If We Don’t Ask, No One Will Give
Hello everyone!
I hope spring is starting to bring renewal for you. I so enjoy spring, and this month has been a little warmer than March. The gray and cold of the Indiana winter was especially challenging for me this year. I know those of you in warmer climates tell me that is why I should move, and I should expect cold and gray in winter in Indiana. I get it.
Spring brings a great opportunity to experiment and realign, whether it be approaches to donors through clients or my shrubs in the yard! This month we have a good article about the use of the “P.S.” in letter writing. This will be helpful with doing a spring donor appeal and is a continuation of my thoughts from last month on donor touch work.
Spring is the 2nd best time of the year to invite donors to invest in your cause. A few things to remember about spring from a fundraising perspective include that is a great time to:
- test specific cases for support and new vehicles of support (messages, constituencies, etc.)
- raise reserves for summer months
- begin reshaping donor behavior and train donors to give in new ways to your organization
- engage volunteers in the vision of the calendar year
Spring brings lots of opportunities. Spring can be seen as setting the tone for the rest of the calendar year. This can be great, but also dangerous. Right now, giving is expected to be up in 2018. However, what we are seeing nationally is that giving is slightly down, especially in social service sectors. If we use this indicator to set the tone for 2018, we could go into this year thinking that giving will struggle.
If giving is down for you so far, try not to use that as the gauge for the year. Instead, stay focused on your donors, your relationships, your shared values and vision. Ensure they are invited to give this spring in meaningful ways. If we don’t ask, no one will give. Stay focused on what you know is right for your organization and the donor. Use this spring to renew relationships, renew focus, and align to the vision of your organization. Then invite the donor into that fabric with you.
Thanks,
Jamie
