How NOT To Treat A Donor!
If a donor says — “Do not telemarket to me! — put them on a suppression list.
If a donor says — “Do not rent my name!” — don’t rent their name.
If a donor says — “Remove me from your email list — remove them.
Above all, don’t ignore them!
Don’t treat them the way Newsmax.com treats me. Not only will you alienate your donor (or subscriber), which would be bad enough. You might in fact irritate them to the point that they will speak out and tell their friends and colleagues. And with social nets, blogs, etc, we know how far the discontent of one person can travel.
I’ve been trying — just about daily, for a month at least — to ‘Unsubscribe’ from the Newsmax Health daily Health Alert. I’ve replied to virtually every Health Alert by using the ‘Unsubscribe’ button. Each time, as you see below, I’ve been promised I will be removed from their email list promptly.
Yet the barrage of messages continues. So I’ve graduated from ‘no longer interested’ to ‘mightily irritated’. And I’m telling my friends and colleagues … thousands of them.
Take that, Newsmax.com! You oughta be fired!
Agitator readers, thanks for bearing with me on this personal rant. And please don’t treat your donors like that!
Tom
3 responses to “How NOT To Treat A Donor!”
Behavioral Science Q & A
Integrating an individual giving appeal with other communications from a charity can have both positive and negative effects, and the outcome largely depends on how it’s executed. Advantages of Integration Brand Consistency: Maintaining a consistent appearance and messaging across all communications can reinforce the org’s brand identity and strengthen brand recognition and trust among your […]
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I’m not aware of any in-market tests specifically comparing recurring vs. gift frequency language. I suspect the answer might not be the same with all gift frequencies, nor with all people. It sounds like a great opportunity for you to test and find out what works for your audience. Based on the literature, here’s a couple […]
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Based on what we know from existing data, those renewal notices can actually be pretty effective in getting people to donate. They tap into our psychology – creating a sense of urgency, reminding us of past support, and using personalization to make the message hit home. They’re playing on our natural tendencies to feel obligated […]
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Interesting question. I had a quick look at the testing done on this topic. On the positive side, in all cases, over half of donors decide to cover the fee. In some cases, it goes as high as 65%. Not a negligible percentage at all. Here’s another test from iRaiser showing consistent results (see point […]
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There’s just one thing to consider when designing a supporter journey: the supporter. More specifically, you need to take into account: Who the supporter is i.e. their identity, which is the reason they support this cause, and their personality, which describes the way they “see” and process the world. These will determine the kind of […]
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I’m not an expert in this but a quick search surfaced this article on the effect of tax reforms on 2019’s charitable giving. The researchers didn’t find a reduction. Actually, they observed an “increase in charitable contributions in 2019, even with the lower tax rates and the dramatically smaller number of taxpayers who itemize their […]
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Tom,
Given our 40 years of working together and always transparent dealings, I’m a bit concerned by this morning’s post on newsmax.com Does the HealthAlert subscription reflect the gathering of information for our readers, or a personal concern over some problem?
If the latter, I would remind you that the personnel policies of The Agitator require two weeks notice for sudden death.
Roger
Fair play in my book. Sometimes a little blog justice is the only way to be heard. Let us know if you get off the list!
You absolutely prove the theory that one happy “customer” may not tell anybody but an angry one will make sure to tell hundreds of people. So really got to be careful with the “customer service”…