Kodak invented the digital camera in 1975, but the company’s leadership was so attached to their  profitable film business they ignored it.  The company filed for bankruptcy in 2012 and emerged a year later a much-diminished enterprise, significantly downsized today with a focus on printing and digital imaging technology.

Kevin’s post, Pogo Was Right,  reminded me not only of Kodak’s fall, but also that of Blockbuster, Nokia, ToysR Us, Sears. The list goes on –all caught in the trap of complacency and denial.

The same trap –maybe even more widespread—lies in wait in Fundraising & Nonprofit Land.  Sure, it’s easy to think that doing what worked in the past will keep working.  Premiums…one-size-fits-all copy…continued focus on weak metrics like RFM…ask more, raise more mindsets…treating the thank you and recognition process as a cost center..focusing on volume rather than value –you know the poison.

Even as you witness declining numbers of donors, poorer retention rates, rising costs and are aware these are problems with known solutions, you continue to feel comfortable relying on the same strategies, the same donor management techniques, the same fundraising tactics.

Maintaining the  Status Quo is High Risk

The status quo feels safe. It feels steady. But that feeling is exactly what puts you and your organization at risk. Despite a decade of breakthroughs in technology, behavioral science, data analytics many nonprofits remain stuck in the past, clinging to old methods and refusing to invest in the future.  Change seems so complicated, so unappealing, so expensive it’ s easy to understand why the status quo feels safe.

But, just like the hackneyed metaphor of  the boiling frog, this sense of the safe status quo is an illusion. The water is getting hotter, and unless you’re willing to leap out, your organization risks being left behind. Change isn’t coming—it’s already here, and it’s sweeping across the nonprofit landscape.

In today’s world, donors are different. They expect transparency, some thanks and recognition, communication that relates to their values, and Amazon-like one-click ease in making their transactions with you. They don’t want to be treated like anonymous numbers on a list and blasted over and over and over with those one-size-fits-all messages. If you’re not meeting them on their terms, you’re losing them.

 Direct mail , cold calls,  digital appeals flooding in-boxes and static appeals no longer have the pull they once did. Yet too many nonprofits rely on the same tired playbook because it feels familiar. But the truth is, if you don’t innovate, if you don’t invest in new skills, tools, and strategies, you’re falling behind.

AND…just as in the commercial world others will rise to take the place of the fallen.  Netflix from the ashes of Blockbuster, Apple and Samsung from Kodak’s failure to seize the very digital trend it invented.  Charity:Water in for WaterAid, American Heart Association in for March of Dime, Nature Conservancy in for the Izaak Walton League.

Happy Endings

But not every story ends this way. Look at Microsoft—they could have stagnated when their traditional software business began to slow. But they didn’t. Under a new CEO, they invested in cloud computing and artificial intelligence, committing to a future that was still uncertain at the time. That investment paid off, transforming Microsoft from a declining tech giant into one of the most valuable companies in the world.

These aren’t just cautionary tales from the business world. Nonprofits face the same risks if they fail to evolve. The American Red Cross, once struggling to keep up with digital engagement, transformed itself by investing in the tools and skills necessary to succeed in a digital world. They didn’t just tinker around the edges—they overhauled and invested in a new approach: re-training their staff so donors are recognized as important across the organization whether you’re “in fundraising” or some other department, upgrading their technology, and creating systems that allow them to connect with donors in real time. They learned the lesson that innovation and change isn’t a luxury—it’s a necessity.

So, what does investment really mean? It means money—yes, but it also means time, commitment, and risk. It means creating a culture within your organization where innovation and change is not only encouraged but expected. It’s about training your staff  to understand and use new technologies (and yes, getting rid of some who won’t or can’t), about giving them the freedom to experiment with new fundraising models, about being willing to fail sometimes because failure is part of innovation and change.

The Investment Mindset

Investing in the future of your organization means recognizing that the old ways aren’t working as well anymore. If you’re an increasing number of your donors are digital-first, you need to meet them there. If your donors expect transparency, you need to show them how their dollars make a difference.  If they expect real-time engagement, you can’t rely on a quarterly newsletter to keep them interested. Equally, if they want to give but be left alone you need to honor that. In short, you need to invest in understanding your donor’s values, needs and preferences.  Then meet them where they are, using the data, appropriate communications tools and strategies that make them feel connected to your cause.

Investment is also about taking a long-term view. It’s tempting to focus on short-term gains, to keep cutting costs and squeezing more out of the same resources. But that’s like thinking you can heat the water a little slower and the frog won’t notice. Eventually, it catches up with you. If you don’t invest in the future, you’ll find yourself stuck in the past, watching as other organizations—those willing to leap—thrive.

You can’t expect to thrive on yesterday’s strategies. The old rules don’t apply anymore, and sticking to them isn’t just dangerous—it’s suicidal. Every day you wait, the water gets a little hotter. Every day you fail to invest in new technology, in new training, in appropriate staffing, you’re inching closer to irrelevance.

You must decide—are you going to jump out of the pot, invest in the future, and adapt to a changing world? Or are you going to sit tight, stick with the familiar, and hope the water cools down on its own?

Because here’s the truth: the fundraising water isn’t cooling down. It’s heating up. Fast.

If you don’t start investing now, you’ll find yourself boiled before you know it.

Roger