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| Path: Main Street : Resources & Library : Research Articles : Feature Article |
More donors look for a return on their investmentSeptember 5, 1994; Canadian FundRaiser
Donors today are looking for more than a cause they believe in before they will give to a charity, said Carol Oliver, executive director of the North York General Hospital Foundation, speaking to the National Society of Fund Raising Executives in Toronto. "It's essential to remember that people today give from their heads as well as their hearts," she said. "They are making an investment. In exchange, they are seeking accountability on our parts, tangible evidence of ROI, a return on their investment."
"I never go back to anyone with a new ask until I'm absolutely positive that I've been accountable to them for their previous gift," she said. "I make sure that I've also communicated adequately how their generosity has really made a difference to our hospital."
To succeed in today's market, an organization must build relationships with its donors, she said. Those partnerships must continually demonstrate the value of the donor's investment, and challenge and inspire a donor so that they will have an incentive to give again, at a higher level.
The key to that strategy is to consider the donor as a consumer. "Successful companies in the nineties have 'close encounters with customers' ," said Oliver, quoting from Relationship Marketing - Successful Strategies for the Age of the Consumer. This means integrating the customer into the company, to create and sustain a relationship between the company and the customer."
Oliver added that, "The onus is on us to build up a bank of goodwill with our donors. We can also provide our customers with satisfaction, stimulation and motivation. And we can also keep them coming back." At North York, Oliver has implemented a comprehensive donor relations program that includes a Volunteer Donor Relations Committee, Donor Relations Policies and Procedures, Forms and Types of Recognition, and a Marketing Plan.
The committee provides a forum for community leaders to provide valuable insight, feedback, and direction as the program is being designed. It's important that these people have vision and marketing experience.
Documented policies and procedures ensure that all donors will be treated equally, and spell out who will be recognized, at what level, in what form, when and where. She underlined the need for enough flexibility to allow recognition of certain individuals for exceptional donations.
Creative recognition is the third component. She counselled thinking about special events, personal visits, individualized gifts, and opportunities for affiliation with like-minded people.
The final component, a Marketing Plan, effectively promotes your product, and lets people know that you are committed to showing appreciation for donor support. Among the helpful tools are a brochure that explains and promotes the program, and internal and external publications that publicize donors' generosity.
Oliver concluded, "...if you build long lasting relationships, you may find that your donor becomes so committed tro your organization, and so involved in your program, that you essentially become their charity of choice. And that's a "preferred customer" relationship even our colleagues in the business world would envy."
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