I’ve been hearing from many nonprofits, asking if they should be calling their donors during this crisis time.
There are three schools of thought on calling donors during a painful time such as this, and each has its pros and cons.
The first group will call their donors to “touch base” and make sure that they are healthy and coping with our current reality. Some will ask if they can do anything to assist. This “stewardship” will likely not include an ask, unless the organization is one that provides basic social services or healthcare.
Pro: This is a method that can and will likely be thought of as showing the “real” relationship that has been built between the donor and the organization. The call reinforces that the organization is a partner long-term, and really cares about the donor.
Con: One has to be careful with how this call is done, because — especially with much older donors, and especially if there’s a legacy agreement in place — this can be seen as “circling” to see who’s going to, uh, “pay out” in the near-term.
The second school of thought is to not call at all, thereby letting their donors deal with their own personal situation privately, and not be bothered by someone asking for money. The thinking is that there’s plenty of time to do that in the future, and the donor will be grateful for having been given a respite from incessant calls for money.
Pro: For donors who are being called regularly for more and more money, this could indeed be a welcome respite. A reminder after the crisis is over saying that “we didn’t want to bother you during this difficult time” might yield an unexpected donation.
Con: The organization needs the money, and some donors need regular “care and feeding”. This might needlessly disrupt the flow of donation. In addition, many donors might say later that they “would have helped the organization during the crisis”, but they didn’t know how dire or extreme the situation was.
The third way of thinking is to forget all of the concern about the donor, and just put the organization first. The thinking is that (a) the organization needs money, period, and (b) the donor, who feels a connection to the organization and its work, will want to support the nonprofit, if only they get lots of phone calls/communications reminding them to.
Pro: You don’t ask, you don’t get.
Con: If the organization is “dialing for dollars” (email, text, whatever) just because that’s what they do, and they need the money now to further their long-term goals (as opposed to short-term existential and/or social service support), then their calling now could backfire. In a situation like today’s, a call pushing for money that doesn’t show a sense of caring for the donor’s well-being will likely be considered tacky or rude.
Depending on how those calls go, a donor might be pleased and feel cared for by the organization — or they might feel pushed and “guilted out”, ending the conversation with a negative feeling towards the nonprofit. As with most things, there isn’t a “one size fits all” answer to the question, but the answer definitely lies in the execution.
My opinion? The bottom line is that you must, as always, think of your donor as a person, and you’ll come up with the right answer. Each of the options above are likely to fit for one or another of the donors in your database. If you’ve really built a relationship with your donors (prior to the pandemic), you’ll likely know which approach makes sense for which donor.
Another reason to work hard, year-round, to understand your donors as unique individuals. It pays off in myriad ways, and just might save you during a crisis.
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- Lisa