9 responses to “Fundraising At Its Worst”

1. Simone Joyaux says:

   October 11, 2016 at 1:59 am

   Here’s my thinking, in no particular order…
   ** This is your blog. You get to write about what you want to write about, including politics. The marketplace (subscribers, visitors) can easily delete what they don’t want to read.
   ** Your politics or mine or the politics of the Heritage Foundation don’t have much (anything?) to do with the experience and expertise that comes to the table. We can learn from Heritage or NRA or whomever. We sure can learn from Frank Lunz, for example.

   I remember Howard Zinn saying that he couldn’t figure out how teachers (or anyone else for that matter) could teach (and I’m adding — present or write or consult or live!) without sharing some of their own inner core…And that includes values and beliefs and….

   I teach at a Catholic university. Some students are Catholic. Some describe themselves as evangelical Christians. We are often deeply opposite each other in our faith and political and social beliefs. Yet… We still have great conversations and learn from each other to help create a better nonprofit sector. And Justin, for example, wrote a great paper about how we can listen and learn and disagree and listen and learn and…

   So those are my thoughts. Thank you, Tom and Roger.

2. Pamela Grow says:

   October 11, 2016 at 6:50 am

   Yesterday I walked by a group of little guys being coached. I overheard their coach say to the boys: “No. NO, I don’t want to hear it’s his fault or it’s because of this or that. OWN it! Accept responsibility.” And I thought of what our kids are seeing in this election. I thought about living in a culture that worships money to such an extent that people bow and scrape to a total asshat like Trump. It makes my heart hurt.

   Aside from that, I’ve been following political fundraising for decades, and this is pretty typical. Frankly, the only candidate who offered up anything different in terms of donor/votor-focused fundraising was Sanders.

3. Gregory Warner says:

   October 11, 2016 at 8:05 am

   Political fundraising is just plain different. I call this segment of our sector “populist fundraising” because giving is like voting. It not only aims to raise money but also aims to gain solid commitment through “buy-in” (literally).

4. Gregory Warner says:

   October 11, 2016 at 8:16 am

   Oh… and while we’re talking about “voting” I’ll vote for NOT talking about politics in our businesses. Full disclosure, I am unaffiliated. I detest both candidates. One SAYS and does really bad things, the other DOES and says really bad things.

   I’d prefer that all of us just agree that this is a “hold your nose and vote” kind of election and move on with doing what we do best… make the world a better place.

   As fundraisers, consultants and technologists (that’s what I am) we need to recognize that conservatives (especially religious ones) give more. BAM! Surprised? Yep… it’s true. It has been widely recognized (most profoundly in a book titled “Who Really Cares” but also in many other studies).

   So, if we want to help our organizations and clients, we need to understand what makes people give (yes, even people who might vote for politicians we detest). For goodness sake, drop the politics.

5. Sarah Robie says:

   October 11, 2016 at 10:20 am

   As a fundraiser, I see two big missed opportunities in this email:

   (1) It’s not clear what the donations would support. Are they just trying to “match” the RNC budget? (If so, that’s a lackluster reason to have a fundraising goal.) Will the donations support attack/retaliation ads? Without a clear outline of “how” Democrats will fight back, I’m not sure the donor will understand and appreciate his or her impact.

   (2) Such a high goal can seem insurmountable–can this be broken down? To your point, the math doesn’t even add up, but as a donor it would make me think, “If they need $40.5 million, what’s the point of me giving only $1? That won’t help.” The donors need to feel like their donation amounts are important enough to provide value, not be lost within an unachievable goal.

6. Tina Cincotti says:

   October 11, 2016 at 11:46 am

   Gregory– I couldn’t help but chuckle at your two pleas not to talk about politics. One at the opening and the other as the closing of your comment about politics! For me, to make the world a better place, we have a responsibility to talk politics!

7. Barry Cox says:

   October 11, 2016 at 12:42 pm

   I penned similar thoughts last week for a column that won’t appear in old-timey print (DMAW Advents) for at least a month. Not that Tom’s, nor mine, is an original thought. Just getting on the record.

8. Alan Magree says:

   October 11, 2016 at 1:05 pm

   Tom — with all due respect it is a sucky fundraising email. But and it’s a really big but…it’s not a fundraising email.

   This email is designed to solidify the Democratic base and to remind Demos to vote for the down-ballot races. As Trump’s ship seems to slip beneath the waves, many disaffected Demos my decide to sit-out the election and such action will hurt the chances of Demos to re-take the Senate or House.

   In my mind, the question is, is this a good “get out the vote” campaign?

   The discussion of political fundraising does belong in your blog.

9. Mike Cowart says:

   October 11, 2016 at 4:48 pm

   Deplorable morality has always resulted in deplorable leadership. The most wise politician of all time, Solomon, said, “There is nothing new under the sun.