Fundraising

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Congratulations, RMIT

Congratulations, RMIT! I was dancing at my dinner table on Monday, 15 June. No, I was not out on the town. Instead, I was opening the day’s mail and RMIT’s direct mail piece caught my eye for all the right reasons.

  1. RMIT makes an ask. Seem basic to you? Many charities in my direct marketing study do not make an ask or, if they do, it is such a soft ask it is missed.
  2. RMIT asks for enhanced data – phone and email.
  3. RMIT asks how I wish to be recognised in donor publications or if I wish to remain anonymous.
  4. RMIT lists other giving options, including:
    • Creation of a scholarship in my name.
    • Consideration of a gift in my will.
  5. RMIT references the Information Privacy Act 2000 (VIC).
  6. RMIT offers matching my donation dollar for dollar.

As RMIT says in the letter, giving to education is powerful. I’m convinced. And, RMIT does a great job enticing me to give. The RMIT scholarship solicitation is a model appeal.

RMIT 2 RMIT 3RMIT

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St Patrick’s Cathedral offers donation capability in-house

When I visited Washington DC recently, I wrote about the lack of donation solicitation throughout the various Smithsonian Institutions. My experience in New York City was quite the opposite.

911The 9/11 Memorial sought memberships and donations throughout the museum. St Patrick’s Cathedral sought donations throughout the church. St Patrick’s solicited donations upon entry to the church, as well as at various stations. I was most impressed with my ability to give a donation online right in the cathedral.St Pats 2

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Anniversary idea

Is your organisation celebrating an anniversary?

Check out this email I received from Uber (perhaps you received one, too?).

Snip20150603_15The email connects me to Uber’s 5 year anniversary by pointing out the months since I joined Uber, the number of times I have ridden Uber, and the city I have most frequently used Uber. It also offers me an opportunity to share this information with friends!

Clever idea. Perhaps your organisation might adapt it to mark a milestone anniversary? You could simply tie the date the donor first supported your organisation, how many times they have supported your organisation, and how much their lifetime giving.

It is ideas like these, whether from the non-profit or for-profit sectors we can adapt to suit our own needs. This is one I thought worthy of sharing!

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Lack of focus on philanthropy in DC-area museums

I have just spent about a fabulous week in Washington DC celebrating my nephew Matt’s 13th birthday. This is a milestone birthday for any young man or woman and this trip is something I promised Matt years ago. As you know, 13 year olds do not forget such promises and neither did this uncle.

Watergate
The file cabinet from the Watergate break-in

During the trip, we visited as many sites as possible, including many of the museums of the Smithsonian Institution. We saw original aircraft, a space suit used by an astronaut on a walk on the moon, the ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz, the Hope Diamond, a flag which inspired the writing of the US National Anthem, the original US constitution, Bill or Rights, and Declaration of Independence, and the impressive list goes on and on. The Smithsonian Institution is rich with treasures, especially for Americans who love history. As one taxi driver told us, “Washington DC is the Jerusalem of America for Americans”.

Founded in 1846, the Smithsonian Institution is the world’s largest museum and research complex, consisting of 19 museums and galleries, the National Zoological Park, and nine research facilities.

It always amazes me the Smithsonian Institution museums, with its vast and diverse collections, are free of charge. Some might say that our taxes pay for these institutions and, thus, Americans have paid for these institutions and they should be free to enter.

The Smithsonian relies on philanthropy and membership to survive. In fact, according to its website, the Smithsonian Institution was founded because of philanthropy. The Smithsonian Institution was established with funds from James Smithson (1765-1829), a British scientist who left his estate to the United States to found “at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge.” The collections in each museum are donated by individuals and organisations world-wide.

Ask 2
Sign on a collection canister at the American Museum of Natural History

As you enter the museums of the Smithsonian Institution and enter various exhibits, you will notice donor walls and plaques recognising the generosity of individuals, corporations, and trusts and foundations. Additionally, there are opportunities to leave donations in various donation canisters. Because the gift shops and cafes are the only places where money is exchanged, there is no ask for a donation. Additionally, I was asked only once if I wanted to become a member of the Smithsonian Institution. The ask was on the final day of the trip as I purchased something in the last museum (at the exit!). I joined.

Perhaps the mission or policies of the Smithsonian Institution discourage the ask for a donation. Perhaps the leadership simply want people to absorb the history documented in these amazing museums. I was more than surprised at the lack of attention drawn to the need for philanthropy.

It is my sincere hope that people see the value of institutions such as the Smithsonian Institution and take the time to support these types of institutions philanthropically and through membership. Places like the Smithsonian do not operate on government support alone and, in fact, would not even exist if it were not for the generosity of people like James Smithsonian and the countless others who take the time to give.

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Finding the ‘perfect’ CRM is only half the battle for your non-profit organisation

 

Customer Relationship Management System CRM in word tag cloud

Has your non-profit acquired a new constituent relationship management (CRM) or supporter relationship management (SRM)? Did the process seem difficult? I hate to tell you, but that was the easy part. Now comes the hard part – implementing the CRM/SRM.

Most organisations do not realise they will need to review their business processes inside and out. Why? Some processes will need to be reshaped simply because they will not “fit” inside the new CRM/SRM. Other processes are antiquated and need a “remodel”. And, others have not even been invented yet within your organisation.

Most CRM/SRM suppliers will work with organisations to implement the new software in a sequential order, such as:

  • Security
  • Data conversion
  • Supporter management
  • Gift management
  • Event management
  • Other

It is best practice for organisations to develop a policies and procedures document in parallel with anyProcedures Folders Meaning Correct Process And Best Practice CRM/SRM implementation. The supplier may provide some documentation, which you will enhance for this added purpose. The policies and procedures document should be a living document, which you will make available to your end users in electronic format. This is a document you will maintain moving forward. The manual should never be “put on a shelf” and left unattended. Instead, your subject matter experts should keep the policies and procedures manual up to date any time a new procedure is developed or an existing procedure is enhanced. It is like cleaning a room in your home. Once it is clean it is easier to keep it clean than it is to start from scratch again.

Implementing a new CRM/SRM does not happen overnight and, in fact, the process from start to finish takes months. The length of time the process takes depends on a number of factors:

  • How well organised is your organisation going into the process?
  • How well developed and established are your existing processes?
  • How clean is your data?

Is your organisation in a transitional or maintenance frame of mind?

The CRM/SRM implementation is ripe with opportunity. Use the process as a renaissance for your organisation. Do not leave any stone unturned. Push the process, the supplier, and your team to truly transform your organisation.

Purchasing a CRM/SRM may be the single largest investment your organisation makes. Maximise the investment by doing it right.

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Professional development opportunities galore

Snip20150518_3We live in a country where fundraisers do not lack professional development opportunities.

The Fundraising Institute Australia (FIA) Education program offers a host of courses. The 2015 semester II brochure just arrived in our letterboxes and is rich with new courses, as well as well the standard FIA courses – Fundraising Essentials, Certificate in Fundraising and Diploma in Fundraising. New course offerings include Data Analytics for the Empowered Fundraiser, Digital Storytelling for Fundraisers, Fundraising Change Leadership, and I Gave at the Office – Workplace Giving Masterclass.

The FIA courses are taught by dynamic, experienced, and diverse fundraising professionals such as Kathy John/RobeJohn, Shanelle Newton Clapham/Parachute Digital, Nigel Harris/Mater Foundation and Peter Dalton/fundraisingfutures, and Bonny Bayne and Rachael Beckett/Charities Aid Foundation (CAF). These talented professionals offer a wealth of experience as part of the content they deliver throughout the semester.

Register for these courses today. FIA is able to offer these courses in cities across Australia if we support our professional fundraising organisation.

 

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A stack of mail in the United States

MailI have not lived with my parents since 1983. I last lived with them in the US state of Wisconsin before I went away to university. My parents now live in New Mexico and have since ~1987. I visit them twice a year since moving to Australia – usually in May and December.

Each time I have visited them over the last 7 years, my mother has told me that I have “mail waiting” for me. It started with a piece or two, but it amounted to more that 20 pieces of mail this month.

The interesting part of the May mail stack is there were only two pieces of mail from charity. Those pieces came from a conservation group and they were premium packs – address labels! If I want to, I could send lots of letters out with my parents return address! The remainder of the mail was for mobile phone offers (3 pieces), catalogues for clothing (3 pieces), replacement windows (3 pieces), life insurance (5 pieces), and blank cheques from my United Airlines credit card encouraging me to transfer balances from other cards (6 pieces).

You might suggest 20 pieces of mail in ~4 months is not a lot. You are right. Nonetheless, 20 pieces at an address I never lived, in a state I have only spent short holidays in, is quite puzzling.

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The Joys of Moving

to moveI am moving house. Where am I moving? I do not know.

Sounds unsettling? It is!

I have simply not had time to find a new home and I needed to vacate my current place due to a pending sale of the unit. The removalists showed on Saturday, packed my belongings, and loaded them onto a truck…to storage.

But, there is so much more to a move. Because I do not know where I am moving to, I had to complete a Mail Hold Service with Australia Post. When I determine where I am moving to, I will complete a Mail Redirection. As you know from my previous posts and articles in F&P Magazine, no charity I support has performed data hygiene since my last move and I know this because Australia Post continues to forward my mail sent to my former Sydney address. It will be interesting to see if charities find me now!

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What have your volunteers done for you lately?

Group of people saying ThankWhat have your volunteers done for you lately? Wrong question. What have you done for your volunteers lately?

It is National Volunteer Week in Australia. Every organisation needs to assess what it is doing to recognise volunteers and volunteers need to think about what organisations are doing to recognise the time they give to those organisations. Volunteering Australia gives us 101 Ways to Recognise Your Volunteers including 13 key ideas to celebrate National Volunteer Week

  1. Give a certificate to commemorate anniversaries of involvement.
  2. Take photos of volunteers ‘on the job’, imprint a ‘Thank you’ message and frame them – then give them to each volunteer.
  3. Hold special ‘thank you’ or social functions in honour of volunteers.
  4. For long-standing volunteers, collect coins in the amount of hours contributed, place them in a vase tied with a royal blue ribbon and present to them at a special afternoon tea.
  5. Have a morning tea with testimonials to the volunteers from recipients of services.
  6. Give them a mug with logo or ‘thank you’ motif.
  7. Create bookmarks for the volunteers with an acknowledgement of appreciation for work contributed.
  8. Hold a BBQ for your volunteers.
  9. Run a Volunteers Breakfast.
  10. Give a pat on the back: Trace your hand on plain paper and cut out. Write, ‘Here’s a pat on the back for _________________. Thanks for all you hard work.’ Invite staff or anyone else that has contact with the volunteers to make one in recognition of the service of particular volunteers. Hang them all together for visual impact.
  11. Create Volunteer buttons and pins
  12. Arrange discounts for your volunteers at local shops.
  13. Celebrate formal recognition events such as International Volunteer Day and National Volunteer Week with dinners, teas, dessert buffets, etc.

Some might seem basic or a little hokey; however, at the end of the day, isn’t it about taking a minute to say thanks and trying to be creative enough that the volunteers accept your thanks with appreciation for being recognised. Too few organisations take the opportunity to say thank you. It might be too late to action many fo these ideas this week during National Volunteer Week. But, what about hand written thank you note or simply a personalised mass Email sent to volunteers with a big “THANK YOU”?

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Uber ready with emergency appeal – ChildFund Australia get’s the gold star 

Most Australians went to bed on Saturday night having already heard of the devastating earthquake and avalanche in Nepal. We woke up to learn of the growing numbers of people killed, injured or left homeless. The images from Nepal were heart wrenching to see.

Snip20150426_11Because the Nepal Earthquake disaster happened over the weekend, the staff of most international aid charities was away from the office. Nonetheless, Childfund Australia, worked to get an appeal out on Sunday morning. I suspect more would have matched this pace had the disaster occurred on a weekday.

How do charities like Childfund Australia get an appeal out so quickly? I am not on the inside, but I would venture to guess they are…prepared. Prepared by having segments pre-built and ready to simply refresh. All Childfund had to do was to write some copy, match the copy to the segments and push the urgent appeal out to supporters to raise the money needed to support the people in the heart of the disaster region. One might argue the EDM is not glamorous looking; I would argue the look and feel of this email is exactly what the moment called for and demonstrates the urgency of the message and the need for money now.

How ready would your organisation be if you needed to get an appeal out literally within hours? Think about whether you have the tools in place to outperform your counterparts at Childfund Australia. Some Australian organisations take weeks and, even months, to get a tax appeal ready. Change your readiness to be more like the Childfund model.

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