2013 Reflections

Now that all three of my children are in school, I've noticed that time seems to move much more quickly than it used to. Although it's been an entire year, I'm still not entirely used to the idea of 2013…and here we are almost at 2014. Which means it's time to reflect! I rarely make New Year's resolutions, but I do like to take a few minutes at the end of every year to think about what has changed this year, and ponder where I'd like to be at the close of the next.

And part of those reflections is asking myself how well I served my clients this year, how the relationships are working, and how we can work to achieve even more in the coming year. Even if you're not a consultant, I think these are valuable questions to ask yourself at any time of the year:

What surprised you about the last year? Good or bad, surprises have things to tell you. Did a campaign you thought was sure-fire actually bomb? Did a relationship go awry? Did an idea you had on the fly turn out to be a life-saver? Reflect on those things that surprised you -- and why you didn't see them coming.

What worked well? It's easy to focus on what's not working, but I think the more helpful trail to follow is what is working. Chip and Dan Heath call it "following the bright spots" and I've found it to be incredibly helpful as I move forward each year. Where are things going right? Can you pinpoint why it's working so well? What can you do to keep that momentum going and even expand it? Can you apply any of those lessons to other areas of your life? While dwelling on things that went wrong might be tempting, looking at what went right often yields more positive results.

How can you make things that aren't working better? That's not to say that you shouldn't examine your failures. I had a colossal mess on my hands at one point this year, and although I'd love to pretend it never happened, I know that it actually has a lot to tell me about where I want to go in 2014. Where did you fail this year? How can you turn that failure into a positive next year?

I enjoy all this reflecting -- and find it deeply helpful. But even better is coming back to work on January 2nd and beginning to make my reflections reality. Bring on 2014!

(But if reflection isn't for you, you could try one of these ways to welcome in a New Year.)

Cheers! And see you in 2014!

Busting Direct Mail Myth #3

I spend a lot of time reading up on the latest "musts" of direct mail and talking to fundraisers about their programs, and I've noticed quite a few direct mail myths that just won't die. You can read my earlier posts debunking the first two big myths here and here. Today, I want to talk about the third common myth: Direct Mail is too old-fashioned for our donors.

Believe me, I understand where this one is coming from. We all want to think that our donors are different. They're special, more sophisticated than the average donor. They don't need all those underlines and bold and emotional language.

Wrong.

A few years ago, I wrote a letter for an organization run by a very respected, very intelligent scientist. He was widely published in prominent scientific journals and national newspapers and magazines. He was a great writer, and he hated the letter I wrote for them. Ripped it to shreds. He deplored the overly emotional tone and the use of 2nd person point-of-view. He was adamant that his donors would see through such a hackneyed ask and leave the organization in droves.

Naturally, I was upset. I had worked extremely hard getting the complex technical details in the appeal right and melding those with the kind of impassioned, personal plea I know works in direct mail.

The development staff and I sat down and discussed how to proceed, and eventually, we convinced the executive director to test his approach vs. my approach. The results were definitive in my favor.

Now, this guy was a Ph.D. He had a couple of decades of experience in writing about his subject on me. But he didn’t — at that time — know direct mail at all.

He took one look at my appeal letter and saw all the things a good academic writer is trained to avoid like the plague: hyperbole, simplified language, lots of “you”, too much bold and underlines.

But those things work.

Which isn't to say you can't inject some sophistication into your direct mail. Many of my clients routinely fundraise for incredibly complex and technical issues, and they get great results. But they use tried and true direct mail techniques, as well.

Remember, your primary goal is to get your direct mail opened and responded to, so make it easy for people to understand what you want them to do. That means bold important passages, underline key points, bullet your arguments, and include an emotional P.S.

And yes, dome of your donors will be put off by direct mail. It's important to remember that a large percentage of the population is not direct mail-responsive (including me!). Which is why it's critical to have many channels and opportunities for your donors to give.

Next week, I'll bust Myth #4 -- so stay tuned!

Always Say Yes

One of the most valuable lessons of my professional life was first delivered to me in my high school improv class: Always Say Yes. If you've ever taken an improv class -- or read the chapter in Tina Fey's memoir that talks about her application of "Always Say Yes" into her own work life -- then you know that this rule is designed to keep an improv scene going. Actors are not allowed to say "no" to their scene-mates, or the entire scene dies. As Fey says, "The fun is always on the other side of a yes."

I was reminded of this lesson from my long-ago improv class right out of college, when I worked for someone who routinely demanded the impossible. Very quickly, I realized that as long as I greeted his every new proposal with a "yes," then work moved forward relatively peacefully.

Of course, that didn't mean that his every proposal worked. In fact, many, many times, it fell flat. And eventually, I learned how to avoid his crazier demands by saying "yes"...and then telling him exactly what needed to happen in order to accomplish his request.

To this day, I say "yes" to almost every unreasonable demand that crosses my desk -- not out of a misguided sense of people-pleasing, or a secret masochistic streak. But because I know saying "yes" is the quickest way to get to the fun, to the part of a project where the words are flowing, the creativity is happening and things are getting done.

I am always taken aback when I work with someone who tells me "no." How can you ever get to the good stuff if you refuse to even try?

Sure, it might not work. I've pitched many an idea that did not work -- either because they were under-developed, or because I didn't understand something crucial about the project, or because they just ultimately weren't doable.

But those failed efforts almost always led me to successes. And, perhaps more importantly, they taught me to take a joy in my work that I could never have found if I'd let myself say "no."

When Your Hands Are Tied

I've posted a lot of advice in this space, and I read a lot of fantastic advice from my colleagues and mentor-types around the world. I really believe that if you want to excel at copywriting for nonprofits, now is the best time to be working -- there's simply never been so much easy access to top-notch educational resources as there is today. But what happens when you're not allowed to implement all this world-class free advice?

There are a lot of obstacles to doing your best work. Organizations hire me to help them do their best work, and even I face huge hurdles in implementing the changes I know are necessary to push my clients' efforts into the stratosphere. I know you know what I'm talking about:

• Board Members who think their corporate expertise translates to fundraising.
• Program staff who don't understand that fundraising is as important as what they're doing in the field.
• Databases and antiquated computer systems that are virtually unusable.
• Executives who are unwilling to invest in best-practice acquisition and retention.
• A basic lack -- of EVERYTHING! Not enough staff, crumbling infrastructure, too few resources...the list goes on.

I do love Tina Fey's advice to go "Over! Under! Through!" the things or people standing in your way. But for non-profits, sometimes, unfortunately, these obstacles prove insurmountable. So what's a savvy fundraiser to do?

Focus on what you CAN do.

So you can't segment your list properly, or your CEO refuses to give you staff to make thank you calls. Instead of moaning about what you can't do, try coming up with ways to work with what you do have.

What about hand-selecting 100 (or another doable number) of your most loyal donors for more personalization than your database can offer? Can you write a script for volunteers and put them on the phone with your donors?

There are usually several different ways to come at a problem. Venture outside your comfort zone and see if you can find one of them. And if you still can't solve your problem, then focus on doing the best job you can with the resources you have while continuing to...

Educate everyone at your organization.

Let them know what is possible. Remind program staff that you are on their side -- working tirelessly to get them the money to fund the amazing and selfless work that they do every day. Paint a picture for your leadership of what your organization could accomplish with the right equipment, experts, or staff. Provide your Board with information about fundraising best practices and show them your plan for bringing your organization up to that level.

Just as you keep your donors informed about the work your organization is doing, you should keep everyone at your nonprofit informed about what your department is doing. Open the lines of communication on your end. Be an example of how things could be.

Keep doing your best work.

I have worked with people and organizations that did not want my advice. I've also worked with groups that wanted me to swoop in and save their direct mail creative, while doing everything they could to tie my hands. It's not fun.

But regardless of the dysfunction around you, the absolute best thing you can do for yourself and your organization is to do the best work that you can do. It may become clear that you need to part ways, but until then, take advantage of all the wonderful free advice that's out there and do your best to excel.

Because really, the only thing you can control is your effort.

Celebrating Milestones

A funny thing happened to me last week. My oldest child turned 10. I know, really it happened to her. But it's strange for me to think about the changes the last ten years have brought to my life as a direct result of her presence. In a very real way, I owe her much of my progress as a writer and creative consultant to nonprofits. Having her was an earth-shattering, highly focusing experience.

So after the dust settled from her sleepover party and all-around over-the-top birthday celebrations with family and friends subsided, I decided to take a few minutes to celebrate my own journey over the last ten years, reflect on what I've achieved, and plan for the next decade.

The process is ongoing for me, but it also made me think about my clients and their upcoming milestones. So much excitement and opportunity -- so how can we take advantage of it?

Does your nonprofit have a big anniversary coming up?

Anniversaries are a good time to reflect on the past and set new goals for the future -- individually and for nonprofit organizations. Sometimes you find you simply need a course-correct. Other times, a full-on reinvention is required. And while much of this work will be internal, there are ways to celebrate publicly...and perhaps induce your donors to give even more to commemorate your milestone.

Here are my key suggestions, cautions and ideas for celebrating your nonprofit's anniversary with your donors:

• First up, you have to remember that donors generally don't care as much about the anniversary as you at the organization do. With a few exceptions, they're not going to give solely because you've suddenly reached 25 years (or whatever anniversary it happens to be). It doesn't mean you can't celebrate it with your donors, but I would caution against making huge projections based on it being an anniversary year.
• See if you can get a challenge grant from a major donor in celebration of the anniversary. You know that a good Challenge Grant will spur other donors to give, and pinning that challenge to a big, sentimental anniversary might give it a bit extra oomph.
• Can you segment out charter/founding donors? If so, give them special treatment for their longevity. These are your most loyal donors and the ones most likely to be invested in your anniversary, so make sure they know they are the reason you reached such a monumental milestone.
• You might consider designing a special anniversary edition of your logo, to be used just for that one year. Using that in all donor communication will help remind them that it's a special year/exciting time for the organization. Maybe even try using a retro look -- old fonts/logos that were used/popular the year you were founded. Anything you can do to make your donors feel sentimental (read: emotional) about your organization will inspire more giving.
• Consider revisiting some of your early success stories. Tell donors again about the people you've helped, the battles you've won, the previous milestones you've celebrated. Can you profile someone whose life you touched early on, give a "where-are-they-now" update? Even better! Remind your donors why they gave to you in the first place, and they'll be more inclined to give again and keep giving.
• Above all, try to use the anniversary as a way to remind donors of all the great work they've accomplished over the last xx years and then tell them your plan for this year (and the next xx years). As always, keep it simple and compelling. Remind them that they made this anniversary possible.

Anniversaries are a great opportunity for your organization as a whole, and they can also be a good hook for fundraising as long as you always remember this key: it's all about your donor. Stick to what your donors care about in fundraising, avoid showing them the internal details of your reflection, and make them feel like a part of your organization's past, present and future.

The STOP List

I'm a sucker for New Year's Resolutions lists, even though I rarely make them myself. There's something so hopeful about them, as if by simply writing down the things we hope to do, we can make our lives better.

I often wonder, though, if the things we wish we were doing really are the most important to focus on. Perhaps it would be more helpful to make a list of things we're doing that we should strive to STOP doing. So with that in mind, here's my list of bad fundraising habits that you should banish in 2012.

STOP promising the moon.

When the pressure's on, it's hard not to make any promise you can in the hopes that you'll be able to come through. But aiming for the stars when you're traveling in an old jalopy is an exercise in futility.

Make your goals realistic and achievable for where you are right now. Small successes lead to bigger successes. And if you can build on those successes, you'll be able to promise the moon when you can actually deliver it.

STOP playing it safe.

This might seem like the opposite of the above, but I think the two go hand-in-hand. When you're promising more than you can deliver on one project, you're forced to play it safe in other areas to compensate.

The best way to have a successful year is to try new things, reach out to new people, engage new experts, and test, test, test.

STOP wallowing in your mistakes.

We all make mistakes. But dwelling on them doesn't make you better, it makes you more paranoid. Embrace your mistakes, and find the nuggets of wisdom that come from them.

STOP downplaying your successes

Normally, I'm not a fan of those who toot their own horns, since far too often, those who talk about how hard they're working are just that: all talk.

But if you have a successful fundraising event, help craft a winning direct mail package, or convince a donor to give more than she's given in the past, make sure you share those successes with your board, your volunteers and your staff. Hold those triumphs up as examples of what can be done...and challenge your people to beat them.

I'm going to work on these things this year, and I challenge you to develop your own Stop List for 2012.