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January 28, 2008
Donors are people too
One of the things I like to do when I travel is catch up on books that I really want to read but don't seem to have the time to. (Can you relate?) Donors Are People Too was on the top of the pile of books sitting at the edge of my desk.
This small book highlights the necessary function of relationships in cultivating donations from your donor base. I think we all "know" this in the back of our minds. But fundraising becomes a very objective, stale process if all we focus on are spreadsheets and goal boards.
If we remember that donations are a measurable behavior of an internal, emotional commitment of a human being to a cause in which they personally believe in and/or indentify with, then we can reason the most important function of any donor campaign is relationships.
In my sales trainings I learned that people buy from who they know, like and trust. I think the same is true with fundraising; people give to people who represent causes they know, like and trust.
The author also points out that when you connect with people emotionally within the context of a long-term relationship, the donor tends to give more money that just a "one off" type donation. For the fundraiser (i.e. anyone involved in any non-profit--including churches) the primary goal is to help people find a place to connect and a person to identify with. When that happens, donoations come naturally.
We know this is true particularly in church life because those who feel most connected to the community of faith are the ones who most likely give the most and the most consistently over time.
One book down.......an unlimited number to go!
Posted by bstroup at January 28, 2008 1:31 AM
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