The winter surge of the coronavirus pandemic and consequent lockdowns are upon us–as is the Fundraising Pandemic Paradox.

On the one hand countless boards, CEOs continue to expect nonprofits to do badly and therefore have cut budgets and staff.  On the other hand, many organizations are now doing much better than ever giving the lie to the doomsayers.

For a magnificent overview of this paradox check out this piece by Ken Burnett just posted on SOFII.  This is “must reading” for the weekend and no doubt something you’ll want to share with colleagues (and the Board and CEO).

I’ll come back to Ken’s analysis shortly.

Meanwhile, another UK fundraising veteran, Giles Pegram, CBE ,  also alerted us to an upcoming pandemic/fundraising event that deserves your attention.

The pandemic makes for great reunions here at The Agitator. Back in June of 2017 we reported on the launch of the UK Commission on the Donor Experience born in a climate of media attacks on ‘abusive’ charity practices vis a vis donor.

The Commission’s godfathers were Ken and Giles and they realized that far more was involved than a stormy media climate. The negative media onslaught was merely the canary in the coal mine signaling the need for dramatic and fundamental change in the way our sector treats donors.

Fast forward to today, where concern over the pandemic and its effect on fundraising has eclipsed all other fundraising issues. At base, of course, is the question: as the pandemic continues (and worsens) what’s really happening in fundraising?

To answer that question –and what to do with the answer–the Commission on the Donor Experience, now evolved into the Supporter Experience Group of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising , is again front and center with a mighty fascinating look at the pandemic’s effect on fundraising.  You won’t want to miss this.

Specifically, on Wednesday, November 25^th from 9:00 to 10:30 EST they’ll host an online event titled Supporter Experience and Fundraising during the pandemic.

Whether you’re based in the UK, the U.S., Canada, Europe, Asia or South America this is an event worth tuning into. Register here it’s FREE.

Why should you and your colleagues attend?

• You’ll learn how charities of all sizes have improved their support experience and used it to unlock income during the pandemic.
• You’ll find out how to prioritize on your supporters’ needs and deliver on their expectations.
• You’ll receive valuable tips on developing a plan to keep your communications relevant and fresh.
• You’ll get tips on how to challenge internal assumptions that now is not the time to ask supporters to give.
• You’ll learn how to deal with recalcitrant boards, CEOs and CFOs and win investment for your fundraising and for your fundraisers.

As Giles put it when he alerted us to this upcoming webinar, “One thing that’s certain about the coming year is – uncertainty.   The only sure thing for fundraisers is that, as so often, so reliably in the past, we can turn to our supporters.   That’s right.   You can be certain that your supporters will see you through.

“In the first wave many charities were reluctant to ask their supporters for money.   They felt that they’d be preoccupied with Covid, or that adverse finances would mean they couldn’t afford to give, right now.   So, fundraisers didn’t ask.   They let their donors be.

“They were wrong then.   And they are wrong now.

“Now is absolutely the right time to be engaging and communicating with your supporters.   Now more than ever, the experience you give to your supporter will make all the difference.” [Agitator-added emphasis]

Ken Burnett’s Summary of What’s REALLY Happening

While we await the findings and advice from IoF’s FREE November 25^th event here are a few key points from Ken’s must-read tour of the pandemic fundraising horizon that updates a SOFII reportfrom six months ago:

• “Paradoxically the cancelling of mass participation events has led to a surge in fundraiser creativity and ingenuity for events online. I’ve seen this firsthand as I was privileged to be a judge for the 2020 Charity Virtual Awards (hat-tip to Fundraising Everywhere). It’s hugely to the credit of our sector that such creativity and innovation are so much part of our sector’s DNA.
• “The latest Charity Financials Banking Spotlightreport, sponsored by Barclays, finds that total current asset cash for the top 5,000 charities has now reached an all-time high of £17.9bn, having grown from £14.7bn since 2014/15. This would seem to suggest that funds for investing in fundraising are not in short supply. If only charity trustees and senior management teams had a better grasp of when to invest in fundraising, where and how…?
• “BBC Radio 4 in the UK has for decades run a short programme called The Week’s Good Cause, a three-minute national appeal highlighting the work of a charity and appealing for donations to support its activities. First broadcast on Sunday morning the appeal is repeated on Thursdays, so each charity gets six minutes of national airtime. There are 49 such appeals broadcast on Radio 4 each year, and in 2018/19 they raised £1,219,278 – an average per appeal of £24,833.  Totals for the 2020/21 cycle are still incomplete, but comparing appeals across the same three months – April to June 2019 with April to June 2020, the average appeal total was £14,061 in 2019 and £45,934 for the same period in 2020 – three months pre-pandemic compared to three months at the height of the pandemic.

·      “So what does this prove?  All this is merely the tip of a huge iceberg of successful, enthusiastic giving that proves two fundraising fundamentals:

1. At a time of crisis, turn to your committed donors.
2. The very best asset that any charity can have is a robust, growing, well-developed base of active individual donors.”

Read the Full Article

This weekend treat your locked-in, isolating, social distancing self to Ken’s entire article.  It contains lots and lots of insights from some of our favorite consultants and bloggers and a terrific list of case examples of pandemic fundraising success stories.

AND… take a moment and register –FREE—for the Supporter Experience and Fundraising during the pandemic webinar.

Have a good weekend.

Roger