Donors: leaders or followers?

Ken Burnett has furnished fundraisers with the theory of relationship fundraising. For many, this noble concept has been degraded into a sort of formulaic and politically correct form of donor relations. Speak to your donors in their language. Take the advice of donors and adhere to it religiously. Treat your donors as your charity’s key audience.

The problem is that donors are NOT ALWAYS right.

(I can feel the awkward silence, and the glares of heresy. )

Donors are not the only group in a charity’s constellation of relationships: the actual beneficiaries (lest we forget), volunteers, staff, management/board, competitors, and suppliers must all be part of the equation when developing policy and programs.

On top of addressing the many stakeholder needs, some donors are seriously off the wall. I’ve managed donor expectations for large charitable organizations, and some of the recommendations (often stated as if requirements) are bizarre, some unethical, and many downright rude. Other recommendations are well intentioned, but underinformed. And some were real gems in the rough.

In my experience, ALL donors who offer their perspective are basing their comments on THEIR own experience—this is a human trait, admittedly—and we know that not all donors are the same.

For example, if someone says that they will only give online, that does not mean that all donors give online. (Editorial aside: In fact, studies and proper statistical analysis indicate that for most successful fundraising non-profits, receiving even 10% of annual revenue from online donations is considered real success)

In an increasingly competitive fundraising environment, any marketing professional is tempted to be swayed by the voices of individual constituents. Especially if they are the ones "caught" by the donor on the phone. Donors can be quite persuasive.

The problem is that individual comments, recommendations, and advice are not normally based upon universal truths, solid testing, or large enough sample sizes. As a colleague is fond of saying: advice is free, but good advice will cost you.

Having said this, donors are a valuable source of insight. Statistics on donor behavior drawn from various donor segments can be incredibly useful in defining fundraising strategy. If many donors offer the same advice, then chances are that advice is worth considering. Furthermore, SOME ideas proposed by donors may also be marvelous and worth testing. From my own experience, I offer a few words of suggestion on how to manage the advice given by the self proclaimed “donor leaders.”

First, don’t argue with the wingnuts. It will suck time out of your day, patience out of your demeanor, and your soul from your work. In spite of the intrinsic need to be nice to each and every donor, it is rare to actually get to the root of these donors’ concerns in a way that will appease them, let alone sufficiently motivate them to actually give.

Second, accept rational suggestions as credible, and employ them as a starting point to engage that donor. Discuss the relative merits of the new idea or suggestion and offer your perspective based on other donor comments, policy directions, and available funding. More often than not, the conversation you have, even if you collectively decide that the idea may not work out, will build a relationship with that donor that will lead to greater support in the future. This is my understanding (interpretation) of Ken Burnett’s relationship fundraising.

Third, don’t acquiesce to ultimatums. If a donor requires you (or your organization) to change to get their support, then they have the wrong organization. Tell them so, nicely, get off the phone, then call a major donor to say thank you for whatever they did recently. I believe that limited time is better spent with those who are partners, not adversaries.

Finally, be sure to test those ideas that “fit” the budget, policy and ability of the organization, before assuming that they are true. Seasoned fundraisers don’t actually KNOW what their donors (or prospective donors) will do until they ask their donors.

So, are donors the leaders of an organization? No, they must be followers of the organization’s mandate, policy and programs.

The “customer,” it would appear, is not always right.

Nonetheless, good fundraisers must keep their ears and eyes open to the possibility that donors may offer some useful insight and ideas, and all non-profit staff must have faith that donors, in general, want to see the charity succeed and most of the time their ideas are a plea to help in a constructive way.