Covid-19 Creates New Ways to Solicit Donors

One refrain that always made me cringe — yet seemed so commonplace at many nonprofit organizations — was:

That’s the way we’ve always done it.

And while I was the first to encourage the boards I worked with or the senior staff I coached to try something new, it seems I may have fallen into that trap myself.

Covid-19 is a Game-Changer for Soliciting Donors

For the last 10 years, I’ve been insisting that in-person meetings were the best way to raise major gifts. Why? Because it’s the way I’d always done it.

Covid-19 changes all that — certainly, it changes it in the short term. But it may even change it for the long term. Time will tell.

Could in-person solicitation be a thing of the past?

For the last ten-plus years, I’ve been preaching in-person solicitation. Asking for financial support was best done in-person. The only time I recommended meeting over the phone or via video chat was when a person lived out of town. I even went so far as to recommend development professionals fly to meet with donors in-person if the gift would be at least $10,000.

Covid-19 has changed all that. Donors and fundraisers alike are finding that meeting virtually can be just as effective as meeting face-to-face. In fact, many donors are willing to talk over the phone who were never as comfortable meeting in-person.

Meeting remotely makes solicitation easier.

What we’re finding is that eliminating travel makes meeting easier. It doesn’t matter whether you’re around the corner or around the world, meeting remotely is easy with Zoom, FaceTime, Skype and other video chat technology. Everyone has more time these days. People aren’t running in a million directions.

Even during our busiest time before Covid-19 hit, phone calls were easier to schedule than in-person meetings — they simply take less time.

And if fundraisers no longer need to travel, even around the corner, it makes scheduling easier and more efficient. You may not even need to schedule meetings if you happen to get lucky and catch donors with some free time during an impromptu call.

I’m not so naïve to think that some things won’t return to the way things were, but it certainly couldn’t hurt to use this “worldwide pause” to reevaluate our past assumptions.

Smart Fundraisers are Using Slides and Videos to Paint a Picture

Storytelling has always been key to fundraising success. You need to bring your donor on a journey with you. So the question is this:

How can you use technology to enhance the journey (i.e., the story) you provide for your donor?

The conversation probably hasn’t changed dramatically from how we solicited in the past. Except, perhaps, we are spending more time now checking in and engaging in small talk first. Now we have a universal thing in common — we are all dealing with the fallout of the Covid-19 crisis (sheltering in place and, hopefully, working from home). It’s a unifier — something we can all relate to at the start of any conversation.

Use video with top donors and call the rest.

Begin by reaching out to your top donors (those with whom you already have a strong relationship) via email to try and schedule video chat meetings. Let them know you’d like to be able to “see them” as well as to share your screen. Sharing pictures, slides and/or videos will help you make your case.

If you’re unable to schedule a time to visit by video, or if you don’t already have a strong relationship with the donor, simply pick up the phone and give them a call.

6 Steps to Engage Donors Remotely

These six steps apply regardless of whether you’re connecting by phone or by video. That said, adapt your approach based upon how well you know each donor. (For example, if you know them well, less introductions are necessary in step 1.)

1. Introduce yourself — give your name and organization. Let them know you’re calling because they have contributed / supported in the past.
2. If this is an impromptu call, check to make sure you’ve caught the person at a good time. Ask if they have a few minutes to chat.
3. Ask how they are holding up through this crisis. Find out how their friends and family are doing. And ask if they’ve been able to transition to working from home and how that’s going.
4. Depending on how well you know the donor, ask a few probing questions to learn more about them. Ask why they give to your organization and how important your cause is to them under normal circumstances, and now during these challenging times.
5. Listen. As you ask the questions in step 4, listen closely to their answers as you prepare to ask for financial support. Remember, this is a dialogue, not a monologue. If you’re doing all the talking and not listening and learning about your donor, you’re doing it wrong.
6. Reiterate the reason for your call — you’re reaching out to all donors of the organization to provide an update about what’s happening at the organization — how you’ve pivoted during the crisis, and to find out if they would be interested in learning about your needs and the ways they can help.

Have step 6 well-prepared. Know what you need and specific ways they can help. If you only need financial support, be clear about why. If there are other ways they can help, start with financial support and then be prepared to discuss volunteer opportunities and in-kind donations.

With smaller donors, ask for monthly gifts. With larger donors, it’s okay to ask for larger gifts, as long as you have a strong case for support. This is no different from pre-Covid-19.

New Fundraising Best Practices in the Face of Covid-19

So, whether or not we return to pre-Covid-19 fundraising best practices, they certainly have changed for the time being. Take advantage of the new way to work and use this time away from the office to build relationships with even more donors.

And yes, you can (and should) be asking for gifts during this crisis — and over the phone, too! (Trust me!)

How else has solicitation changed for your organization during the Covid-19 crisis? What new methods are you trying? Share them in the comments below.