It is all in how you ask

Yes, our mothers taught us long ago (well, maybe not that long ago for some of you), that how we ask can be as important as what we ask for. Even if we aren’t told this directly, as kids, we figure this out pretty quickly. Sometimes, when we grow up and become fundraisers, we forget this important lesson.

Let me share a recent fund-raising experience. I’ve been raising money for a project that costs about $70,000. We’ve raised some money from foundations, a few large gifts from individuals, but we are still not at our goal. We put a plea for funds in our emails. We even held a raffle to raise the rest of the money. The gifts trickled in.

Then, one morning when driving to work, I was listening to the radio about someone running for Congress who was raising buckets of money. His trick? He asked people for small gifts – but a very specific amount. And he did it all online.

That week we were scheduled to send out an email newsletter to all our constituents. We had asked for funds in the appeal before without much success. But, this time, I adapted the technique to ask for a specific amount. I tied it to the number of daily visitors to the website, and came up with $17.98 – and that is the number that we asked people to give. By not rounding up the amount to $20, we made the number seem very manageable. After all, practically everything we buy is priced like that. Plus, it was a small enough gift that nearly everyone could afford it.

We sent out the email, and within an hour we had 23 gifts – far more than any other email appeal. And, most of the gifts were for more than $17.98, and none were for less.

We are still working toward our goal, but by changing how we asked, we got a lot closer.

See you in San Diego
Just a reminder that I’ll be teaching the National Fundraising School in San Diego in September. If you haven’t attended or if you have a board member or staff member who you think would benefit, you can find details on American Humane’s website.

Online Auctions

I subscribe to a message board about animal welfare fundraising, and a question was posted about online auctions. I've been using online auctions for animal welfare for three years now (going into my fourth auction), so I've been involved in them for quite a while, in relative terms.

I also get questions about them during the National Fundraising School . Here is what I have learned. I hope my experiences are helpful to your work on behalf of animals.

#1. Just because you build it, does not mean they will come. Before you start to consider an online auction, take stock of your online capabilities. Most importantly, how many email addresses do you have in your file, and how many of them are valid addresses? When I first started with an online auction, it was recommended that we have a minimum of 2,000 valid addresses. Now we have more than 12,000 addresses. The more addresses you have, the bigger audience you have, and the more potential bidders you have. Like so much in fundraising, online auctions are a numbers game. The more addresses, the more bidders, the higher the bids, the more you will raise. Marketing the auction is up to you. The more emails you have in your system, the more people you can tell about your auction.

#2. E-bay versus a dedicated auction site. You can use e-Bay, via their Mission Fish nonprofit arm, for your auction. Costs are minimal, and you use a well-known brand. Or, you can go with a dedicated auction site, such as c-Market. There are several other venders that provide a similar service. As I see it, here are the pros and cons. e-Bay has a worldwide reach, which is great if you have items that appeal to anyone everywhere. But, people in San Diego probably aren't interested in a gift certificate for a restaurant in Ohio. So, if you have many items that are specific to your area, e-Bay's huge audience isn't going to be so valuable. If, on the other hand, you have items that appeal to a very narrow audience, such as a hobby or a collectible, e-Bay is great. We once had a number of needlepoint canvases donated that we tried to auction on our c-Market site. They didn't sell, so we posted them on e-Bay. We found an audience for them and sold them quickly.

#3. You can use multiple approaches. As the last paragraph states, you can use multiple auction venues. Don't limit yourself to just one, if you think you can do better using e-Bay's broad audience.

#4. You have to have things people want to buy. This may sound obvious, but I've seen too many online auctions with lots of stuff for sale that is not appealing. Don't feel you have to accept and auction off everything people offer. If it becomes a flea market, your returns will be disappointing. Also, some categories of items sell much better than others. Top sellers include restaurant gift certificates and sports items (tickets, autographed items, etc.). Items that don't sell well are jewelry, artwork, and collectables.

#5. Don't expect to get fair market value for all your items. If you get 50% of the fair market value for the total auction catalog, you have done well. Knowing this, you can benchmark your results.

#6. Approach the auction like any other event. It will take a committee to solicit items, someone to write the descriptions, someone to take the photos, someone to post the descriptions, promote the auction, etc., etc. If you treat the online auction just like you would a live event, you will be much more successful.

If you would like help getting an online auction off the ground for your organization, you can contact me for an individually created auction plan.

California Dreamin'

If you've wanted to learn more about fundraising for animal welfare, or, if you have a board member or Excutive Director who you'd like to get up to speed with fundraising, consider attending American Humane's conference in San Diego, CA, September 18-20. On the 19th and 20th, I'll be leading American Humane's National Fundraising School, a two-day workshop that covers all aspects of fundraising, especially tailored for animal welfare organizations. Even development professionals with several years of experience benefit from the training. Information about the conference is available at www.americanhumane.org.

What we can learn from politicians

Every Presidential election cycle, we can count on fundraising records being broken. No matter the economy, candidates and political parties manage to raise staggering sums, and not just in Presidential election years, but also in races at all levels. No matter your political bent or whether you care for or distain the political process, there are valuable lessons that as fundraisers, we can adapt and use for our work in saving the lives of animals in need.

Here are a few:

Sense of urgency. Election Day is looming. We have a clear deadline by which we must raise the money. Imagine how difficult it must be to raise money after the election. Especially if you lose. How can you create a sense of urgency for your organization? But remember, if you have an emergency all the time, your message will soon fall on deaf ears.

Our side is right. Our cause is just; our candidate is fair and wise. We must prevail. Translate this into saving lives. Our organization has a solution to pet overpopulation. We are making a difference. With your help.

Every gift is important. Of course the big gifts make the most difference and big donors get all the attention (plus those photo ops with the candidates). But, if you’ve ever been called by a political telemarketer, you know they will accept a gift, no matter how small. Don’t neglect the small gifts.

Treat your big donors like kings. That’s right. The big donors do count for more. All the candidates have “clubs” for the people who raise the most money (campaign finance laws prohibit large direct gifts to candidates.) These top fundraisers get face time with the candidates, dinners, etc. Are you doing all you can for your top donors? How frequently do you communicate with them? Do you ask for their input?

Taxes aren’t everything. With all the talk about the sour economy, people are concerned that donations may falter. And, they may. But remember that people are still making record political contributions, and these contributions are not tax-deductible. For those cynics who say that the only reason people donate is to get a deduction, political fundraising is a perfect counter-argument. But, you may argue, political donors are looking for something in return, a quid pro quo. All contributions are a quid pro quo. We are giving donors the opportunity to solve a problem that they care deeply about. And, in return, they get a very powerful sense of satisfaction. That is perhaps the most lasting quid pro quo there is.