In talking with a number of top-flight fund raising pros in recent weeks, I’ve heard some strategic ways to adapt to these unprecedented times.
Awareness is high of the increased need of those most vulnerable among those who give and care. Demand for services to help those who’ve lost their jobs is a reality and a solid platform on which to appeal for support. For those in the human services business, making the case is the easy part.
Rational non-profit leaders understand that confidence and giving are down. For fund raisers it means setting and insisting on reasonable goals and sharpening the brand and promise of what a donation will deliver in these times. Platitudes about excellence and high quality are not meaningful right now. What the dollar will do in plain language is what is what is needed. Donors want to know that their gift will make a difference today for a person in need.
One other comment I have heard repeatedly is how the wealthy have suffered along with the middle class and the poor. People with means have watched money vanish, participated in laying off workers, closed businesses and worry along with the rest of us about the future. That uncertainty and worry is a good thing. It decreases arrogance and helps in any discussion of helping people through hard times. For fund raisers, it is important to acknowledge the need and uncertainty of these times and appeal to the sense that we are all in this together.
One last thing I am hearing is how “gala” event fund raising may be a poor tactic right now. The haves are not all that excited about celebrating their success in public and sponsors are looking at every expense through the lens of what is core to their business and what is not. Sponsoring tables or holes at a golf tournament are extras in these times but business owners feel bad about saying no. Events should be simple, not ostentatious and fun in a modest way. Events should bring constituents together in a thoughtful, cautious way.
Tags: events, fund raising, recession, strategic