You understand fundraising is about relationships. But building relationships with donors is easier said than done.
One reason building relationships is challenging is that it’s often difficult to get meetings with prospective donors. And you do need to meet with donors to learn about them and build the relationship.
Another reason building relationships can be difficult is that your motivations for getting to know someone can feel disingenuous, which can make being authentic challenging. After all, you know (and they know) that the end game is money.
How can you honestly build a relationship if all you’re after is money?
An Entirely Different Goal
What if your goal is to create advocates and raving fans for the organization instead of money? How would you treat people then?
Last night I was at a board meeting and the discussion topic was “areas for improvement” and “looking to the future” for the organization. The conversation surfaced many interesting ideas. One idea was to reach out to donors by phone to “check in” not simply to call when asking for money.
Getting Meetings with Donors is Hard
One of the challenges I hear from development directors frequently is that they can’t get meetings with prospective donors, because they can’t get through on the phone.
What if instead of calling to get a meeting (aka, a donation) you started by calling to say thank you, and ask if the person has any questions about your organization? What if the goal of the first few interactions wasn’t to get a meeting (or money) but to genuinely thank people and introduce yourself?
Once people are accustomed to getting calls from an organization where there’s no “ask” — not for a meeting and not for money — they’re more likely to be responsive the next time you call.
Create more than fans and followers
Of course, ultimately the goal is to get meetings with supporters so you can create those elusive relationships. But fans, followers, friends, and advocates, are much more likely to support your organization with funds than strangers are.
This is why it’s so important to develop relationships.
10 Questions to Ask BEFORE Asking for a Donation
With an eye on building a lasting relationship with your donors, here are 10 questions to ask them before asking for money.
- Why did you get involved with the organization in the first place, and what has your involvement been? In other words, why is this organization important to you?
- Do you have a personal connection to our mission? Can you tell me about it?
- What do you like (love) most about the organization?
- What would you like to see improved or changed?
- Can you share a time when you gave to a charity and it felt wonderful? (It doesn’t have to be to our organization.)
- There are many ways to get involved (describe some). Which of those appeal to you most?
- What are you curious about (or not understand) (or have questions about) our organization?
- What’s the earliest memory you have of getting involved with a charity? Is being involved in charitable causes an important part of your life, and if so, how?
- In what ways could we involve your friends and family in our cause?
- What type of legacy would you like to leave? In other words, how would you like to be remembered?
If you get someone on the phone, feel free to ask one or two of these questions. If they’re interested in the conversation, you can ask to continue in person. If not, let it go for now.
And feel free to leave one of these questions on voice mail. It may pique their curiosity.
Relationships Are About Trust
Fundraising and creating authentic relationships is a long-term endeavor. Relationships are all about trust.
If you’re too quick to ask for money, some of the trust breaks down. The best fundraisers are genuinely interested in getting to know their supporters. They know that if they build authentic relationships, the money will follow.
What other questions do you ask to build meaningful relationships with your donors? Let me know in the comments.
During my sales career I read Dale Carnegie’s famous book How to Make Friends and Influence People. He simply said let the potential customer speak about himself. He will eventually finish and turn to you and ask what’s on your mind. Well that’s for sure a great way to begin a relationship without having to go through the rigmarole of asking him a bunch of questions.
Hmmm… Yes, but I think you’re partially missing my point. The questions are leading the person to talk about themselves!
Come on Amy, what’s so hard about getting someone to speak about himself? The main thing is as you point out is to direct him to explain WHY he has donated in the past and to try to determine if his goals and aspirations align with your non-profits mission. That’s where your ideas come in to play. But getting someone to talk about himself? Easy as pie.
great post Amy
we run weekly reports and call to thank all donors $100+ and often less too. Donors have told me when I finally met them that they appreciated all the thank you messages I left over the years. it is easy to be discouraged after so many messages but people appreciate it. I still have donors tell me nobody ever called me before to thank me for a donation as many think its a solicitation call. Also, we try to call donors before the holidays during year, just to wish them well etc. These weekly donor reports and TY calls help you focus on donors and not get sidetracked by events, reports etc
One of our gift officers said at a planning meeting this morning, “People are getting so besieged by telemarketers that they’re not answering their phones anymore.” We all agreed that we’re leaving more voicemails than we used to. Occasionally donors call back but only after I’ve left another message or two.
So true. We need to work harder to get in touch, but once we make that connection, it’s so worth it! Try writing a note before you call. And, looking for someone on at your organization (board member, volunteer, or staff member) who knows the person you are trying to reach and can make an introduction. Use social media to find connections too.
I concur with all three comments: Eugene, Ezra and Jay. Jesus Film Project have our own Development System and yet see the same current challenges: 1) Many Telemarketers (even on cell P#’s); 2) Land Lines vanishing and many don’t pick up because of Donation Ask Assumptions. Brief TY Messages are valuable, but need to be well formatted and not repeated as many have Caller ID. Don’t badger them!
3) Email is growing, but again need brief, positive ROI Results and Donor Affirming content.
4) Print Mail is still the most effective long term Relationship Building media. Personalize by Hand Signing (and Addressing). Donor or Prospect reads and can Re-read; Share w/family, friends, church, etc. Copy and Dist. AND, has a Response ENV/Card for Donation, comments or Prayer.
I always ask, “what makes you want to get up in the morning.” I find that question can bring out some interesting facts about the person. Some responses have been:
“I love going for a run first thing in the morning. I look forward to being in nature before I jump into the busyness of every day.”
“The only thing that gets me out of bed is the smell of coffee. I would sleep all day if my spouse didn’t make coffee.”
“I enjoy learning something new everyday. I wake up wondering what new thing I will learn that day.”