This is a guest blog post shared with permission from John Curtis, Ph.D of IOD, Inc.
Rationale: Now is the time for your nonprofit to step back and talk about how to continue operations in turbulent times, since the economy is in free-fall and the social malaise has not been this great in decades.
Can We Talk: The first step in this process of moving beyond survival to a new level of sustainability is to do some genuine “soul-searching” with regard to your organization’s existence… its reason for being. Note that a business-as-usual approach to daily operations is unlikely to endure and might be seen as tone-deaf in this unprecedented era.
Consider hosting a virtual meeting, small team discussion or even a large virtual town hall with your leadership, board, staff and volunteers, as appropriate! Now start a discussion about your sustainability in a Post-Covid World. Below are a few questions to consider (with an open mind) based on this "Sustainability Formula":
Relevancy + Credibility + Visibility = Financial Sustainability
• Relevancy – Will we still be seen as essential in the future? Where do we fit in the larger fabric of our community? Is our mission still important? Do we make a difference?
• Credibility – Do others trust us? Are we seen as the go-to expert? How transparent are we? Do we need new partners? Should we merge or close? What is our Guidestar status?
• Visibility – Are we top-of-mind in the community? Do others seek us out for our expertise? Are we leaders in contributing to the common good?
Answering these questions may be unsettling if you have been deceiving yourself about the organization’s performance. However, the outcome might reveal or reaffirm why you (still need to) exist. Regardless, it is time to evolve or risk extinction.
“The #1 stumbling block to self-development is self-deception!”
Once you have answered these questions… the responses should inform your plans for fundraising going forward. Your existing development activities might include mailings, online appeals, silent auctions, galas or golf tournaments… the biggest issue you must address is how problematic in-person events of any type are going to be in an era of social distancing.
What’s Next? – The end of face-to-face fundraising events as we know them!
It is likely all your public fundraising events have been cancelled or, at least, postponed. However, during your existential discussions, as cited above, you may have come to the realization that NO CONTACT fundraising IS the new “abnormal”! The sooner you accept it and make the transition, the better.
First of all, Events-Driven Fundraising has had chronic issues for some time. Now, in an era of social distancing, they will likely fade away with a rare exception for these reasons:
Many events are often stale, overused and vulnerable to unforeseen occurrences
They are counterproductive to building long-term relationships with donors
They keep fundraising transactional and technique-focused
Events can create unintended consequences and increased risk
The upfront costs keep rising and often have questionable ROI
Many are out-of-step with younger, more sophisticated, and often skeptical donors
They may “bruise” new relationships and offend existing donors
Most important, they are now off-limits due to social distancing
If you have successful in-person fundraising events (if you can find a way to keep attendees safe), stick with them… just don’t let them drive your philosophy of fundraising in the future. Instead, it is time to fully embrace a Donor-Driven approach.
What is Donor-Driven Fundraising?
Donor-Driven means determining how you can help a donor achieve their philanthropic goals, fulfill their personal values or continue their family tradition by making an investment in your organization? Donor-Driven also means “earning the right” to ask for a major gift and transforms giving from a transaction to an investment!
As a pre-requisite you need to consider what tasks you must perform, what systems and processes do you need to put in place to build long-term relationships with new and existing donors? This approach is a breakthrough from Events-Driven techniques that are typically all about you and not the donor!