourself a favor and do less better. Giving the proper attention to your donor segments that really care about your mission as much as you do will pay off.  It doesn’t have to cost a lot to show you really care.

Say goodbye to those days of being in the busyness business. You can work less and raise more—if you work with fewer people to raise bigger dollars. Your mission matters to them. And if it matters to you too, you don’t want to burn out and have to move on—they need you and they need you to be healthy and happy.

When it comes to low-cost gratitude, a little creativity can go a long way. In fact, copy these ideas if you want—no one will know! After all, what makes a donor happy?  The experience they have with you. Gratitude with attitude, like a Santa-tizer or a Snowman Army evokes emotions of happiness. Emotions equate to loyalty. Loyalty comes from remembering a good experience. And good experiences will create loyal donors for life.

So, put your MacGyver hat on—you REALLY do not need to be Martha Stewart—and let’s give ‘em something to talk about.

Go forth and conquer, my fundraising friend!

All My Best,

dawn