Thursday, March 24, 2011

fiscal year end targets part 1 - loyals

Most of us are either in or about to enter the final quarter of the 2010-11 fiscal year. For those of you luck enough to be on a calendar year for your fiscal year "Huzzah" for you! The rest of us are just going to have to settle for creating a sense of urgency in our donors to match that of our own.

The good news is that employment continues to get better, the bad news is that it needs to get better. We each have a list of donors who give every year no matter what - pull that list up and review it, who are you still missing? Do they typically give at the end of the fiscal year? Those are easy. Who is missing from the list of donors well after they usually give? Even the best programs have a short list of folks who drop off every year from their very most much loyal donors (yes I did say that) but you can really limit the damage done by reaching out to them now. Split the list into those who missed the 2010 calendar year and those who just have not given in the 2011 fiscal year.

Folks who missed 2010 altogether but had given for 5 or more years consecutively prior, pick up the phone and call. There is a reason for the lapse - if you don't know what it is, find out. Fix it if you can. If you can't be compassionate and help connect them to whomever or whatever you can to address the situation. Follow up a month later with a personal email checking in on them (this is soft shoe work - no hard ask) and ensuring that everything you can do has been done. Follow this if appropriate to their situation with a handwritten appeal a couple of weeks before the end of the fiscal year soliciting their participation at an individually appropriate level while making a basic case for why this will matter.

Folks who gave last year but missed this year include in a simple email campaign - reach out and ask why they lapsed, give them your name and number and ensure your phone is answered either by you or a support staff person for the week or so after this goes out - listen to them and respond as best you can. Follow up with a similar fiscal year end effort as above. Simple steps, taken from grandma with a modern twist that will cut your donor loss from this population dramatically.

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