Most nonprofits are still struggling to get back to their pre-recession levels of support.  While some have made it through unscathed, it hasn’t been easy. They can tell you that commitment to mission and donors is essential.

This is why I get so frustrated when I see corporations taking advantage of the nonprofits that are having more difficulties by offering funds to them in various “contests” that serve only as publicity stunts for the companies, really.

What started out as a national trend has already expanded to local companies, making the same types of offers to the very small – and desperate – local nonprofits as well.

These set ups remind me of various “Are you in debt?” commercials, offering distressed consumers options they might not otherwise take for high interest loans, credit cards, etc.  In other words, easy money.

A nonprofit that hasn’t yet made its goal has a pot of gold dangled in front of its eyes, and “all it has to do” is chant the chosen mantra of the corporation of the month that is throwing this particular bone into the pit of desperation.

Of course, it’s not enough that the nonprofit itself blather the company slogan on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Tumblr, GooglePlus, and anywhere, everywhere else that the company is tracking it.  No, the organization must use all available venues to reach its constituents to nag, beg and cajole them to do the same . . . for the good of the organization(?)

Never mind that the bank, life insurance company, software developer, etc. has nothing whatever to do with the mission of the organization.

“Please, PLEASE text/post ‘Get 2 Free Boxes of Checks with a Bank ABC Checking Account!’ on every channel – once a day, until [deadline], so we can win the $XX,000!”

Like all scams, the easy money only appears easy.  Not only does staff become consumed with constant reminders to all supporters, then someone has to keep track of where the organization stands each day of the contest.  (“We’ve fallen to 2nd place!  Please remember to keep posting daily!”)

The saturation point of supporters will likely cost you in terms of loyalty down the road, even if your organization does win the contest, not to mention the fact that you’ve disconnected your supporters substantially from your mission.  A great deal will have to be rebuilt in the future.

And, if you plan on “winning” such contests as an ongoing part of your budget, both your staff and supporters will become exhausted and burned out, which means your churn rate will go through the roof.  Additionally, you’ll support the corporate notion that this is an acceptable way to support nonprofits, rather than directly via grants and sponsorships.  (Bad idea.)

Research has shown that the best way to gain long term support for your organization is through telling a compelling story about what you do by who benefits from your work.

Chanting some company slogan couldn’t be much farther off point than this, and is probably working to alienate your supporters more than just about any other activity you could be doing, short of a scandal.

The next time you’re tempted to participate in an easy money scheme, think about the story it tells.  If it doesn’t further your mission, toss it aside.  You’re wasting time and money pursuing it, not to mention constituent loyalty.

______________________________________________________________________________
Keep the base of the pyramid strong

The Short End of the Stick

Heads They Win, Tails You Lose

Don’t Sell Yourself Short

Long gone are the days when many homes had a plethora of teenagers, young women homemakers or the retired elderly – with nothing but time on their hands, waiting to give it generously to a worthy cause, regardless of the duties needed.

Now, it’s a great deal more complicated. For one thing, you absolutely have to provide the volunteer (or intern) with a meaningful experience. It’s no longer only about what they can do for you, regardless of their age, income or social standing. If you don’t treat them well, they won’t return.

In addition, your organization must – continually – make the case that, overall, you are doing good work and providing necessary services. The prevalent community opinion is that there is a steady stream of headlines, listing various companies, politicians and nonprofit organizations that have betrayed the public trust; therefore, people are more skeptical in general and need to be convinced that both their time and funds are being used wisely.

Studies have shown that volunteers are much more likely to donate to a cause – and to give larger amounts. What, then, can a nonprofit do to bolster its volunteer ranks?

•    Make it fun: Even typically mundane tasks, such as envelope stuffing, can be more enjoyable if people are doing it together in a festive atmosphere. Schedule a regular, dependable volunteer TIME/DAY for such work, so that people can come in and socialize together while they are helping your organization . . . and find many ways to thank them during and afterward.

•    Make it convenient:  Have jobs that can be available in bite-sized segments, so that people (especially new ones) don’t feel overwhelmed, and end up opting for “none of the above.” Also have options that can be done off the premises, online, evenings and weekends, and with little training to start.

•    Offer a variety of jobs for people to choose from. People wanting to support your mission don’t necessarily all want to do it in the same way.

•    Don’t make assumptions about the types of volunteers jobs that people want to do. A psychologist by trade may not want to work on your suicide hotline in her spare time, and don’t presume that the full time accountant wishes to volunteer to be treasurer on your board. Ask people what their extracurricular interests are.

•    Don’t presume that all of your volunteer jobs need to be classified as they previously were. Many can occur outside the office altogether, such as actively participating in discussion boards, sharing your online video, etc.

•    Create a detailed means of tracking your volunteers! This can be useful for a variety of purposes. Not only will you have a reliable number of hours worked for volunteer awards, but knowing who shows for scheduled duties – and who doesn’t – is invaluable when a last minute shift needs to be filled.

•    Log what type of work your volunteers prefer, as well as some measurement of effectiveness. This can lead to various “promotions” within the ranks. For example, you may want to ask Karla* to become your next committee chair if you can determine a correlation with her participation on Facebook and Twitter, promoting your email petition campaign, and an increase of signatures each time.

Creating a well-staffed and well-trained cadre of volunteers won’t happen overnight, and it requires diligence – but it can pay off in numerous ways for your nonprofit, in terms of publicity, advocacy, workforce, fundraising and many other venues.

____________________________________________________________________________
Keep the base of the pyramid strong

Similar posts

How Has Event Management Changed For You?

How Many Kinds of Phonathon Are There?

I’ll Do Anything EXCEPT Ask People For Money

While many aspects of events have changed in recent years, one remains consistent: the first order of business is to determine if your event’s purpose is to raise funds, awareness or both.  Spend your resources toward the goal(s) and make it clear.

The term awareness is deliberate, because if your event is primarily conducted for fundraising purposes, then you should be seeking to get as much publicity for your event as possible – before, during and after the event.  Since events’ costs are so high and the ROI is so low in comparison to nearly all other ways to raise money, they wouldn’t be worth doing if not for the other benefits of networking, cultivation and publicity.  Be certain that you make the most of these.

Gone are the days when this meant hoping that local television or newspaper coverage would arrive . . . and if they didn’t, the organization was out of luck.  Although such media coverage is not to be snubbed, there are many other alternatives within a nonprofit’s control with the plethora of social media channels.

Any organization that maintains regular contact with its followers will be able to encourage people across several channels to attend an upcoming event, particularly if those followers are encouraged to spread the word as well.  Online registration and other methods that allow for easy participation (e.g., e-tickets, pre-printed maps, [Share buttons], etc.) will facilitate additional participation and publicity.

After the event, immediate sharing of photos, videos and/or interviews of participants or speakers, etc., to various social media sites will not only remind attendees of their enjoyable time, but again, encourage them to share the memories with others – and donate.  Portraying as many participants as possible shows how your organization welcomes its constituents and will make others want to be included next time as well.

(Note: One thing to keep in mind that has changed is the very public nature of sharing people’s photos online.  Make certain that you get permission to publicly post the photos/videos – especially of children.  This can be as easy as incorporating it in a checkbox during ticket sales, or when signing in at the event.)

Those organizations that are availing themselves of newer technologies and incorporating them into their events are seeing a good response and increased participation, even if it is while hanging on to a more traditional event overall.  One might not consider the incorporation of smart phones as a tour guide to Central Park, but it became an integral part and introduced many people to QR codes last Arbor Day.

In addition to using technology, more nonprofits are realizing that not all events need to be solely for the purpose of raising funds, and are better served as cultivation events for the target market to get to know the organization more than they currently do.  This is especially true for nonprofits that are seeing their larger donors skewing older and fewer, and not nearly enough younger donors stepping up to fill the void.

Smaller nonprofits that have fallen short of goal more drastically have often been more versatile at trying new approaches to campaigns, such as Giving Days, with great success, by accommodating donors’ needs for convenience and accountability in one location.  Giving Days have also been very helpful in attracting newer and younger donors to nonprofits.

It’s essential to continue to cultivate new donors when acquired through these various events and other means, however.  Too often, an organization will take advantage of its donors, though, either by only contacting them when asking for money, or perhaps holding too many events and achieving burnout, from the staff, the donors, or both.

Always keep in mind how you portray your organization to your constituents and the general public at large.  What you don’t want is to have a previously successful event turn sour, with your organization in the middle of it as the villain.  (There is such a thing as bad publicity!)

Sometimes, however, one person’s bad publicity can be another organization’s successful fundraiser, so it’s all in your perspective.

____________________________________________________________________________
Keep the base of the pyramid strong

Similar Posts

How Many Kinds of Phonathon Are There?

I’ll Do Anything EXCEPT Ask People For Money

Who Has Time For Games, Anyway?

This campaign by Pathways to Housing combines several technologies to vividly portray the plight of homelessness in a way that is difficult to ignore.  When people respond by texting, the image of the homeless person displayed then has a home to go to, demonstrating the effectiveness of getting involved.  The person responding next has the opportunity to become further engaged, being asked to text a donation as well.

How can technology help you educate and engage your constituents?

_______________________________________________________________________________

Keep the base of the pyramid strong

More and more organizations are adding video to their Annual Giving plan, whether it’s in e-mails, newsletters, etc.  Does your organization have its own YouTube account?

This new Video Volunteers program profiles a different nonprofit category each month, with the best videos getting free publicity online!

_______________________________________________________________________________

Keep the base of the pyramid strong