Post on 12-Apr-2017
Communicating Your Message to Donors
Eric PhelpsRAINMAKER Consulting
RAINMAKER Consulting
• Fundraising Consulting
• Strategic Planning• Executive
Coaching• Organizational
Development
Today We Will…• Meet Each Other• Review Valley Gives
Opportunities• Learn the SUCCESs
model• Practice Storytelling• Imagine reaching
new donors• Explore Channels of
Communication/Video
• Q&A• Write a First Draft
of Message– Feedback– Sharing
• Q&A 2• Next Steps• Adjourn
Who Are We?
Who’s in the Room?
What is the possibility of individual giving?
Total Giving in US 2015?$373.25 Billion – a record year!
Up 4.1% from 2015Individual Giving makes up 72%
($264.58B)87% if you add Planned Giving
More people in US gave to charity than voted!
Source: Giving USA 2016 Report
What could Valley Gives funding enable you to do?
Valley Gives Review• 9,596 donors• 4,476 NEW
donors to Valley Gives
• 19,391 Online donations
• 454 Participating Organizations (with primary offices in 54 towns/cities)
• CFWMA– 185,000 in
Prizes/Grants• Leveraged
$1,613,725– $1,193,863
Donations– $322,341 in
Outside Matching Money
– $70,022 in Donated Fees
Valley Gives Review
Location, Location, Location
• 68 out of 70 towns/cities
• 202 Towns outside PV (77% of MA)
• 50 States + DC and Puerto Rico
• 8 Countries
Valley Gives Insights• Average Donation?– $25.00– 22% of all donations– Only 37 donations of
$1,000+• Not a large dollar
event– You can FOCUS ON
new donors, small donations that add up
Valley Gives Insights• Average donations per
organization– 39
• Organizations located in:– Hampshire – 38%– Hampden – 36%– Franklin – 17%– MA – 6%– Other States – 3%
• Organizations that raised $1,000+– 54%
Room To Grow
Adults Gave to VGReminiang Adults
Valley Gives Goals• Increase breadth
of participation• Continue to attract
high number of first-time donors
• Increase number of VG donors under 40
• Create clear messaging that engages folks
Not so long ago in a city far, far away…
X
Recent Example
Campaign ReviewPro-gress• Urgent
– Deadline– In plenty of time to make
a difference• Relevant
– Election– National Republicans are
running TV ads against me
• Clear ask (x 3)• “P.S. Message”
Con-gress (or Senate)• Addresses the audience
from a position of weakness– Kochs are after me– Fighting $400M campaign
• Does not tell a story• Does not make a case for
support• Did not engage
“Matterness”– “Top target list” for $25.00?
• Looks amateur in Courier
New Approach• Simple• Unexpected• Concrete• Credible• Emotional• Stories• (short)
• SUCCESs!
“Stickiness”…• Gets attention• Is memorable• Inspires people to act (purchase, share,
discuss, donate, petition)
Our CampaignsTend to…• Talk about ourselves
with internal jargon• Talk about our
outputs• Tell a good story,
then… (See above)• Include too much
information• Forget the
Matterness• Yadda yadda yadda
Could…• Make connections to
donors• Make a case for our
impact• Tell a good story
(Stop)
• Include enough information
• Include Matterness• That’s it!
Simple• Don’t “Bury the Lead”• “If you say three
things, you don’t say anything”
• Names, Names, Names – Local Connections
• Core + Compact• Use Generative
Analogies– Jaws on a spaceship
(Alien)
Polemo SchemaA polemo is the largest citrus fruit. The rind is very thick but soft and easy to peel away. The resulting fruit has a light yellow to coral pink flesh and can vary from juicy to slightly dry and from seductively spicy-sweet to tangy and tart.
A polemo is a super-sized grapefruit with a very thick, soft rind.
Simple
Help is a four-legged word
Our vision doesn’t require sight Finding a cure
now… so our daughters
don’t have to
Make Meaning• Kenneth L. Peters, the Principal of Beverly
Hills High School, announced today that the entire high school faculty will travel to Sacramento next Thursday for a colloquium in new teaching methods. Among the speakers will be Margaret Mead, college president Dr. Robert Maynard Hutchins, and California governor Edmund “Pat” Brown.
• There will be no school next Thursday!
Unexpected• Surprise brow,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRh1xH_oBOo
• Create curiosity – Gap Theory– Gaps start with some knowledge– Start now with providing knowledge and lead
to May 3• Use joke structure: “One of these things is
not like the other”• Be creative!
Concrete
Tie Gift to Impact
• Meals provided• Clients/patients
served• Jobs created• Carbon offsets• Change
• This is especially noted for Millennials
Goat - $50No kid-ding
here—this gift is an
invaluable resource for
rural communities.
Credible
Rating of Patient Care
Would Recommend This Hospice
Providing Emotional Support
Treating Family With Respect
Support fro Religious & Spiritual Beliefs
0.0% 20.0% 40.0% 60.0% 80.0% 100.0%
NationalStateHFH Level
Source: DEYTA/Medicaid
Emotional• Video, Love has No Labels• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
PnDgZuGIhHs
Data & Emotion2004 Study• Informational Appeal• $1.26• Story Appeal • $2.38• Mixed Appeal• $1.14• Primed for Emotion• $2.41
Your life has been woven with so many surprises.
So many lessons that can benefit others.
So many insights. So many moments.
Some you’ve revealed in the stories you tell today.
But many others will be revealed in the stories
you will tell tomorrow.
A story is a journey with a twist, taking us
from one place to another where a change occurs.
Good Stories Are…• Retellable and
Memorable• Have a…
– Beginning (Set up/Context)
– Middle (Crisis)– End (Resolution)
• Brief (or can be told in short form)
• “Viral” (Jokes, Urban Myths)
Types of StoriesOrigin Stories• Often very effective – they
demonstrate your DNA & are well-rehearsed
• Depict your beginnings (Raison d’etre, early successes & struggles)
• They show what you’ve learned
• Create connection with supporters
• Examples can be found everywhere
Types of StoriesImpact Stories• Can be in parallel with
Origin Story• Must demonstrate change• Are BEST from someone
other than YOU! (Don’t brag)
• Shows how funds are used
• Are more effective as “power of one”
Types of StoriesVision Stories• Show where you
are going– Future Plans– New Building– New reach
• Imagines a world…• Example: MLK’s “I
Have a Dream” speech
Eric’s StoryOne day during a meeting at work, I noticed a flash appearing out of the corner of my eye. I thought it was a reflection from the overhead lights, but then it happened again when I went home. It even happened when I closed my eyes – so I knew I needed to see an optometrist. The next day, I made the appointment, but it required a referral from my primary care physician.
Eric’s Story (Cont.)So I called his office as formality and to address the problem with my vision.
It turned out that I had not had a full physical in quite some time (which my doctor was quick to point out). In exchange for the referral, I agreed to have him check me out the following week…
Eric’s Story (3)My heart began racing when I heard, “Everything checked out fine, except that I felt something on your prostate.” Incredulous, I said, “But I came in for my eye!”
From the beginning, Cancer Connection provided me with support, answered my questions, and made me feel like I had people to talk with who had gone through what I was facing…
Share Pair Exercise
Share a story about your organization that incorporates
SUCCESs-ful principles
A Few Words About Video• 85% of web traffic is
driven by video• Videos are “Sticky”• YouTube has over 1
Billion users – almost 1/3 of all ppl on internet
• 81% of Millennials use YT
• Videos are mostly viewed on mobile
• 300 hours uploaded every minute
A Few MORE Video Pointers…
• Videos can..– Ask– Thank– Report
• But don’t do more than 2 of these in 1 video
• Scripts can help, but don’t read from one
• Brevity is the soul of wit – shorter videos get more views!
SUCCESs-ful Videos• Follow The Frog• Charity: Water• Alex: Childhood Cancer Slayer• Anti-bullying PSA “Who Will Stop
The Bullying?”• First World Problems• Africans for Norway
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUQ1vdJQWn0
One Size…
• Use Data Segmentation to customize your messages
• Consider in cultivation, solicitation, stewardship
• Consider what people want to hear…
Millennials Report Reminders
1. Don’t Neglect Core Supporters– It is easier to retain
than gain– And our goal is to
GAIN2. Engage Millennials
Early and Consistently– Use Video & social
media– Prompt them to
“share”
3. Engage Millennial Online and OFF-line– Consider an engagement
event for younger donors
4. Clearly show where money is going/will go
5. Use an authentic voice6. Feature a peer
(volunteer, client)7. Encourage Millennial
employees to share
Campaign Goals & Focus• Matching Grants
(Board, Business, Major Donor)
• Particular programs
• Incentivize campaigns (EOY, balance budget, complete a campaign)
• Stay unrestricted• Amplify success• Peer Network
Fundraisers
Channels• Email• Social Media• Facebook• Twitter• LinkedIn
• Live events• Video (Vimeo, YT,
others)• Your web site• Peer Fundraising
Clear Call to Action
Draft or Outline a letter that incorporates SUCCESs-ful
Principles
THANK YOU!!
THANK YOU!!!
No, Seriously…
• Among those who didn't renew their annual contribution, many cite the fact that they were not thanked as a primary reason (2012 Giving Survey)
• Individualized stewardship is easy, fun, and perfect for participants or board members! (Be sure to get their name right!)
• People cannot be “over-thanked”!• Go “old school” and use a pen, paper,
postcard.• It is not too late to thank someone…