(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . How to communicate properly with your donors [1] ['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-04-01 We’re all familiar with the endless fundraising we get from everywhere: causes, candidates, what have you. As activists, we’re probably more familiar with it than most. All too often, it’s crass, frequent, nagging, intended to sow panic, or otherwise just be...well...unpleasant. One rare exception I’ve seen to this is the Clinton Foundation. If you’re not familiar with them, they’re the foundation set up by President Clinton (don’t we all wish that would have been “Presidents Clinton”?) and his family “on the simple belief that everyone deserves a chance to succeed, everyone has a responsibility to act, and we all do better when we work together. For more than two decades, those values have energized the Foundation’s efforts to address big challenges, create new opportunities, and make a difference in people’s lives across the United States and around the world.” They send periodic newsletters to their donors. Yes, there is an element of fundraising to them, make no mistake. And there has to be. But their newsletters are invariably focused on their programs and what they have done, with only a gentle fundraising note at the bottom. It’s very clear that they understand that they have to earn donations and should not demand them as of right. So they go right into earning it by discussing what they’re working on, with links to more information for things I’m interested in. Note that I am not affiliated with the Clinton Foundation other than being a regular three-digit donor. This is not a solicitation for them; it’s just my experience. This diary’s going to be a bit unusual, in that I’m going to quote passages from their most recent newsletter, interspersed with remarks from my email to them. So I’m going to quote in toto rather more than the standard three paragraphs, but: It’s the only way to illustrate my points It’s a good (IMO) cause, and I’m promoting them. If anyone here is from the Clinton Foundation and doesn’t like this being done anyway, let me know and I’ll take it down. In the beginning… Right out of the gate, it establishes an open and welcoming perspective: ICYMI: CGI U 2023 at Vanderbilt, 30th Anniversary of FMLA, plus more … Dear [rlk], We hope this email finds you healthy and well. In this issue of our newsletter, we share updates on our recent work — from bringing together hundreds of student leaders who are taking action together as they address challenges in their communities and around the world, to marking Women's History Month with a playbook for advancing human rights. If you like what we've shared, or have any suggestions for next time, let us know by replying to this email and sending us a note. What??? No “Read this” or “I’m short on time, but have to send this” or “we need $92839.32 to close out the quarter” or “we’ve already emailed you 16 times, that’s how important this is”? Rather, a headline emphasizing some of the key points, a first paragraph expanding on them, and soliciting comments rather than cash up front. Almost all emails come from addresses such as no-reply@something.org. This one’s different; it’s from reply-to@clintonfoundation.org. See the difference? I haven’t received a reply, although I only sent them my comments yesterday. Moving along... SPOTLIGHT: CGI UNIVERSITY 2023 On March 3, more than 500 students from across the globe joined us at Vanderbilt University in Nashville for the CGI University 2023 Annual Meeting. We gathered to answer one important question: how can we work together to contribute to a future that is more resilient, sustainable, and equitable for all? Watch to see what the next generation of innovators had to say. OK, there is an all-caps line. But it’s not to sow panic or to shout; it’s simply that it’s a headline. And it’s about one of their programs, with links to more information. Two more such sections, and finally we get to the first ask TIME MACHINE This year marks the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement... ... Become a member of The Bridge community. Make a recurring gift. OK. That’s absolutely fair. It doesn’t appear to be highlighted in red, it’s not bold, or anything else. And now, there’s one final such section: IN CASE YOU MISSED IT Women's History Month is now. Do you know who was the first woman to be appointed U.S. Attorney General? Or who was the first person President Clinton nominated for the U.S. Supreme Court? Take the quiz and test your knowledge of the women who shattered glass ceilings during the Clinton administration. ... And finally, the heavy ask SUPPORT OUR WORK Er, wait. Maybe not so heavy after all. Yes, it’s all caps. It’s not bold, it’s not a headline font, nothing like that. Just a simple link to their donation page. The email then closes out with social media links and a statement that they’ve received high marks from various charity watchers, their postal address, and an unsubscribe link. My response I’m going to quote my entire email response here. On 3/31/23 11:45, Clinton Foundation wrote: > If you like what we've shared, or have any suggestions for next time, let us know by replying to this email and sending us a note. You're a huge breath of fresh air compared to the vast majority of emails I receive from anyone else I donate to, for many reasons: 1) You actually do welcome replies to your messages, rather than having an unmonitored sender address. 2) Your notes don't start off with "give us more money", much less with insulting remarks that the sky will crash down to earth if I don't immediately stop what I'm doing and send money NOW to meet some deadline, or unlock some match that simply doesn't make sense. 3) What you do instead is provide updates with an appropriate level of detail about some of the programs you're sponsoring, with links to more information for ones I'm interested in following up on. Of course you have a fundraising appeal at the bottom of the note, after I've read all of the other updates on what you're doing. But that ask is both gentle and appropriately placed. The message is clearly that it's your responsibility to provide your donors with the information they need to decide whether to donate, not to arrogantly assume that your donors are ATM machines that will provide funds on demand. I normally do all of my donations at the end of the year, so I'm not going to do so now but certainly plan to come December. I was very displeased to have made a very large (at least by my standards) donation to an organization working on breast cancer, a cause very near to me because my wife has it, only to very shortly thereafter receive yet more fundraising email. I did manage to get something done about it; I think my donation was large enough that they felt they really had to listen to me in that small way, but it really shouldn't come to it. Anyway, bottom line is that I really enjoy receiving your updates, and that you're certainly going to stay on my donation list because of those (and, of course, because you're consistently doing good work very well). I thought you should get this kind of feedback. In summary I normally make all of my donations at the very end of the year. That’s just the way I do it. So I’m not going to rush them a donation now, but on December 31, they will be on my list, as usual. A heavier approach would not be more productive. If they went crazy with the emails, I’d likely look for someone else to receive my donation. Last year, I made a very large donation to one particular research foundation related to my wife’s illness. I was not at all pleased to receive further solicitations from them, and I complained. There actually was someone on the other end listening, who apologized, and things have been toned down since then. But it really shouldn’t have to be that way. If more organizations and candidates took this approach, life would be so much better. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/4/1/2161524/-How-to-communicate-properly-with-your-donors Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/