Inspired by Lady Gaga: 10 Ways to be a Fundraising Genius

You might never have heard of Stefani Germanotta. Yet, she is known internationally as a top recording artist, nine-time Grammy Award winner, social activist, and philanthropist. Following the 91^st Academy Awards, we now also know her as an Oscar winner.

You, as her millions of fans around the world, likely know her better as Lady Gaga.

Jesse Desjardins, when he was Social Media Manager for Tourism Australia, recognized that Lady Gaga is more than a singer. He recognized that she is even more than an entertainment genius. He understood that marketing and public relations professionals could learn from her, so he put together an interesting PowerPoint presentation, “10 Ways to be a Marketing Genius Like Lady Gaga.” When I saw the slides, I believed that fundraising professionals could also learn a great deal from her. Thanks to permission from Desjardins, I’m able to share 10 useful insights with you.

1. Have an Opinion

“Gaga regularly speaks out on issues she feels strongly about. In doing so, she keeps herself in the public eye.”

By speaking out, Gaga makes certain no one forgets her. She remains relevant. She advances the issues that she finds important. She engages her fans.

Your organization has an important mission. Let supporters and potential supporters hear about it beyond those times that you ask for money. Stay in front of them. Remain relevant. Engage people year-round while advancing your organization’s mission. Communicate about issues relevant to your organization’s mission. Ask supporters to help in ways that don’t involve giving money (e.g., volunteer, call elected officials, etc.). Share information people will want and appreciate.

2. Leverage Social Media

“Gaga has worked tirelessly on accumulating over [78] million Twitter followers and [55] million Facebook fans.”

To put that into perspective, there are only five people on the planet who have more Twitter followers. In other words, tens of millions of people want to hear what Gaga has to say, and she says things people want to hear. She speaks to people where they are.

Today, people consume information in more ways than ever before, and how they do it varies by age group. You need to be where they are if you want your message heard. Understand the demographics of your supporters and potential supporters and learn what media they consume. Then, be there with relevant, meaningful information.

3. Be Different

“Differentiate wisely. There are too many normal people doing normal things. Show, don’t tell. You are extraordinary so show it.”

You’re not alone. Unless you work for an exceedingly rare charity, others have the same or similar mission as your organization. What makes your organization special? Why should people care about your organization instead of the others that do similar things? You need to address those questions if you want to capture hearts.

4. Don’t be Afraid to Make Lots of Money

“Being starving is not fun. If making a ridiculous amount of cash is what you want to do, go for it.”

If your organization relies on donations to fulfill its mission, don’t be shy about doing what it will take to get the funds your organization needs. Don’t be afraid to ask people for money. When people ask you what you do for a living, answer them with pride.

5. Give Your Fans Something to Connect With

“Gaga calls her fans Little Monsters and gives them a shared symbol. The official Little Monster greeting is the outstretched ‘monster claw’ hand. This allows fans to identify each other and connect.”

No, you don’t need to create a secret handshake for your supporters. However, you should create a sense of belonging. People would rather join a cause, a movement for change, than simply give money to a dusty institution. Provide people with easy ways to connect with you. Give them opportunities for meaningful engagement as a way to build connection.

Are You Ignoring an Essential Step in the Fundraising Process?

These are challenging times for fundraising professionals. Fewer people are giving to charities. Donor retention rates continue to fall. Volunteerism is down which negatively affects current and planned giving.

Despite those challenges, and more, many nonprofit organizations continue to ignore the one simple thing that would help them retain more supporters and raise more money. It’s an essential, though often ignored, step in the fundraising process.

At the heart of February rests a special time for many: Valentine’s Day. It’s a celebration of love. Unfortunately, when it comes to how nonprofit organizations show love to donors, at this or any other time of year, many do a poor job. That’s the opinion of veteran fundraiser Mark Chilutti, CFRE, Assistant Vice President of Development at Magee Rehabilitation Hospital – Jefferson Health.

Mark wants to help his fellow fundraisers do a more effective job when it comes to Donor Stewardship. So, he will be presenting “New Trends in Donor Stewardship: Saying Thank You All Year Long” at the Association of Fundraising Professionals International Conference, April 2, 2019, 10:15-11:30 AM. Mark notes:

We all know that relationship building is the key to our success as fundraisers and this session will provide participants with unique and creative ways to stay in touch with donors on a year-round basis. Real life examples will include successful Board thank you call scripts, creative pictures and notes about donors’ gifts in action, how to create a Stewardship/Impact Report, and more.”

Now, Mark generously provides us with a preview of his upcoming presentation along with three powerful tips that you can immediately put to use to strengthen your development program. I thank Mark for sharing his helpful insights here:

 

I’m passionate about donor stewardship. I think the reason this topic is so important to me is because I have seen more bad examples of donor stewardship than good ones. I also believe that stewardship is a lost art. We often hear that the next time the donor hears from a fundraiser is when the fundraiser is asking them to give again.

Because I work at a small place, our major donor pool isn’t very large. I have always believed that after working hard to secure a gift, I have to then channel that same energy into letting my donors know just how much I appreciate them and the impact that their gift has made for our patients, programs, and services. I do this in a variety of ways, and they all are easy and inexpensive!

We always strive to get the “official” thank you out within 72 hours, but that’s just the beginning. Depending on the size of the gift, the donor might also receive an email, a card, a call, or sometimes; all three. My CEO prefers to send handwritten cards, while my Board Chairman is happy to pick up the phone. They both are effective and appreciated, which is why I struggle to understand why more organizations don’t do this.

My work doesn’t end there, though, and I use simple creative ways to stay in touch all year. While strolling through the hospital, I’ll often snap a quick picture of a patient using a piece of equipment or a donor-funded program happening, and I can then send that in an email saying, “Saw the equipment you funded being used by a patient today and just wanted to say thanks again!” This type of email usually gets a quick response telling me I made their day or how good they feel to know their gift made an impact.

I also make sure that staff outside of the Development Department is involved in the thank you process, too, by having them write cards or take pictures that I can send to donors. We also engage patients and family members in this process, and whatever they write is so much more meaningful, as it comes from the heart.

These are just a few of the tips I will present in my session at AFP ICON as I share things that an organization of any size can do easily to make their donors feel appreciated. My hope is that participants in the session will be taking notes and taking lots of ideas back home to put into place right away.

If you won’t be at AFP ICON, I’ll leave you with these three easy tips to help you raise your game in Donor Stewardship:

Valentine’s Day Holds the Secret to Fundraising Success

As I write this post, Valentine’s Day has arrived once again. Originally a religious feast day, it has evolved into also being a cultural and commercial celebration of love.

So, what does that have to do with fundraising? Everything!

Think about it. The very word philanthropy means love of humankind. Passion, caring, and relationships are essential to romantic love. They are also vitally important to the fundraising process.

If you treat your donors like an ATM (cash machine), they likely won’t be your donors for long. By contrast, if you understand and tap into their philanthropic passions, show them you care about their needs, and develop a relationship with them, they’ll be more likely to renew their support and even upgrade their giving over time.

When volunteers, and even fundraising professionals, are fearful of asking for contribution, it’s probably because the organization is placing too much of an emphasis on asking and focuses too little on relationship building.

Let me be clear. Fundraisers who fail to develop relationships are simply beggars while those who build relationships, as well as ask for gifts, are development professionals.

When it comes to major-gift and planned-gift fundraising, relationship building is particularly important. Gail Perry, President of Fired-Up Fundraising, recently addressed this issue artfully in a terrific #Gailism that she has allowed me to share with you:

Developing relationships with major and planned-gift donors and major and planned-gift prospects allows us to:

An Inspiring Philanthropy Tale for Black History Month

February is Black History Month. Frankly, I don’t like the occasion.

Let me explain.

We should not need a special month to recognize and celebrate Black History. We should learn Black History every month. For that matter, we as Americans should spend more time learning history in general. We would benefit by learning more of our history, with its complexity and diversity. The insights, perspectives, and inspiration of studying history are invaluable and provide much needed context for current events.

Now, since it is Black History Month, I want to share the true story of an amazing philanthropist who died 20 years ago. Her tale demonstrates the power of philanthropy, the value of solid donor stewardship, and the important partnerships that financial advisors and development professionals can form to serve donors better. I first presented this story in my award-winning book, Donor-Centered Planned Gift Marketing:

Oseola McCarty was a quiet, 87-year-old African-American woman living in Haittesburg, Mississippi. Even as a young child, she worked and she saved.

Oseola McCarty

“I would go to school and come home and iron. I’d put money away and save it. When I got enough, I went to First Mississippi National Bank and put it in. The teller told me it would be best to put it in a savings account. I didn’t know. I just kept on saving,” McCarty said.

Unfortunately, when McCarty was in the sixth grade, her childless aunt became ill. McCarty left school to care for her and never returned to school. Instead, she spent a lifetime earning a living by washing and ironing other people’s clothes. And, she continued to save what she could by putting money into several local banks. She worked hard, lived frugally, and saved.

Nancy Odom and Ellen Vinzant of Trustmark Bank worked with McCarty for several years, not only helping her manage her money but helping look after her personally. They eventually referred her to Paul Laughlin, Trustmark’s assistant vice president and trust officer. “In one of our earliest meetings, I talked about what we could do for her,” Laughlin said. “We talked about providing for her if she’s not able. Then, we turned naturally to what happens to her estate after she dies.”