GOOD NEWS: What Donors Think
Good News: An enewsletter for donors and nonprofits
on strategic planning, governance, fundraising, and executive leadership.
What Donors Think
Whether talking with donor clients or the donors connected with my nonprofit clients, I listen carefully. I watch closely when they act. Here are four things that many donors think but don’t always say:
Donors are Not ATM’s
It is common and appropriate for internal fundraising conversations to focus on identifying sources of giving. “She has a lot of money (or a successful business or an expensive property) so she should be on our donor list,” is not an uncommon refrain in boardrooms and development offices. Remember that just because a person or entity has resources does not mean they are inclined to support your cause. Donors can smell when they are being treated like an ATM. They don’t like it. Beware the drive-by asks and infrequent interactions with people who can help. Relationship building over time and alignment of common goals are everything when it comes to enlisting support.
Being a Worthy Cause Isn’t Enough
They exist but it is hard to find nonprofits that do not seek to do important work. But being a worthy cause is not enough to earn the support of most donors, especially major donors. Donors seek organizations and individuals that actually make a difference in the areas they care about. They seek competent and highly functioning governance and executive leadership teams with a plan. Be sure to make the case that you are making progress towards a goal the donor cares about. Communicate concisely and repeatedly. Consistently demonstrate your competence through every individual and institutional communication and action.
Founding Energy Is Necessary But Not Sufficient
Most nonprofits exist because of an inspirational founder(s) willing to defy gravity and do what is necessary to succeed. These founders attract a lot of attention and support through their sheer force of will and personality. But the roadside is littered with organizations that did not succeed in building an organization and culture that survives its founder(s). While many donors will support startup entities for years or even decades, savvy funders eventually look for signs that a deep bench of leadership exists. They want to see that others are entrusted with carrying the work forward long after founders come and inevitably go. Be sure to attract and nourish a wide base of talent on your staff and in the board room.
The Nonprofit Industrial Complex
Even donors that robustly invest in worthy causes with sustainable leadership sometimes confess to wondering why they do it. They quietly may question the effectiveness of the nonprofits they enthusiastically support, asking whether solving big problems is actually possible or even the goal. Sometimes I am asked by clients, “Where is the plan for the nonprofit to put itself - and us (the funder) - out of business so that people are no longer hungry, unhoused or without access to other resources needed to survive and thrive?” I routinely engage in conversations with funders questioning “the nonprofit industrial complex.” Sobering, hard questions get asked about how effective any of us are when it comes to eliminating, not just ameliorating, harsh realities. What is the big idea that you offer beyond addressing immediate needs?
Because the world of donors can be opaque, I offer these perspectives in the hopes that donors and nonprofits will consider incorporating them into their daily words and actions.
Stuff Steve Is Watching, Listening To, and Reading
Catalytic Thinking (84 minute watch)
“The core of it is that the systems we rely upon in nonprofit work, none of them were actually intended for what we use them for. Thousands of years ago, church charity was all about helping one individual at a time. The religious institution - doesn't matter which one - decided who was deserving. Decided what they were deserving of. Decided what they received and helped one group or one family at a time. Fast forward a couple thousand years, what do we do? We help one person at a time. We decide who is deserving and what they are deserving of. We get strategic planning straight out of the military. As does this hierarchical way of operating. Everything else we get out of the business world. All of the structures that we are using to dismantle power and privilege come from power and privilege. We're stuck because the systems we are using are incapable of creating change because they were never intended for it." Hildy Gottlieb and Vu Le, Creating the Future
Whatever It Is, I’m Against It (5 minute listen)
"The central problem about most colleges right now is that higher education is an industry under tremendous pressure, particularly financial pressure or demographic pressure. Presidents are brought in to try to solve problems that require transformation, and they're facing an industry that is culturally and structurally not very good at transforming itself. And so they get pressure from boards of trustees, they get pressure from faculty, and when they push for too much change, they tend to get votes of no confidence. And often they leave." Brian Rosenberg, author of Whatever It Is, I'm Against It
Imagine If We Talked to Everyone Like We Talk to Nonprofits (2 minute read)
“#6: Our family is not interested in paying for the salaries of the engineers and technicians who maintain and control traffic lights. We only want our taxes to pay for the traffic lights themselves. Since the city budget indicates a significant portion is going to salaries, we will not be paying our taxes this year.
#9: I heard that you are trying to land a shuttle on Mars. I'd like to invest $500. I will need quarterly reports." India Development Review
To the Good is Moving!
Please note that To the Good's new mailing address is:
#1002
580 Washington Street
Boston, MA 02111
Steve Filosa
978 578 1904
www.tothegood.net
