Let’s face it; who really likes asking for money? Of course, there are those few gregarious souls that have no problem with it, but, most people would rather go under a dentist drill than have to ask for money.
That is probably why direct mail was so appealing for so many faith-based and religious organizations. Instead of calling someone or meeting face-to-face, we could just send a letter. Of course, at the heart of asking for money is the issue of rejection, or worse, making someone feel uncomfortable, especially if they have to say “no.” Direct mail took most of those uncomfortable issues away. “Hey, if they don’t want to give, they can throw the letter away.” But, simple direct mail methodology does have its own problems, first and foremost is how manipulating it can be. Notice, I said “can be,” not “always is.”
Simple direct mail fund raising methodology is all about getting dollars. The process starts by purchasing an outside list of donors to another organization and mailing to them. This is called an Acquisition mailing. At its most simplistic, success is determined by the number of people who respond by sending money.
At this point, we call the people who responded “first time donors,” and we quickly send them other appeals with the hope of the parties donating a second time. Over the course of the first year, we send follow up appeals, and between 25 and 33% of first time donors send a second gift. The other roughly 70% that don’t send a second gift are relegated to what is called the lapsed file and you may never hear from them again.
For those that do give a second donation following their original acquisition donation, most organizations continue to mail to them between six and twelve times the following year. But here is a really important point: somewhere along the line, many of those donors begin to develop a relationship with your organization and become more interested in your mission.
Even though some very loyal donors may develop from this long distance relationship with your organization, is it just me, or does this process seem “clunky or ham fisted” as a way to develop a human relationship? No wonder many religious feel squeamish about the process and worry that they only see their donors as ATMs.
Shouldn’t the point of our fund raising be to first develop relationships with the people that ultimately wish to support us? That is an interesting question, but a more interesting question is, “Why do we feel this way?”
I think something has changed in us that we are not even fully cognizant of and that is what is at play here. My guess is that we find ourselves looking at the way we have done things (our historical direct mail methodology) through modern sensibilities that have been shaped by living in a world that has very much changed, even as our fund raising methodologies have not.
An Alternative:
What if faith-based and religious organizations could first cultivate a human relationship and then the gift – should one be given – would come down the road as a by-product of the relationship? Suddenly there is no perceived manipulation, no viewing the people that make contact with your organization as ATMs, but rather a relationship of genuine connectedness.
Which approach do you like better?
Which approach do you think a potential constituent would like better?
The Alternative approach is available today.
In my next blog, Part Two of this series, I will contrast the approaches.
-Mike
Welcome to BIG’s Blog and yes, by all means forward our blog to your friends and co-workers.
No comments:
Post a Comment