What Do You See In Your Crystal Ball?
Over at the UK’s 101Fundraising, Matthew Sherrington has bravely shared his thoughts on the changes and trends he thinks will affect fundraising over the next five years or so.
His 12 insights from the crystal ball are well-informed, cover most aspects of fundraising, and well worth a read.
Two in particular resonated with me.
“Expectations of funders and supporters alike are changing, and are more demanding. They want more evidence of impact, more participation and engagement in decision-making, and more immediate feedback. People’s experience as customers in an increasingly digital marketplace is shaping their expectations of “experience” and “service.”
“The age of broadcast and controlled communications is over. Communications channels continue to multiply, attention spans are shortening as information and channels proliferate, and people are seeking out and “curating” their own sources of information that they are interested in and trust. Digital and disintermediation will disrupt charities just as it has media, retail and other sectors, with technology allowing people to find and connect with each other. “Brand management” is a thing of the past; content is king. This has implications for how organisations source quality and relevant content and make it available to people where they are, as they will not come looking for it.”
When I was first working in the nonprofit sector in the 70s, our organisations — especially in the advocacy space — were desperately needed interpreters of what was going on in the capitol, in the nation, in the world. We were highly trusted intermediaries, often delivering inside, specialized information because we were uniquely at the scene of the action. And people were enthusiastic about rallying around and connecting through us.
That special standing … that special place … perhaps even the need for us … is now deeply eroded, as Matthew’s two points above underscore.
My view is that nonprofits need to be far more attentive both to the disruption and disintermediation enabled by new communications channels and tools, and to the heightened expectations that donors have as consumers … demanding expectations of service, customisation and responsiveness fed and better handled by the best commercial marketers who lead the way in using those same new tools.
If our nonprofits don’t sharpen their overall thinking about their place in this new information ecosystem and service environment, then the job of their fundraisers — who are at the coal face vis-a-vis supporters, activists, members, donors, customers — is going to get tougher and tougher. Nigh impossible.
Even the best fundraisers can only do so much to overcome backward-facing organisational cultures and sell sinking ships.
Too pessimistic? What’s your crystal ball say?
Tom
7 responses to “What Do You See In Your Crystal Ball?”
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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There in lies the opportunity Tom. If we deliver responsive ‘customer service’, and a great donor experience that people talk about we will reap the rewards of people talking about us and our missions – and so benefit from the fact that everyone is now a channel. If stick with a mindset of how to get money out of people we will sink.
Is there a typo near the end “..then the job of their fundraisers–who are at the coal face vis-a-vis supporters,…” or do I just not understand the turn of phrase?
Here’s the challenge of the new communications environment: Many nonprofits are risk-adverse, and hesitant to embrace change.
Social media means giving up control of your brand and often turning it over to your supporters. I predict that forward-thinking nonprofits will flourish and the old timers may unfortunately be left behind..
Everything hasn’t changed. Face-to-face fundraising will still be important (with some social media ‘moves’ thrown in to help you get to that point in the relationship with your donor). But… a LOT has changed about how people become aware of you and learn enough about you to want to get involved and invested. What’s true is that nonprofits must become more customer-centered than ever. We have to help would-be donors to do what they want to do by being clear, succinct and direct — and making engagement EASY.
Here’s one frightening thought for the future I had the other day: net neutrality losing.
So much of our communications have gone online. And in a lot of ways, that’s a great leveler. Creating a good “store front” – website – is no longer necessarily a huge, expensive task. Collecting donations online is becoming more and more popular.
If we have to begin to pay for our presence online, we’ll be back to smaller organizations squeezed out. That’s going to make things very hard!
In the words of JFK “When written in Chinese, the word ‘crisis’ is composed of two characters. One represents danger and the other represents opportunity.” I concur with Richard. Responsive donor service should be at the forefront of every organization. My organizations experiencing the greatest success are focusing in on stewardship and donor care. How can you deepen one-on-one communications with donors?
I feel the most important aspects Tom touched are on that we are in (and have been in for 5+ years) a new information eco-system and customer service environment.
A systems thinking approach is required to understand where organisations want to get to, in terms of their interactions with customers and the experience they them to enjoy. If it’s done in isolation by one area of an NFP, or looked at purely in improving one aspect (i.e. acquisition; retention; engagement; stewardship) then it probably won’t work.
In the corporate world, this happens when you have marketing and IT working hand-in-hand to deliver on business strategy. The 2017 reality is that your vast majority of touchpoints will be through marketing channels, and organisations will be best served if those approaches are led by data intelligence.
I think there is still enormous value in having specialised relationship fundraisers who have the ability to develop deep connections with those donors who want to be engaged with in that fashion.
As Tom intimated, the commercial world has been in the CX (customer experience) space for some time. The NFPs that branch out and take on board what customer-centric corporations have been learning and refining for a few years will be best placed to navigate the ever-changing marketplace.