Today’s question comes from John, who asks:
I know I’m supposed to get out of the office and be out meeting with donors, but I am overwhelmed with paperwork and can never seem to break away. Do you have any suggestions?
Share it with others — Today’s Tweetable:
Create good #fundraising #habits. Make 3 calls to donors every day! @amyeisenstein
Video Transcript
Great question, John.
Over the last few years, I’ve done a lot of thinking and research about major gifts and how they’re raised — or not raised, as is sometimes the case.
Some of the concerns development directors have are related to time management, which is probably part of the issue.
Many Fundraisers have Bad Habits
But the other problem is that many fundraisers have bad work habits — through no fault of their own, mind you. Habits are things we do automatically, almost without thinking about them.
This is such an important question that I developed a keynote speech called: Happiness, Habits, and Major Gift Fundraising: Strategies to Help You Survive and Thrive.
So to answer your question, let’s discuss what you can do if getting stuck at your desk and not getting out and meeting with donors is one of your bad habits.
Working in Your Office is a Bad Habit
Now, I realize it might sound strange to call working hard in your office a bad habit, but it is. Once you make getting out and meeting with donors a priority, that will become your habit.
The bottom line is that you probably need to interact more with donors in general — both over the phone and in person.
So, here is one suggestion for building betters work habits.
Good Habit: Make 3 Calls per day to Donors
I have a coaching client that I’ve been working with — Alan, who works at the Food Pantry. I suggested he make three calls to donors per day, but he wasn’t quite sure what he would call them about.
So we came up with a short list of three things he could call almost any prospective donor, small or large, to discuss. Depending on the donor, he would call to:
- Get a meeting with the prospective donor
- Ask his volunteers and lower level donors to join a monthly giving club
- Say “thank you” or invite them on a tour
Having concrete things to call about helped Alan focus on making three calls per day, which also helped him get out of the office more.
End Result: More Contact with Donors
Sometimes the result of the calls will be a meeting with a donor and force you out of the office and away from your desk. But, at a minimum you will have more contact with your donors, which is a great fundraising habit.
I hope that answers you question, John.
How often do you talk to donors? Daily? Weekly? Tell me about your habits in the comments.
What do we say when we eventually get out of the office? I know I want to ask for money, but never sure if I should ask for a specific dollar amount.
Nicki – First get to know your donors. Then, Yes – Ask for a specific amount. It’s important to start the conversation of giving at a specific level. Determining that amount is one of the biggest challenges a development director faces. Here’s a post on asking for the right amount from my Major Gifts Challenge: https://www.amyeisenstein.com/big-gift-bigger-gift-asking-for-the-right-amount/
Great suggestion. I love how your advice is so concrete and doable. This suggestion has inspired me to reach out to my volunteers every day.
Thank you for this prompt. I “know” this is the way to go but just don’t seem to do it. I am now convinced to make it part of every day. Thanks!
Guilty! This is a great concrete and practical suggestion, thanks very much. I’m going to do this- starting today!
Nicki, asking a donor for a specific gift will come in time for most people. You should first make the effort to understand their interest in your org and who they are. Do they like a particular program? Have they made a gift in the past? Do they volunteer at your org or other orgs? What else is important in their lives?
Hopefully you can set the stage with a first meeting by getting to know them and then follow up with asking for their support. (Not that you should hide the fact that asking for a gift is a goal.)
On another note, the hardest thing for me is figuring out who should make these calls – myself as the development director or the executive director. I’m not sure that level of giving is always a good indicator. Amy, thoughts on this matter?
Hi Mia,
Thanks for your thoughtful response. Level of giving is certainly one factor in deciding who makes the calls (the biggest donors should get more attention from the ED) and also who “connects” with the donor should be taken into consideration. Fundraising is about relationships. Do you seem to enjoy spending time with Sally and it’s simply awkward between her and the ED? If so, you should be the one meeting with her. Sometimes it’s obvious and other times it’s less so. You could ask the donor … I’d like to meet with you – would it be of interest to you for the ED to join us? Etc.
Hope this helps.
Amy
Good idea – 3 calls. Manageable goal. Interacting with donors via phone is getting harder and harder. I think we should start talking about other ways to connect with donors.
I do try to call our donors – but my problem is that I find it very difficult to actually get in touch with them. I’ve tried calling at different times of the day, but even when I call people after business hours I still haven’t had a lot of success. It’s frustrating sometimes to see so many websites and blogs telling me to call my donors and how great it would be for my fundraising – but when I do try, they hardly ever answer the phone! I can’t imagine I’m the only one with this problem. Any thoughts?
The other issue is donors not wanting to give us their phone numbers in the first place. I’ve sent so many emails where I tell people I’d just like to call and thank them for their gift, would they please email me back a phone number for a short call, and 90% of the time I never hear back.
Love this suggestion and am going to share it with others.
I’ve also struggled with the problem mentioned in the comment about having trouble reaching donors. I have a new board member who is really a great supporter of our organization. It’s amazing how many doors he’s been able to open for me. There are people that I’ve called 8-10 times with no results. He makes one call and we have a meeting. He is the perfect board member on steroids. My wish is that we all have many members like him.
I have a policy to thank a donor for a donation for $100–and I usually think for that $75 gift as well. If there is no answer, I leave a thank you without mentioning the amount. I can see how thanking a donor can lead to an invitation to a field trip or a fact to face meeting.
Of course, all donors should be thanked, no matter what level – it’s simply a question of how and how often. Smaller donors will be thanked in less personal ways, such as a automatically generated letter. Slightly larger donors can get a hand written note. If you don’t have a lot of donors, you might be able to call them all, but often time prevents that. I hope that makes sense.
I learned early on in my career that everyone in the office is already sold on the mission of the organization, so the question became, “why the heck are you here when you should be out there?”
-AB
Great reminder that making three calls per day to donors is all it takes to move the conversation forward.
So true, Kim!
Yes, Amy, everything you said makes good sense. There may another underlying, perhaps even subconscious, reason that this person is “overwhelmed . . . .” That is, it may be a symptom of call reluctance, the unwillingness to face the many frustrations (no answers, “not interested”, rejection, etc) when reaching out to current or potential donors. It takes courage to call on people, and the unwillingness to do so can be offset by understanding the potential for frustration is just one part of the equation. By giving each call a specific purpose, in line with the organization’s goals, and taking action (your three calls per day), call reluctance will be a thing of the past.
Thanks for adding to the conversation, Wilson!
3 calls a day mathematically give us an average of 15 calls a week and 60 calls a month. Awesome! More donor contacts in return, this is the only remedy that will eradicate bad habits like working in hour in your office . However it should be born in mind that 0ut 6o calls your chances of getting at least 10 positive results from Donors are high, and also the chances of raising more than 20 k are very high. This also means more donor meetings.
Thanks Amy for the profound mental enrichment
Great video and love the three calls a day!
So simple and concrete.