Random Donor & Prospect Thoughts

Eric Hoover, a senior writer with the Chronicle of Higher Education, shared a post yesterday on the Chronicle's Head Count blog titled Random Student Thoughts on Admissions. It had some interesting tidbits and made me think of the parallels between college admissions and non-profit fundraising efforts... So here's a look at the topic, Through Nonprofit Eyes.

If your nonprofit has more than one person involved in its operations, you are almost certain to have multiple opinions on what your prospects and donors would like. This can be in terms of appeals, newsletters, events, investments, leadership and a wide variety of other topics. If you have heard phrases like these, you understand what I am referencing:

• "We need to email our donors more. I hear from XYZ nonprofit all the time and I don't mind."
• "Our constituents do not like to be asked for money."
• "Our constituents won't like that mail appeal - I can't stand the way it looks."
• "I got this [appeal/mailing/email/etc] from ABC nonprofit and loved it - We have to do it too!"
• "We should only send email and those Twitterer things to our young prospects."

While people are naturally drawn to designs, appeals, etc. that they like, you are only one person - an "n of 1" in experiment terms - and your opinion may not reflect that of your prospects. No matter how well you think you know them and how much you think they are all like you!

But in the absence of other information and data, nonprofit administrators will often fill the void with their own opinions. That being said... it is good to remember to listen to your donors and prospects.

Hoover's post about college admissions included quotes from various students. Here is a sampling - Can you see the potential parallel to nonprofit stakeholders?

• Dakota Kornicker, a senior at Hunterdon Central Regional High School, in New Jersey, on recruitment emails: “I love getting emails from your college, but I don’t like getting three emails in one day.”
• Christine Johnson, a senior at Cypress Lakes High School, in Houston, on recruitment mailings: “I find a lot of the stuff I get in the mail from colleges to just get in the way and kind of make me mad … even the short letters from deans saying ‘I’m interested in you’ didn’t really mean anything to me.”
• Alexander Moskowitz, a senior at Cherry Creek High School, in Colorado, on the value of admissions interviews: “A personal interview shows students that you’re interested in them and that you’re giving them a chance.”
• Anne Kaplan, a senior at the New York City Lab School for Collaborative Studies, on colleges’ using social-networking sites: “Facebook is the last place I want to see a school.”

Obviously there are likely to be similar opinions within your constituency. But how do you know? You ask and you listen. I think you'll find many are happy to be engaged. Even those who are unhappy about some aspect of your organization will be happy that the opinion or complaint is actually being heard.

Do you think Starbucks, Coca-Cola and Toyota are conducting marketing campaigns based simply on what the CEO or Director of Marketing likes?

Then why should your nonprofit?

image from ilisten(dot)com

Follow: @BeTheMatch

This week I met a woman who is organizing a bone marrow drive to help her business partner's mother fight leukemia. I offered to help with the fundraising and donor recruitment... so this week's #FollowOfTheWeek is also a part of my research for that drive: @BeTheMatch

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Twitter: @BeTheMatch
Name: National Marrow Donor Program
Web: www.BeTheMatch.org
Bio: Be The Match helps save lives. Thousands with life-threatening diseases like leukemia or sickle cell depend on BeTheMatch Registry to find a bone marrow donor.
Followers: 3,022 + you!
Why Follow? Bone marrow donation is a life-saving activity. However, there are still many challenges to finding enough participants. Follow @BeTheMatch to see some great recruitment and engagement of constituents.

@BeTheMatch is also on: Web / Facebook / Blog / LinkedIn / Flickr

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Some screenshots and examples follow - enjoy!

Twitter page:

Great Facebook page for involvement:

Home page:

An outstanding page for taking action. The only problem? It's not prominent on the front page. For example, social media icons & links to BeTheMatch on Facebook and Twitter are not evident when you first visit the page.

A YouTube video via Shaq:

Fundraising Campaign Mixed Messages

I was in the grocery store a few weeks ago and saw a bag of potato chips with the seemingly omnipresent pink ribbon on it. It was a moment where I was almost pushed over the edge with regards to how many products are now associated with Komen For The Cure and other breast cancer organizations.

Let me be very clear: I would never argue against fighting breast cancer, cancer research or other such organizations.

That being said, seeing the chips led me to type a tweet along the lines of "How long until we see a pack of Marlboro's with a pink ribbon on it?"

...but my better judgement kept me from actually hitting "send." Why was I on edge? Because of this:

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Junk food diet linked to cancer in women
By Jenny Hope, The Daily Mail

Eating junk food raises women's risk of developing a range of cancers, researchers said yesterday. Two studies demonstrated the dangers of a diet that includes high levels of fat and processed foods.

A major European study shows that women with raised levels of blood sugar face significant extra risks of suffering cancers of the pancreas, skin, womb and urinary tract. And older women with the fattiest diets have a 15 per cent increase in their chances of developing breast cancer, according to a U.S. study.

(Read the rest of the article from The Daily Mail here)

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Of course, this topic was discussed often when Komen & KFC partnered - for reasons similar to what I mentioned above. As for why I'm finally posting about it... Today one of my Google Alerts led me to a press release for this event:

But then there's this information...

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Drinking as little as half a glass of wine a day may raise a woman's risk of developing breast cancer, a new study shows.
By Charlene Laino, WebMD Health News

Alcohol may be good for your heart in moderation, but drinking as little as half a glass of wine a day may raise a woman's risk of developing breast cancer, a new study shows.

And don't think that switching to beer or spirits is the answer: The more alcohol consumed on a regular basis, the greater the risk, says Wendy Y. Chen, MD, PhD, a cancer specialist at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston.

Chen notes that women thinking about having a few glasses of wine a day for their heart-healthy effects need to figure in the new findings when weighing the risks and benefits. She stresses that "its only regular, repeated use that increases the chance of breast cancer. For most women, having a glass of wine or beer on occasion is not a problem."

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Of course the Drink for Pink event is not suggesting women drink every day and in excess... my concern is that marrying activities (like drinking alcohol & eating junk food) to organizations fighting diseases which research indicate these activities can help cause, sends the wrong message in general. It also brings the sincerity of the organization up for debate. If you're really trying to prevent people from getting breast cancer... why encourage activities that may lead to greater risk? Can you imagine MADD having a happy hour fundraiser? A Humane Society outing at the dog track?

What are your thoughts on these type of campaigns and associations between causes and potentially inappropriate partnerships? Am I just being too cynical and critical? Or should an organization be so true to its cause that it lose the opportunity to raise funds that may have a more significant positive impact than negative? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

By the way... I've since discovered that NaturalNews.com did a satire piece on Komen-branded-cigarettes. On one hand, it's pretty funny. On the other, it's pretty telling that Komen has done enough to merit such a satire. The Komen Smokes For The Cure image above is from the Natural News piece.

Planning Ahead: Nov. Holidays Your Nonprofit Can Use

As many of you know, there is a page on this blog dedicated to holidays nonprofit organizations may be able to use for creative awareness or fundraising campaigns, such as generating a planned giving appeal piece around Plan Your Epitaph Day (November 2). Here's a quick snapshot of some of November's holidays you may be able to use and a couple such ideas:

America Recycles Day
Children's Day
Give Wildlife A Break Week
International Day For the Elimination of Violence Against Women Day
International Tongue Twister Day - Ask your constituents to come up with the best Tweetable (140 characters or less) tongue twisters about your org!
Military Family Appreciation Month
National Adoption Day (Saturday before Thanksgiving)
National Family Literacy Day
National Family Volunteer Day
National Hunger & Homeless Awareness Week
National Inspirational Role Models Month
National Parents As Teachers Day

National Philanthropy Day (!!!)
National Survivors of Suicide Day (Saturday before Thanksgiving)
NoSHAVEmber: [USA - Beard Month or Movember, Australia - Mustache Month] - Have any leaders or volunteers who will go without shaving for the sake of awareness/gifts?
Use Less Stuff Day (Thursday Before Thanksgiving)
Veterans Day
World Diabetes Day
World Kindness Day
You're Welcomegiving Day (Day after Thanksgiving)

Not Best Practice: Being Consistent With Your Message

Just a reminder that those maintaining your various presences on social media need to maintain consistency with your mission & message. "HealthWarehouse" is a pharmacy that fancies itself on promoting health. While checking out the foursquare tips for Detroit's airport, I noticed the following:

Really no need for them to make this comment, even if it is what the user genuinely believes. It is completely contradictory with the "HealthWarehouse" username and apparent desired image of HW.

So, a friendly reminder to all that you avoid such posts - it's critical to show that there is a human side and personality to your tweets, tips and posts, but not at the cost of your image.

Not Best Practice: Inviting Constituents to an Event

Unfortunately, some of us make mistakes from time-to-time with our nonprofit communication efforts. The best we can do with these situations is learn from them and share the learnings with others. I don't like to highlight mistakes, but do so when I think it can help others avoid them.

That being said, here is an email invitation I received yesterday:

My problems with this invitation?

• Never make other constituents' email addresses available for all to see. This can be viewed as a breach of trust by your members/donors/friends who did not wish for this information to be shared. Either use software that sends your message as individual messages or place all addresses in the BCC:
• The message was forwarded. This is occasionally used successfully as a tactic within the Subject: to get people to open emails, but the body of the message should not be quoted materials. It is too impersonal and can imply you did not care enough to write a direct message to the recipient.

Take Action: Close Your Drain

So... it's a week after Blog Action Day, when I did a post on infographics re: clean water and another on an individual's water footprint.

But I actually had an idea for another post today: Close Your Drain.

Here's the idea - people regularly waste water when they let it run during shaving, brushing teeth, long showers, etc. So what I suggest is this:

1) Whenever possible, close the drain while you do these type of activities.

2) When you're finished, use a bath crayon and mark how high the water is.

3) Work to get that level lower.

Pretty simple, right? Let me know if you give it a try - I will be doing so! Together we can conserve water and have an impact on the future.

Example: Focused Campaign Within a Large Nonprofit

The attitude of leadership at large nonprofits toward mini "boutique" campaigns can often be described by one of the most famous cinematic lines of all time: Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn.

Of course, rather than dear you would need to insert AVP, Director of Annual Giving, or some other title.

A few of my recent conversations have discussed how large nonprofit organizations could benefit from focused boutique campaigns with relatively small goals. Not surprisingly, these conversations have often been as a result of the question How can [Example University] use social media to raise money? My viewpoint is that large organizations can target small segments of their data with unique, specific, urgent campaigns and have great success. Yes, social media can be the primary component. No, it shouldn't be the only component. Things like press releases and mini-events can gain your campaign the attention that can make such a campaign successful.

The push-back associated with campaigns like these is often a resistance to dedicating resources to a campaign that is only $20,000 or something similar. That leads to how I think large organizations could succeed at raising enough money to make the dedication of resources worthwhile: developing a systematic approach and campaign calendar that provides your organization the ability to have dozens of these boutique campaigns per year. This way, your totals will start to turn into "real money" and you will not have to reinvent the wheel with each campaign.

So on the heels of one of these such conversations, I met with my friend and colleague at the University of Texas-Austin, Carolyn Connerat. She is the Executive Director of Development and Campaign Manager for the Campaign for Texas. We were discussing the opportunity for boutique campaigns to be successful at large institutions when she shared the Harry Ransom Center's campaign to save the Gone With The Wind costumes. It was a great success, gained international attention, and only had a goal of $30,000. I have included some images below to illustrate how such a campaign could be successful for other large organizations.

I realize that not ever organization or institution has Scarlett O'Hara's costume to gain attention, but I'm willing to bet you can uncover some creative, fun "small" campaigns that would draw attention.

Have you already had such a boutique campaign? Please share any similar stories in the comments section.

By the way... I know there's a pun somewhere between "boutique" campaign and "Gone With The Wind costumes," I'm just not feeling it... plus, I already used the "don't give a damn" line. :)

Learn more about the campaign & Harry Ransom Center: Web / Twitter / Facebook / YouTube / Flickr

The campaign website:

Facebook promotion of NPR story on the campaign:

Twitter examples:

A great visual thank you for those that supported the campaign (see the page here):

Book Review: How To Be A Nonprofit Rockstar

I was recently asked to review an advance copy of How To Become A Nonprofit Rockstar, the forthcoming book by Rosetta Thurman & Trista Harris. While the synopsis and contents suggest the book is aimed at those new to or aspiring to join the nonprofit arena, it is also a great resource for mid-level nonprofit professionals. The latter group will find some of the book's material second nature, some of it new and - most importantly - some of it a catalyst to refresh your outlook on your career and a reminder of some steps you could be taking to advance your responsibilities, title and income.

Before I dig into a full review of the book, please note that Thurman & Harris have been kind enough to offer Through Non-Profit Eyes readers a discounted rate for the book. I will post the information on November 1st, the day of the "virtual book launch." Make sure you return here to order this must-have book for your non-profit career development. UPDATE: Click here to order this outstanding book!

Overview

The book is broken into the following chapters:

• What a Nonprofit Career Looks Like
• Develop Expertise
• Build a Strong Network
• Establish a Great Personal Brand
• Practice Authentic Leadership
• Plan for Balance
• Move On Up

My Twitter review (meaning, how I would sum things up in 140 characters):

Some Favorite Quotes & Moments

While I do not want to give away too many details of the book, here is a sampling of some thoughts inspired by reading the book and a few favorite quotes:

1) Quote: "What has been proven over and over to (Harris & Thurman) is that you cannot wait for your organization to 'develop' you. The most successful nonprofit careers are marked by a proactive approach to professional growth and leadership development."

2) A great bit of advice when considering whether to join a nonprofit (in either a professional or volunteer role) is to notice the culture. The segment includes tips like reviewing an organization's mission, management, work space & environment and staff diversity. A particular question hit home for me:

Do people in the organization socialize outside of work?

Within my first week as director of annual giving for the University of Michigan, an AVP and I sat down over coffee and we had a candid conversation about the instituion's fundraising culture. He was willing to give me such mentoring in part because we had a common friend from his previous institution and - I would later discover - because he was planning to soon leave for a new opportunity. In discussing the challenges of the environment, its decentralized nature and the political impediments to institutional success, this colleague made an astute observation:

(Paraphrasing) Nobody grabs a beer together after work. Half the staff travels over an hour to-and-from work, so they are inclined to get on the road ASAP after work and the other half just don't seem to think about socializing together.

I remember thinking this was an interesting observation and being disappointed with this fact, as my colleagues at the University of Florida were almost always willing to spend time together outside of the office. (In fact, one colleague's daughter went to see her first movie in a theater - Monsters, Inc. - with her sister, mother and seven of us from the UF Foundation! See pic below!) What I didn't realize at the time, was how much this embodied the challenges of my new institution's environment.

3) Considering relocating to a different part of the country or world for your next nonprofit position? One of the four criteria Allison Jones shares in the book for your consideration when weighing a new location is the Number of Active Young Professional Groups - search for YNPN, EPIP and other leadership development opportunities in the area before you take the leap.

4) The book includes a great segment of tips on what size organization to join. Rather than say "you should do "X, Y & Z" the authors look at the good, bad and ugly parts of working for a small organization or a larger org.

5) A favorite quote from the Always Learn, Always Teach tip in the book:

Never be too cocky and think you have nothing more to learn about your position. Ask your co-workers if you can shadow them if they do similar work.

And another:

When a new staff member joins your ogranization, step up and be willing to teach them the organization culture, as well as where the office supplies are located. You'll make a new friend and an additional ally in the organization.

6) As noted above, there is a full chapter on establishing a great personal brand. While this a topic some argue is bunk (See these two posts from Geoff Livingston: Post 1, Post 2), the chapter itself provides some useful tips - particularly for those just joining the workforce.

7) Tip 19 in the book discusses looking like a leader and goes through details like appearance, having backup outfits in the office, etc. But the story Rosetta provides truly spoke volumes about not selling yourself short or missing an opporutnity to act like a leader or expert:

Once, Rosetta was in a meeting with about 20 oether nonprofit leaders. Before the meeting got started, attendees went around the table and introduced themselves and their organizations. They went all around the room until they got to the intern who had been assigned to coordinate the meeting. When it was his turn to speak and introduce himself, he raised his head meekly and said, "Oh, I'm just here to take notes for the meeting." No matter what perception the attendees had already made about him, at that moment he deemed himself completely insignificant. He made it seem as if even his NAME was of no importance to anyone, since he did not even share what it was. He really missed an opportunity to shine while the spotlight was right on him. For the record, someone laughed at his response, then asked him he had a name. Apparently it was Matthew.

This is an example of literally acting like you don't belong at the table.

8) Another qutoe I enjoyed was regarding enhancing your public speaking skills:

Melissa James, the public relations and marketing director for Downtown Hampton Child Development Center in Virginia, says, "I look at public speaking more like a conversation with new friends - as though they had just asked me to tell them about the place where I work, and I was answering. And as I've learned more and more about my organization, it has become easier to tailor what I say to the flow of the presentation and the audience's responses. I've learned to "read" the audience and alter my direction to their comfort as I go.

9) Tip 30 deals with scheduling time to reflect on your job satisfaction, current challenges, skills and aspirations - really a good segment worth reading.

10) Tip 31 is entitled "Don't Skip Lunch," and let me tell you... it hit home. I have always been one of those employees who works through lunch (or eats at my desk) and works well past midnight , etc. The whole point of this tip is to ensure you don't drown in work, lose work-life balance or take the NPO expressway to burn out. When making notes on the advanced copy... I simply wrote "Wow." next to this one. Like I mentioned in the opening, there are some good refreshers in here, even for those of us that have been at this longer than others.

11) Regular visitors to this blog know that I often champion the idea of illustrating your organization's impact to your external constituents as well as your internal stakeholders & employees. This is well illustrated in one of the items Harris & Thurman provide as a way to "Fall Back in Love With Your Job" (Tip 32):

Visit a program: What does your organization actually do for your clients? Have you seen it in action? Take a few hours to go visit one of your nonprofit's programs. Sit in on a financial literacy class, watch as your counselors help the unemployed craft resumes, or attend a play your arts organization is performing. The idea is to see for yourself the impact that your efforts have on others. It will make you appreciate why you do your work every day, no matter how tough it gets.

12) At the beginning of Chapter 7, the authors provide a great tool for reaching long-term career goals with various goal-setting exercises. I don't want to give away all the information in the book (because you should buy it!), but let me suggest this - when you buy the book, skip ahead to read Tip 37 so you can use it as context for the rest of the book.

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There are plenty of other great items I could offer from the book, but I simply want to whet your appetite. Order your copy here on November 1st!

P.S. - One more... in Tip 50, there is a great story of Trista's high school track experience and one specific race that translates well into your approach to a non-profit career. Fun stuff!

If you were teaching Fundraising 101, what would be...

...the most important lesson?

I have some ideas, but want to get a discussion going via the comment section below first. What are your thoughts?

What's The Furthest You've Walked For Clean Water?

Visual representations from around the globe (via Google Maps) of just how far African women have to walk each year to find clean water. More info from charity:water

Click on any image for a larger view

And finally, a sad fact about children and access to water:

All of this is shared with you as part of Blog Action Day 2010 - An effort from Change.org to help rally blogs to make a difference. Check out the video for more information:

Blog Action Day 2010: Water from Blog Action Day on Vimeo.

What's Your Water Footprint?

Did you know how significantly we over consume water in industrialized countries?

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It takes 24 liters of water to produce one hamburger. That means it would take over 19.9 billion liters of water to make just one hamburger for every person in Europe. More Info from TheWaterProject.org »

/week =

The shiny new iPhone in your pocket requires half a liter of water to charge. That may not seem like much, but with over 80 million active iPhones in the world, that's 40 million liters to charge those alone. More Info from IEEE.org »

And, ironically, check out this app from VirtualWater.eu to help track your footprint.

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The blue jeans you may be wearing right now took 6,813 liters of water to produce. More Info from TreeHugger.com »

All of this is shared with you as part of Blog Action Day 2010 - An effort from Change.org to help rally blogs to make a difference. Check out the video for more information:

Blog Action Day 2010: Water from Blog Action Day on Vimeo.