through nonprofit eyes: Sam Adams, Whole Foods & Your Donors

I was really struck by a recent post by the awesome Jeff Espositto (web / Twitter / YouTube). In the post, Jeff describes an experience he had searching for a rare Sam Adams brew and how his network, Twitter and Whole Foods came together to save him from going without the new brew. Aside from my love for quality craft brews, I found Jeff's takeaways from the experience worth sharing Through Nonprofit Eyes:

From Jeff's post:

A few weeks ago, I attended the Sam Adams unveiling of their new beer Infinium and ever since have been looking to get my hands on a bottle or two. After striking out a few times at my favorite stores, I shot out a tweet asking if anyone had any insight into stores with the elusive beer in stock. Soon after I received this Tweet from someone who I have never met, but am grateful for:

Shortly after, Jeff received the following from @WholeFoodsRVR:

Talk about listening and taking care of your customers! As Jeff went on to say, he normally wouldn't have shopped at Whole Foods, but did so because of their quick response. They literally gained a customer through being responsive on Twitter. Here are Jeff's takeaways, with my input for a nonprofit perspective:

Grow big ears - I can't count the number of times a potential or former donor has been confused or misinformed about something at a nonprofit and, therefore, has decided not to make a contribution in the future. Every time you see the opportunity to correct misconceptions about your nonprofit, you have the chance to sway someone to "your side" and remove one barrier to giving.
Treat every referral as a potential sale, even if it doesn't look like a large win - This one goes out to all the major gift officers. Some of you are great at this, some of you are terrible at it. In many organizations if the annual giving moves a donor through various gift levels, the donor "qualifies" as a major gift prospect and is shuffled on to a gift officer's portfolio. So on one day the prospect is at the top of the annual giving prospect list. The next day, the prospect is at the bottom of a major gift prospect list. If you're the gift officer and cannot take this relationship to the next level - say so!!! It's okay if you have too many bigger donors/prospects to work with, but it's not okay to ignore this group and let them slip into "midrange donor purgatory."
Go above and beyond - This always goes a long way with donors, particularly if they feel like they are "only" a small contributor. Think of a time a restaurant treated you better than you ever would have anticipated... Have you gone back? I'm guessing you have. Donors can act the same way.
Have fun with the customer - If the situation permits fun and it won't hurt your organization, don't hesitate to illustrate to donors & prospects that you are human! Novel concept, I know, but for large nonprofits in particular, prospects can feel like there's no such thing as a real human. Humor can help when it fits.
Small niceties can turn a happy customer into an advocate - Without a doubt, this is true. When people complain to your nonprofit, it is likely because they actually care about the work you're doing. Otherwise, they probably would not take the time to complain. Therefore, being kind & owning any problems or mistakes can turn that negative passion into a positive, advocating voice for your organization.
Keep hustling - Always. It helps to be passionate about what you do. If you find you're losing steam or not hustling, take time to reflect and figure out what's keeping you from doing so.

Thanks to Jeff for giving me the okay to piggy-back on his original post. The tweet images are from his post and the Infinium picture is from DigBoston.