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October 5, 2009
Successful Year-End Appeals
I was reading through last week's edition of The Chronicle of Philanthropy when I came across some "keys to success for year-end appeals" that I think are worth noting. In fact, I tweeted five of these these keys yesterday:
Successful Year-End Appeals: Be as gracious when donors say NO as when they say YES. (Chron. Of Phil.)//Remember, it's about building trust.
about 22 hours ago from UberTwitter
A few thoughts: I've never met anyone that likes to hear the word "no." Sometimes a no means no (forever) and sometimes it means no (not now). They key is to focus on building the relationship to the point in which you have the trust with the donor or church member where you can make the ask. Nearly every "horror" story I've heard was the result of a premature ask, well before the "asker" had earned the right to ask. If you react poorly to the word no, then you will eliminate the next opportunity. So it's always wise to keep the door of opportunity open.
Successful Year-End Appeals: Start seeking big gifts now, since such donations often take 18 months from start to finish. (Chron. Of Phil.)
about 22 hours ago from UberTwitter
A few thoughts: Because relationships take time, it's important to build time into our funding expectations. That means cultivating gifts has to be a proactive process, not a reactive response to a budget/operational crisis. Stop relying on last minute conversations to bridge the funding gap. This is necessary at times but shouldn't become systematic in our approach to church funding.
Successful Year-End Appeals: Focus on people who didn't give in 2008 Donors are hard to get back after 2 years of not giving (Chron Of Phil)
about 22 hours ago from UberTwitter
A few thoughts: Giving is an outward sign of an inward commitment. It's important to follow giving trends in our churches. Uncovering great variations in giving from year to year could uncover an individual or family ministry opportunity that might otherwise have been buried by fake smiles and canned responses. Money doesn't lie. People do.
Successful Year-End Appeals: Be concrete. Don't rely on charity's [or church's] reputation. (Chron. Of Phil.)
about 22 hours ago from UberTwitter
A few thoughts: It's always important to tell the story. People forget. Most people only touch our churches for once a week for 60 minutes. There is a lot that is going to happen in the coming week, and that's if they attend your church faithfully every week. Always go back to the basics. Every church leader should start with vision, define core values, identify strategic goals, and outline action steps. Not only does this reacquaint the faithful with the specific ministry objectives of the church, it provides the basis for measurement to determine if the work the person in the pew is funding is actually accomplishing what you told them it would.
Successful Year-End Appeals: Emphasize the good a gift will achieve, not bad things that will happen if donors don't give. (Chron. Of Phil.)
about 22 hours ago from UberTwitter
A few thoughts: People want to know their money counts. Tell them what you're going to do with it. Articulate what measurable acts of ministry you hope to fund and what you believe will be the intended results. Setting expectations and fulfilling those expectations helps build trust....
And that bring us back to the top....
Number ONE...
key to year-end appeals...
R-E-L-A-T-I-O-N-S-H-I-P-S!
We all have a lot to do between now and the end of the year. Don't overlook the opportunity you have to lay the groundwork necessary to fully fund your budget in the coming year.
Posted by bstroup at October 5, 2009 1:10 PM
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