When does the supporter experience start?
ifundraiser blog
by Richard Turner, ifundraiser
2y ago
Something struck me this week that I wanted to share with you. At SolarAid we are doing a project to really understand our audience. More about that to come in future blogs. But the thought that struck me was this. There is a lot of focus on the supporter experience now, and rightly so. But it feels much of it is from the moment someone donates or begins to fundraise for you. I now realise it starts way before that. Ever had that feeling when you are trying to find something and then bingo you come across exactly what you need? For example, this year I’m trying to learn how to make bread. Hav ..read more
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For the Love of Fundraising
ifundraiser blog
by Richard Turner, ifundraiser
2y ago
It’s been a while since I’ve written a blog. To be honest it’s something I’ve not felt like doing in recent years. But that urge has returned and perhaps there is no coincidence it’s happened at the time I have returned to frontline fundraising, ‘starting’ back at SolarAid last month. I’ve missed fundraising – and I hadn’t realised how much until now. Which got me reflecting on what is it I love about being a fundraiser? Here is what I came up with. Solving problems First I find fundraising pours your energy into solving a problem – your organisations mission or ‘why’. A problem that needs d ..read more
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You’re on mute
ifundraiser blog
by Richard Turner, ifundraiser
3y ago
“You’re on mute” has to be the quote of 2020. But is your fundraising on mute? Back in March before the UK lockdown I wrote a piece on the likely rise of altruism. If there is one lesson I have learnt since March it’s this: Good fundraising + rising altruism = fundraising magic But to harness this you need the active ingredient – the fundraiser. The real danger at this time is that trustees or the senior team make the mistaken assumption that people won’t give, that it’s prudent to cut back on fundraising as we need to reduce costs, and that it’s not an appropriate time to ask. Yet the realit ..read more
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The rise of altruism
ifundraiser blog
by Richard Turner, ifundraiser
4y ago
Every action has an equal an opposite reaction is a lesson I remember from physics. Amid the overwhelming feeling of despair and helplessness caused by this virus, could there be a human response that brings out the best in all of us? Clearly societies everywhere are already feeling the impact. And it’s going to cause a huge amount of anxiety, anger, and unfortunately, grief. All very powerful feelings.  It’s going to be devastating for some businesses and their employees. So perhaps it’s natural to compare this crisis to past recessions. But this isn’t just a financial crisis.  I’m f ..read more
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Give rather than always take
ifundraiser blog
by Richard Turner, ifundraiser
4y ago
Fundraising often feels about what you can get out of someone. What can you take from them. Hence the focus is often on the ask. Now I believe you need to think what can you give back. In a world where everyone is drowning in the noise of information, attention is now one of the most precious resources on the planet. If your communications are always about what you can take, the danger is you will begin to lose attention. People will switch off. And once you have lost their attention it will be harder to get it back. Which means you have to continually fill that “leaky bucket” – that h ..read more
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Stress coping for fundraisers
ifundraiser blog
by Richard Turner, ifundraiser
5y ago
A few blogs back I did a piece on how to get inspired as a fundraiser. This blog is in a similar vein – but it is about the darker side – namely stress. Apologies if you caught an early version of this post – which was sent in error when it was just draft notes, and gave me even more stress! I’ll be back blogging on the new model of fundraising and the need for fundraising to change – but I wanted to highlight this as I know change is not easy and to implement change will mean dealing with the stress that goes with it. I confess some nights I felt so stressed as a fundraiser I couldn’t sleep ..read more
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Stress coping for fundraisers
ifundraiser blog
by Richard Turner, ifundraiser
5y ago
A few blogs back I did a piece on how to get inspired as a fundraiser.  This post is in a similar vein – but it is about the darker side – namely stress and depression. I confess some nights I felt so stressed as a fundraiser I couldn’t sleep. For starters there is that pressure to deliver results always hanging over you. Then there are the internal pressures of managing people and of course people managing you. And of course the stress of delivering a workshop or seminar. I’ve had times when I’ve had all my line reports removed, had my work phone blocked on a Friday before a ‘chat’ with the C ..read more
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Bring people together to create community – part 2 of 2
ifundraiser blog
by Richard Turner, ifundraiser
5y ago
My last post was on the value of building a community. This post looks further into the ways you can create them. An effective way to create a sense of community is simply bring people with a shared interest, or who have shared values, together. Reasons to bring people together could include: reaching a milestone, thanking supporters, getting their input, announcing a goal or impossible dream, giving them some useful information or advice, or simply an opportunity to meet like minded people. Don’t forget one of the shared interests your supporters have is they support your cause. So you can be ..read more
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Build a community (part 1 of 2)
ifundraiser blog
by Richard Turner, ifundraiser
5y ago
Community seems to be the new buzz word. Like ‘engagement’. The danger is it will lose its real meaning without an understanding of what a community is. I’ve sat in meetings where the talk is of “creating a global community”, but where the underlying basis of what a community really is seems to be missing. This is the definition I heard by Grant Leboff, a thought leader in marketing I admire, when speaking to an audience of fundraisers. A community is a group of people that has either a shared interest or shared values (or better still both). And everyone in the community can contribute – othe ..read more
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Do the words we use to describe fundraising matter?
ifundraiser blog
by Richard Turner, ifundraiser
5y ago
Do the words we use really matter? Words that seem to be on the way out are “retention”, “acquisition”, and “donor”. Words that our on the rise are “experience”, “engagement”, and “supporter”. Take acquisition. To acquire donors suggests a sense of ownership. That doesn’t feel right anymore. And donor. People can now get involved in so many ways. Beneficiaries too. It seems so short sighted to box people (especially as someone who is involved in many ways is more likely to donate). The wrong words can lead to a lack of change, or re-enforce an existing mindset you wish to change. For some year ..read more
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