Oct 3, 2022
5 Ways Asking for Donations Is Just Like Dating
Believe it or not, there are some similarities between raising money and dating. Nonprofit organizations are also trying to attract the right people and keep them engaged in supporting their cause for a long time to come.
Here is our list of five ways that asking for donations is just like dating and how you can take advantage of the similarities to build strong donor relationships.
1. Believe in yourself. Make sure that anyone assigned to speak to donors, in person or on the phone, especially during fundraising drives, is passionate about your cause. Sure, any warm body can read off a bunch of statistics and facts about your purpose when asking for donations, but if your volunteer and staff aren’t feeling it, neither will the donor.
2. Don’t make it about money. Asking for money upfront is no way to treat a potential supporter. Instead, help your supporters feel like they mean more to your organization beyond their dollars. Ask them for their email and mobile number so you can keep in touch. If they were interested in your mission in the first place, they will love getting regular text updates from you telling them about what you’re doing, the challenges you face, and the important role they play in making things better. In no time, they’ll be engaged and a part of your world so that when you do start asking for donations, their emotional investment in your cause will compel them to give.
3. Align yourself with a strong support network to survive and replicate. Peer-to-peer fundraising and wish list giving can help you multiply your efforts to reach more potential donors. This type of fundraising embodies the survive and replicate concept when you set up mobile-friendly forms or pages to capture your org’s story, impact image, logo, and fundraising goal. Then your support network empowers family, friends, and social networks to raise funds on your organization’s behalf. efforts replicated).
4. Put yourself in good company. In dating, people seem to be more attracted to those who others find attractive. The same holds true for new donors because they are more likely to give to a cause for the first time if they know others who are supporting it, whether it’s their friends and family, celebrities, or testimonials from like-minded peers. This is another reason why peer-to-peer fundraising is so effective. Not only is the ask coming from someone familiar, but they can also check out who else has donated right from the mobile-friendly form. Another example of how well this concept works is how attendees at a fundraising event are motivated to give when they see the names of other donors displayed on-screen on the live fundraising thermometer.
5. Appeal to (donor) emotions. We’re now right back to where we started: passion. Not only do your people need to feel it so donors do as well, but passionate appeals must be incorporated into every aspect of your organization’s brand. Donors give because they feel an emotional connection so make sure that you bring your passion to your website and donation pages, your text message updates that keep supporters interested and engaged, and especially to every direct ask so you can get your donors to respond with open hearts and open wallets.
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