First, a bit of a disclaimer:  this posting is not intended to be a “How To” for using and managing volunteers.  There are plenty of great web articles that do a fantastic job of that.  A great primer is a Community Toolbox posting, “Developing a Plan for Involving Volunteers.” This relatively short but insightful article is just one of many I would recommend to anyone exploring ways to initiate or expand a volunteer program.

My goal here, on the other hand, is simply to share a couple of insights aimed at addressing one of the frequent obstacles to managing volunteers: Finding a convenient time to train/educate them for the job at hand.  If you have worked with volunteers in the past, you have probably found that the best ones are extremely busy—the very thing that makes them good at volunteering makes them great at many other things as well, so they are in perpetually high demand.  Trying to find a “good time” that works for a group of individuals can be a challenge—and often means you are conducting the session at a time you would rather be home.    

The solution? The Internet!  Whether you are doing the training yourself, or providing access to “experts in the field” for topics such as gift planning, board training, etc., take advantage of the variety of available online tools.  These are often offered at little or no cost and frequently accessible for download at the volunteer’s convenience.  Case in point, recently I was asked by my pastor to participate in a Planned Giving webinar for church volunteers.  We had three participation options:

1. Meet at church and watch together (over a Pizza and Beer Dinner!)
2. Join remotely from home
3. Watch it on our own at a later date

WOW!  And who says technology hasn’t made our lives easier??  The cost to participate for the group was nominal and any number of participants could join.  The speaker was outstanding and 7-8 individuals learned a lot about planned giving for our church in a 90 minute session (and the pizza was great, too).

Similarly, when training volunteers yourself, consider videotaping your session.   Ideally this would be available to distribute via email or to access online.  You, too, can be a YouTube star!  Much more dynamic than a packet of materials, this will allow individuals unable to attend to not only hear your presentation, but also benefit from questions asked during the session.

So, don’t hesitate to think creatively when structuring volunteer training opportunities.  The best answer can literally be right at your fingertips! 

Got a volunteer training success story?  I’d love to hear about it.  Feel free to email me at laura.worcester@blackbaud.com

*Laura Worcester is a consultant for Target Analytics.

• Don’t Forget Your $1,000 Gifts, from Jason Dick’s A Small Change fundraising blog, shares the importance of mid-level giving donors.
• The Role of Technology in Philanthrophy, from The Nonprofit Times Blog, discusses how organizations can use technology to their advantage.
• DRMG? Is this a term your charity knows? Direct Response Major Giving, from Roy Jones’ Fundraising Blog, defines the difference between direct response major giving (DRMG) and traditional major gifts programs.

As part of our jobs, prospect researchers, executive leadership, and development officers work to identify potential donors for major gifts.  Researchers then take the next step in qualifying this prospect with the necessary tools and skills to create quick profiles for initial calls and/or visits.  The researcher then creates comprehensive profiles when the development officer is ready to take it to the next level of cultivation, making sure that these profiles are disseminated to the correct fundraiser(s) involved, and ensuring the data is documented and attached in the system for future reference.  Then the development officer continually needs to track and gather information, thus providing this data either directly into the system, or to the centralized prospect research/management operation.  This helps ensure that the data is not only being collected, but is done so in a uniform manner, meeting particular standardized data collection methods established by the organization.  Gift officers continue to work on soliciting for these major gift, and once the gift is realized, they put together a process of stewardship, thanking the prospect for their gift, and making sure they feel appreciated and informed about the use of the dollars raised.

If at any point in this process the lines of communication are broken, or there is breakdown in the process, then the nonprofit can possibly be at risk for ineffective fundraising practices and operational confusion.  I have seen bad feelings arise between team members because a lack of strategic plans, ineffective process management, and the inability of leadership to foster a culture of cooperation, meaning that every team member feels valued and is regarded as an integral part of the fundraising operation.  This should be established from the get-go, so if any of these pieces are missing from your organization’s culture, you should look into turning things around.  This is not only the responsibility of leadership, but truly all team members should be able to take some stock and ownership in the prevailing culture within their organization.

I see these issues not only in smaller organizations, but in larger more sophisticated offices too, so I encourage all nonprofits to take the time to think through this strategically as a group by respecting all the ideas shared by fellow colleagues.  Then it is up to management/executive leadership to take it to the next level by creating a cohesive outline of what needs to be accomplished.  This will ensure that your fundraising culture is not only a successful one, but a rewarding part of your professional life as well.

*Carol Belair is a consultant for Target Analytics. You may reach her at carol.belair@blackbaud.com.

I was introduced to this incredible line of work back in 1996 when I was a development assistant at AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA).  I had no idea there was a profession dedicated to prospect research/prospect management.  I came from the entertainment industry and while my superiors did not initially see it as a perfect fit for me I most certainly did.  After all, I did research on the character I portrayed.  I have always thought that one of the many responsibilities of a researcher is to provide a 3-dimensional view of the prospect just as I tried to create a 3-dimensional view of my characters.  So when the prospect researcher at APLA left, I did not hesitate in applying for the position and I haven’t looked back since.  Within one month of accepting the position, I was fortunate enough to attend an APRA International Conference inSan Diego.  It was transformational and I knew at that moment that I had a new career.  I also knew that after my three days with other like individuals at this extraordinary conference that I wanted to give back to this association. APRA was providing me with not only the tools and education to advance in my field but a whole new group of colleagues that were more than willing to help me.  At that point the internet was just in its infancy for prospect research.  Books, magazines and newspapers were your primary resource and the only possible meaning for Facebook could be a coffee table book of celebrity headshots.  It was a simpler time however obtaining information took much longer and prospect research was something some organizations did not admit to doing. 

Now prospect research, data analysis, prospect management are at the “big boys table” and we are up and out of the basement and greatly involved in the strategy sessions being held by our fellow leaders.  Now it is not a question of whether or not you do research at your organization, it is at what level and intensity.  I am enthralled to see the changes that I have seen in the past 16 years and can only imagine where the next 25 years will take us.  I am extremely proud of APRA and appreciative of the education I have received.  I am starting my eighth consecutive year on the board of APRA and I can tell you it has grown in so many different ways.  In addition, I have also been blessed with some really great friends along the way.  Who else can say that they got married at the APRA conference?  It was my APRA colleagues and friends who made it truly a special event.  I guess when you look at it, I am what all organizations strive for – someone who is going to remain loyal for the rest of my life in some form or another.  Be insightful and recognize those individuals who have a passion for your organization and make sure you involve them in unique and exciting ways. 

So let us take some time to recognize those who provide this remarkable asset that ensures the organizations we work for meet their philanthropic dreams and goals.  So if you are one of these fortunate individuals who provide this service, please take time to pat your self on the back and give yourself a standing ovation.  If you have colleagues who provide this talent to your organization, take time to say thank you and a hearty congratulation to not only their work but to the association that is celebrating 25 extraordinary years!

*Michael Quevli is a consultant for Target Analytics. You may reach him at michael.quevli@blackbaud.com.

1. NAMES:  Get them right and, if in doubt, ask.  Most organizations have a format to expedite this process, such as noting “how you would like it to appear in annual report” under the name line of each response vehicle.  This gives donors a chance to share with you their preference, such as ‘Tom and Mary Jones’ or ‘Mr. and Mrs. Jones’, etc.  Amazingly, I have seen organizations who insist on a standard format regardless of what the donor requests, simply “because it looks better” in the report.  I must admit to shaking my head at this. How does your organization put its list together?
2. ANONYMOUS REQUESTS:  Lawrence Henze commented in his January 4 post at this site that he encourages donors who request anonymity to reconsider.  Listing donors—particularly notable ones—can encourage additional gifts. However, I have to add that this can be a highly personal decision and care should be taken to honor these requests if it is what the donor wants.  I have seen some unusual situations over the years.  Once I had a couple whose gift was profiled in a four-page story in the Annual Report.  Yet, in the same publication, they didn’t want their name listed in the appropriate category.  “We don’t like listings—it makes us stand out” was their explanation. In the end, what matters is that you follow the wishes of the donor.
3. RULE STICKLERS:  Inevitably, at some point in your career, you will come across a donor recognition situation that requires a bit of a judgment call.  Consider this:  Once I had a donor call me to let me know he was transferring “about $1000 worth of stock” for his annual President’s Club gift.  However, the actual value turned out to be $996.  My manager at the time wanted me to exclude him from the listing in the Annual Report, since “technically he didn’t gift $1000 and a rule is a rule.”  Are you kidding me?  I included the donor’s name.  What would you do?
4. RULE BENDING REQUESTS:  Sometimes it is the donor himself who realizes he may not have met the “rules” for a giving society but requests to be listed anyway. Recently I heard the following scenario:  The donor called shortly before year end and asked if he and his wife could be included in a giving society that recognized a combination of annual and deferred giving at certain levels. While he hadn’t made an annual gift this past year, he had made an irrevocable deferred gift (gift annuity) three times larger than the required threshold.  His logic was that the amount he would normally allocate to their annual gift had been diverted to the annuity, which would ultimately result in a larger return for the organization.  The giving officer suspected there was plenty of goodwill to be gained in honoring this request, so he recommended that they respond favorably.  Shortly thereafter the donor purchased an additional annuity, adding to his ultimate gift.

 Most giving officers will experience these or similar situations in their careers as they strive to accurately recognize donors.  Judgment calls and decisions are just part of the job and, in the end, need to be made after considering both the donor’s wishes and your overall goal—raising more money.   To borrow a phrase from my grandmother, don’t bite your nose to spite your face in these situations.  Needless to say, standards and rules are established for a reason, but be sure to think things over carefully prior to rendering a decision. 

As I mentioned above, my goal is not to convince you that my opinion is right (in fact, I know many of you will disagree!), but to simply encourage discussion on the topic.  Has your organization been faced with difficult donor recognition decisions? If so, email me at laura.worcester@blackbaud.com .  I welcome your thoughts and comments.

*Laura Worcester is a consultant for Target Analytics. You may contact her at laura.worcester@blackbaud.com.

Note from ProspectResearch.com: Roy Jones has more than 30 years of marketing, fundraising and development experience. In addition to consulting and advising some of the nation’s top human services charities, Jones serves on several not-for-profit boards including the Ronald Reagan Institute, Recovery for the City, and the Economic Development Council. We invite you to check out his blog Roy Jones Reports. You can also follow him on Twitter at @GetRoyJones.

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Unlike most people who call themselves “fundraising counsel” I am not one who wastes a lot of time with grandiose vision papers and colorful case statements.  Every January I encourage charities to spend more time on practical, actionable events rather than writing beautiful superfluous words about their organization and cause.

Yes, case statements are important, but what has been said has already been said.  Do you really think that you will be more creative or more inspired than you were a year ago? Mission case statements do not come down from on high in a way that suddenly moves donors to give more.  It just does not work that way.

Remember, donors do not give to case statements… they give to people. More specifically, they give to people who are listening to them and are able to identify needs that touch the donor’s heart.

Spend your time over the next few weeks outlining actionable steps you can take to know your donors better in 2012 than you did in 2011.  Better relationships with your donors will always translate into more money for your charity or cause.

Set goals based upon your actual results from 2011.  While we all hope that lighting will strike, you have to be realistic.  Here are a few New Year’s guidelines for goal setting and planning that will make a HUGE difference on your bottom line in 2012: 

1. NEWSLETTER.  Plan for increases of 3 to 5% – with 6 to 10 issues a year.  First and foremost, make sure that everyone, regardless of suppression code, gets your newsletter.  If you do not produce a newsletter, start one immediately!  In addition, your newsletter should include a “lead letter” that focuses on a need presented in the newsletter and makes a “soft ask” for support. And yes, your newsletter package should have a reply device and reply envelope.
2. DIRECT RESPONSE. Plan for increases of 7 to 10% – with 14 to 16 appeals a year.  This would be for all of your direct response channels, such as direct mail, telemarketing and digital strategies using your website and social media, do not expect to see gains bigger than 10 percent. Of course, this is contingent upon your attrition rate and the amount you are spending on acquisition in these channels to offset attrition.  If you do not do enough new donor acquisition spending, only one thing is certain in direct response fundraising… attrition.
3. MIDDLE DONORS. Plan for increases of 10 to 12% – with 10 to 12 appeals a year.  Middle donors are donors who began giving to your organization through direct response, but through systematic cultivation, volunteering and event participation have increased their giving past the $100 threshold.  Middle donor definitions vary by industry but it can range anywhere from $100 to $5,000.  Personally, I like targeting $100 to $999 as the middle donor sweet spot and begin treating any donor with a single gift of $1,000 or more as a major donor.  It is critical that you begin encouraging middle donor giving through clubs or giving level recognition.  While it is not a driver to get them to give more, it is a tool that keeps them from giving less and renewing more frequently. The communications needs to be different for your middle donors than your standard direct response donors.  It should be consistent in the same style and tone from one month to the next.  Do not go back and forth between regular donor communications and middle donor communications.  Always have a “high value” copy version for your middle donors and major donor prospects.
4. MAJOR DONORS. Plan for increases of 15 to 20% – with 6 to 10 appeals a year. All communications need to be in a “one-to-one” format.  Nothing which appears to be mass produced (excluding the newsletter, of course) should be sent to these VIP’s.  What does this mean?  Real hand addressed letters, actual overnight letters by FedEx or UPS, box packages with appreciation gifts (sometimes called dimensional mail), hand addressed post notes, paper clips, and real photos – even framed.   Yes, this is going to cost more per piece.  These types of packages can run anywhere from $3 to $5 per piece, but the ROI is HUGE.  We have seen response rates as high as 40% and average gifts of over $1,000.  Treating your top 100 to 500 donors special is worth the investment. Remember, in researching your top prospects that you are looking for not only wealth, but philanthropic intent.  Do they have a history of giving you large donations?  Do they have a record of giving to other charities major gifts?  Philanthropic intent the key to increasing major donor giving.  Do your research.  The information is available through wealth overlays and donation recognition to identify and rank you donors from 1 to 100, 250, or 500+.  Rank you donors and begin meeting with your best prospects first.  Finally, have a moves management plan for each individual target.  I encourage folks to have a plan with timeline for each individual donor.   Here is a sample of what I have used:  Individual Donor Plan – Quadrant Analysis Template.  Don’t be afraid to personalize it to your preference, but use it in 2012.
5. PLANNED GIFTS.  Plan for increases of 20 to 25% – with 2 to 4 appeals a year. Fund raisers should seize the opportunity in 2012 to talk to donors who are probably losing faith in their financial advisers.  Trust me when I tell you that estate planning support from not-for-profits is going to explode this year!  Donors will work with charities they trust.  I suggest a lead generation campaign that takes advantage of when tax savings are top of mind for donors: March – April and Nov – December.  A letter or two during these windows will generate a lot of interest.  A simple reply device to request a “free” retirement planning information will produce great results. Remember, you are targeting people who are between the ages of 60 to 80.  The sweet spot is around 70 years old.  If you have not done an age append on your donor file, do it.  Finally, remember you are looking for people who have written the most number of checks.  Frequency of giving is critical to determining the likelihood that the donor will make a planned gift or name you in their will.  You are not looking for BIG check writers or major donors.  You are looking for people who are likely between 65 and 75 years of age who have written 10, 25 or 50 or more checks.

What fundraisers do fuels not only amazing causes like ending hunger, stopping crimes against humanity, seeking cures to cancer, building places to live, educating the world, it also contributes 5.4% to the GDP in the US alone. And, on top of that, fundraisers and researchers are also some of the most dedicated and passionate people I have had the pleasure to meet as they live for their causes. That said, we should take a minute to talk about them and in the same breath. we should acknowledge that sophisticated, professional and ethical prospect research is essential to effective and efficient fundraising.

In this post, I wanted to continue a discussion that Ron started, and tell you some more about how these amazing fundraisers and researchers do their work. Four points came most immediately to mind:

1. Since confidentiality and privacy were mentioned, I thought it was important to start by saying, I consistently observe that nonprofit professionals promote ethical standards that exceed legal requirements. Fundamental human compassion governs their activities and they act with integrity at every step.
2. People are often surprised by the information about them that is publicly available. However, when the fundraiser’s use of the information is explained, and when the care that nonprofits exercise in using the information becomes clear, their concerns are reduced or eliminated. I have been in board meetings in which one board member would express reservations, and others will jump in and explain why this data is necessary to effectively support fundraising and strategically further their mission.
3. At the core of the fundraising profession is a fundamental commitment to donor-centered fundraising that ensures that a donor’s financial support to their chosen causes is maximized. Fundraisers care about knowing an individual well to ensure that the money given goes to a cause the donor supports.
4. In my work with donors, the subject of anonymity sometimes arises. While I would always respect their wishes, I would also encourage them to reconsider this decision. Donor stories encourage more donors to step forward; their gifts become inspirational and motivate others to do the same. I ask donors to lead by example.

Overall, like Mr. Lieber, I believe that donors can and should expect nothing less from their favorite nonprofits than the avid and ethical pursuit of methodologies and technologies that make fundraising efforts more efficient and effective. This means more money goes to the mission… the cause of motivation for both donors and fundraisers.

Thanks for continuing the discussion. I look forward to your thoughts on my experiences.

And, to all of you, your friends, families and colleagues, I wish you a happy and safe 2012!

Lawrence Henze

Managing Director and Principal Consultant, Target Analytics

One strategy might be look at recruiting these lapsed donors as volunteers.  When your lapsed donors provide feedback that they do not currently have the financial resources to provide near-term support to your organization, look at this as an opportunity to try engaging them as a volunteers, especially those who have not done so in the past.  Most charities find volunteerism to be an integral part of their operation, so finding ways for these former donors to help your organization in this manner would be a way for them to play an important role.  Some organizations, like animal shelters and arts organizations, rely heavily upon volunteers to do many of the day-to-day activities.  Educational institutions such as colleges and schools often utilize alumni as phonathon volunteers.  No matter what needs your volunteers fulfill, the experience of being around the constituency you serve and mission your organization advances will continue to provide a growing connection.  They may also learn the critical role that philanthropy plays in sustaining your financially viability. 

As prospect researchers and fundraisers we can then look to our databases and vendor services to obtain wealth/income factors, investible assets, business relationship and ownership data, philanthropic connections/donations, and other internal and external variables.  Now add in the data variable that tracks their volunteering and gift history with your organization and hopefully we can take that important group of lapsed donors and re-engage them as viable donors to our organization again.  Bottom line is that once these lapsed donors are financially stable again, hopefully their volunteer experience will help create a stronger affinity for your organization and thus ignite a desire and inclination to give a gift and continue their giving for years to come.  This happened to me with a small animal shelter I was involved with as a volunteer and eventual major donor.  The experience of assisting with the animals was an extremely important factor that helped me develop a strong bond with the organization.  Eventually I saw the importance of financial support to this nonprofit.  Simply being a volunteer creates a compelling reason to support an organization by creating a much deeper understanding and connection to your organization, so cultivating volunteers could prove to have a lasting financial impact.

*Carol Belair is a consultant for Target Analytics. You may reach her at carol.belair@blackbaud.com.

Another perception is how our donors view the organization.  If you are known for your telethons or extraordinary annual fund giving then this can be a hindrance in getting donors to transition over to being major gift donors.   It is a delicate balance of ensuring you keep your notoriety in these areas but also communicating and educating donors that major gifts is essential in ensuring that the incredible work that you are doing continues.  If this is the case then you need to be mindful that your ratio of calls to appointments can be a 5 to 1 ratio.  It is essential that you not only educate the donors but that you are realistic when it comes to budgeting of what percent of the goal is truly coming from major gifts.  I believe if this is the case for you that you don’t reduce the number of major gift officers but keep them there and if possible increase.  The more you can communicate and reach out to these individuals will ensure you receive that major gift instead of another non-profit.  These are times when you need to test, “color outside of the lines” and be creative in order to change the perception of your institution’s needs and goals.  This can be a great time to collaborate with your marketing team in helping you achieve your goal.

*Michael Quevli is a consultant for Target Analytics. You may reach him at michael.quevli@blackbaud.com.

I asked him what he thought the organizations could be doing better and the answer was the same for both – “Reaching out more personally to people and asking them to give – whether time or money, we don’t really ask everyone to give.”  I had to agree.

He told me that the local Red Cross group had recently held a “Thank-a-thon” but suggested that they hadn’t included all of the volunteer callers they had available.  Specifically, a group of prominent local women, all of whom had made contributions of at least $10,000 that year.  He said, “I think it would have been a great idea to ask them to come and make calls with us.”  I also agreed. 

He then told me that the small micro-granting organization was really doing some wonderful work and shared the story of a high-school janitor, recently downsized, who needed only $1,000 in order to purchase equipment so that he could start his own janitorial service.   A success story in the making.  But he was concerned that the organization was satisfied with their total annual distributions of $9,000 – a bit shocked that their year-long efforts had amounted to so little.  I asked him how they raised funds and he said that their sole effort was through grant-writing and donations from the few volunteers involved.   He suggested that the focus of their mission funding needed to expand.  I again agreed. 

When the plane landed, my seat-mate said that he had learned a lot and was excited to think more about some of the topics we had discussed.  I learned something too.  Through this brief meeting, I realized that no matter how large or small, many organizations are probably not using their donors and volunteers strategically and a simple conversation with a stranger in the Exit row may be all that one needs to see things more clearly.  Do you agree?

*Katherine Swank is a consultant for Target Analytics. You may reach her at katherine.swank@blackbaud.com.