3 Ways to Bring Your Work to Your Donors (Instead of Asking Them to Come to You)
Nearly every nonprofit organization I deal with is careful to include an "experiential" touch point somewhere along the donor journey. That is, once they've cultivated a new donor, they spend a considerable amount of time and effort attempting to persuade that donor to volunteer or participate in some kind of hands-on activity at their headquarters or at an off-site location where the donor can experience their work firsthand.
Sound familiar? If your organization does something similar, how often is it successful? (Be honest.)
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Millennial vs. Boomer Strategies: Time to Move On?
If you've ever talked to or heard from a consultant about how your organization can and should reach younger donors, I'd almost guarantee you were told something like, "Wait till they turn seventy-five," or, "Your young donors are fifty-five."
But is that right? Should you only focus your fundraising efforts on Silents and boomers? And is a millennial-focused strategy so bad?
Let's take a closer look.
No doubt about it, a millennial-focused fundraising strategy can be a challenge. (That's not an insult; it's supported by data.)
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What We Learned From Our End-of-Year Fundraising Appeals
Most of us start each new year with the best of intentions and, if we happen to be in the fundraising game, the goal of starting our various campaigns early. But like a lot of things, especially during the busy holiday season, we often leave the necessary preparation to the last minute and, with time running out, end up falling back on what we've done in the past.
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Who could’ve predicted how millennials would vote?
At Achieve, we have watched the millennial generation (born between 1980-2000) grow, explore and change over the last seven years through our work on the Millennial Impact Project — which we have led with the support of the Case Foundation. In light of the recent turn of events related to the 2016 Presidential Election, many have turned to us and asked, “Did our research predict millennial turnout and voting choices on Election Day?”
Maybe predict is too strong a word, but in retrospect, our 2016 Millennial Impact Report offers compelling data to consider.
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How Associations Can Overcome Fundraising Barriers
Over the last three months, I've had conversations with four associations about their approach to raising money. The conversations usually touch on many of the same points:
"We're an association and are struggling to raise additional funds from our members."
"We think it's because a lot of our members may not fully understand what we do and why we need to raise money from them."
"We've seen a decline in our membership and have had to restate our membership levels."
"We are trying to figure out how we can offer our members giving opportunities as an alternative to membership dues."
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Millennials and the Social Sector: What’s Next?
Achieve and the Case Foundation started five years ago with a simple supposition: Millennials are poised to become the Next Greatest Generation.
This idea sprung from the belief that this generation (born between 1979 and 1990) has the potential and desire to create a new model for social change—and on a scale unlike anything we’ve seen in modern times.
Both the Achieve and the Case Foundation teams understood that for the social sector to fully integrate this rising generation of changemakers into its work, it needed to better understand Millennials’ passions, drive, and characteristics.
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