Steven Screen, Author at The Better Fundraising Company

Pandemic Fundraising: What to Expect and How to Succeed in the Months Ahead

Steven Screen | April 3, 2020April 3, 2020Repeat

Every once in a while, we give you a free resource to help you raise more money.

It seems like a good time for that, doesn’t it? Because there’s a LOT of fear in the fundraising world.

So this free resource gives you what you need to guide your organization through the next few months – because we want your organization to be healthy after the pandemic!

Download here for free.

First, you’ll get a graphic that shows what will happen to your fundraising over the next few months. (It’s not possible to know the exact timeframe, but it’s absolutely possible to know the shape & pattern that donor behavior will follow.)

Second, you’ll get a document that shares – based on experience – how to communicate and fundraise your way through this.

The pandemic and economic downturn are doing grave harm to a lot of organizations. But you can minimize the impact and even come out ahead on the other side.

Some organizations are going to have incredible years – even organizations not overtly connected to the pandemic.

It all depends on the choices you make in the coming hours, days, and weeks. It’s up to each organization – to your organization – on how to respond.

Please download this guide. It has our best experience and advice, taken from past crises and downturns, to help your organization succeed.

Timely Info about Emergency Loans

Steven Screen | April 1, 2020April 1, 2020Tips

If your organization could use a loan to keep employees and/or stay open, keep reading.

Yesterday The Agitator posted a guide to help nonprofits get a small business forgivable loan.

Here’s a link to their guide.

They’ve done an incredible service by summarizing the situation, and what you need to do.

If a loan is needed / crucial / of interest to your organization, I’d hustle. The funds are limited – speed matters. As I’ve been saying, if a donor is going to give five emergency gifts during this time, you do not want to be the 7^th organization to ask her. The same principle is true here.

Roger and Kevin, thank you.

And watch this space in the next 24 hours for a handy graphic that will attempt to predict how the next few months of fundraising are going to go, as well as a more in-depth explanation.

Quotes of Amazement about Donor Generosity

Steven Screen | March 31, 2020March 31, 2020Ask

Donor generosity is amazing.

To give you a little joy in the middle of the craziness, here are a bunch of quotes about donor generosity that we’ve heard in the last week from organizations we serve.

I’ll just leave these right here for you to enjoy – and for organizations to think about if they or their beneficiaries are being harmed by the current situation but aren’t yet asking donors to help.

“Donors just blow me away with their generosity. So many have responded to share their own story of what they’re going through. And yet they choose to give. What a testament to what amazing people donors are.”

“I was talking to a friend last night, and she said, ‘Oh it must be soooo hard to raise money right now.’ And I thought that’s true if ‘hard’ means breaking all kinds of open rate, click-through rate, and revenue expectations. Then yeah, it’s really hard! ”

“It’s amazing to see how many people want to help right now.”

“It’s like year-end fundraising in March!”

“Donors that gave recently are giving again! This is unbelievable to me. It’s blowing me away!”

And my personal favorite (and a reminder for why your organization should be using the mail, too), a donor replied to an e-appeal with a gift and the following note:

“I forwarded your email to my mom, and she wants to donate but doesn’t want to do so online. Her friend would also like to make a donation. Is there a person and address she could send a check to?”

And finally, a quote from a small organization that used our easy formula for a successful Coronavirus e-appeal:

“I just wanted to thank you again and share the ongoing results of our emergency appeal (following your suggestions, of course). Immediately upon sending our 1st email last week, we received seven online gifts (may not seem like a lot, but it’s huge for us). As I write this email, we have received 81 online gifts, and 43 of those are from first-time donors.

“We also posted the appeal to our social media, which immediately resulted in comments and shares and gifts. Monday, I sent the same letter in the mail (with the edits you suggested in the Free Review Friday last week). I’ve also re-posted and emailed the appeal again this week.

“Not only are the gifts coming in, a couple of other amazing things happened – one of our grantors responded to the emergency appeal by releasing all the restrictions on the grant ($40K) and are allowing us to use the funds as we see fit – HUGE!!! And our local paper (distributed in our county) saw the emergency appeal and printed it inside the front cover of the paper. AMAZING!!”

Donor generosity is amazing! They’re unsung heroes in this whole thing – and I hope you enjoy your role in giving your donors opportunities to be heroic!

Why You Should Send a Letter Now

Steven Screen | March 27, 2020March 27, 2020Ask

Here’s why you should probably be sending out an emergency appeal letter to your donor file:

This chart shows the percentage of revenue that’s coming in from different generations.

Direct mail appeals work very well at reaching the group of folks in blue on the right.

You know, the ones who (statistically speaking) have the most compassion and money to give you right now.

And you know, the people who your email and social probably aren’t reaching in significant numbers.

To any organization who is considering using direct mail for their coronavirus fundraising,

DO IT.

I can’t say that everyone should do it. But chances are, you should.

Here’s how to think about it to make a good decision for your organization:

If the coronavirus or the current situation is harming your beneficiaries, your cause, or your organization, then you should be fundraising now.
If you’ve sent out an emergency e-appeal and it raised more than a “normal” e-appeal raises…
If you’re able to convert your e-appeal into a direct mail appeal and get it in the mail quickly…

Then you should absolutely send out an “emergency direct mail appeal.”

Get it written (your e-appeal is your first draft – and maybe your final draft!) and send it as fast as you can.

Speed matters. If your donors are going to give emergency gifts to five organizations, you don’t want to be the 7^th organization who asks them.

And if you can’t get a letter out to everyone quickly, then figure out how to get a letter out to your top donors in the next couple days. One tactic we see working: print out your e-appeal, handwrite a note on the top and send it to your major donors along with a generic reply card and envelope.

The Big Idea here is to use the mail to reach your major donors and the LARGE group of compassionate folks who would like to help but aren’t email responsive. Good luck out there. And we’ll be posting helpful tips every day for the foreseeable future.

12 Tips for Fundraising Right Now

Steven Screen | March 26, 2020July 28, 2025Crisis

Last Friday, I streamed a free two-hour session reviewing Coronavirus fundraising – (mostly emails) and answering specific questions about fundraising during this crazy time.

I’d like to publicly thank Marc Pitman for gathering all the advice dispensed during those two hours and putting it in a super-helpful blog post. Read it here.

And here’s what Marc summarized:

One of the phrases Steven keeps using is encouraging us to “lean into donor generosity.” I love his constant reminder that nonprofits are needed now more than ever. Donors get that. And are currently giving to it. That giving will slow but right now is a time to be asking.

Some other nuggets he says are:

- Your donors are amazing, and they want to help.
- Let them decide what is relevant and important to them.
- Crisis giving spikes, and then slows. The slowing isn’t about donor fatigue. It’s about donor inattention and about the nonprofit’s fundraising irrelevance.
- Now is not the time to fundraise for the future. Fundraise for the crisis now.
- Your job is to clearly state how your beneficiaries, or your organization are being impacted by this situation. And how the donor can help.
- If your most pressing issue is a shortfall in fundraising, tell the donor.
- Send the emergency email. Resend it to people who didn’t open it. Send it again. Send it every other day.
- Keep asking until the data tells you to stop. NOT until your feelings tell you. When the appeals stop working, that’s the data telling you to stop.
- There are still LOTS of older people who haven’t given because they don’t give to emails. If you can get a letter out this week, do it.
- $25 is a low ask in an email. Average online gifts for many nonprofits is $80, $90, or even $100.
- Don’t let your unease with asking take away from a donor the chance to make an impact.
- Now is NOT the time to send an “update on how we’re responding to Covid-19.” That is irrelevant to donors. Share a current need that they can act on.

And one of my favorites: in crisis moments like we’re in right now, “pretty good and fast” will raise more money than “perfect and a couple days later.” Reaching donors now is far better than waiting until things have calmed down. And even better than waiting until you get the wording 100% perfect.

I stand by every one of those.

If you want more guidance right now, here’s a post from last week with the four main ideas that will help you the most right now.

Good luck out there! And stay tuned, we’ll be posting helpful advice every day for the foreseeable future.

COVID-19 fundraising principles

Steven Screen | March 17, 2020March 26, 2020Crisis

If you’re going to raise money for your beneficiaries and/or cause during the pandemic, follow these principles, and you’ll raise more money.

Note: Everything I’m about to say assumes one important thing – the current pandemic situation impacts your organization, cause, and/or beneficiaries. That could be the virus. It could be the economy. It could be travel restrictions. In other words, that there are “new or more needs” that you’re dealing with.

Here are the principles Better Fundraising is living by as we work with clients:

Speed matters. Sometime soon, several hundred thousand organizations are going to realize they’re in trouble and are going to send out e-appeals. You want to beat them to your donors’ inboxes. Don’t wait until the next vacancy in your communication schedule – cancel what’s coming next and replace it with something urgent.

Volume matters. Your donors’ attention is more fragmented than usual. That means your email open rates are going to drop by 20%. Your direct mail open rates will drop too. That means fewer people will see what you send out. And if fewer people see what you send out, you raise less money. So you need to send out more things.

Simplicity matters. You have less of your donors’ attention than you normally do. If your donor usually reads two paragraphs of your email before deciding whether to read the rest, for the next weeks, she’s only going to read one paragraph. So you have to get to the point quickly, and you have to keep it very simple.

Acute needs raise money. We’ve already seen this several times in the last five days. If your beneficiaries or organization is facing a critical need, share it with your donors. Donors LOVE acute needs.

So if your beneficiaries are short of rent money because their service industry jobs have been slashed, ask your donors to provide rent money. If you’re $1 million event was just canceled, ask donors to help erase your $1 million shortfall.

Make it clear – make it simple. Resist the urge to over-explain. Send it fast.

If you haven’t seen it, here’s a video I made with an 8-point outline for a successful e-appeal.

Good luck out there!

SPECIAL POST: Follow This Formula to Raise Money Right Now [FREE VIDEO]

Steven Screen | March 16, 2020April 3, 2020Crisis

If the COVID-19/Coronavirus is hurting your beneficiaries or your organization, your donors would love to help by sending in a special gift.

Here’s a formula we created to help organizations during this time of need. Follow this formula to create a simple email that works extraordinarily well:

Quickly acknowledge that things aren’t normal right now
Describe how the situation (COVID-19 or the economy) is hurting your cause / beneficiaries / organization
Ask for a special gift to help (link to your donation page)
Very short story to illustrate the need
Show how the donor’s gift perfectly meets the need
Show how the need from the story is not the only need
Share that the funds needed are not in the budget
Ask the donor to send an emergency gift right now (link to your donation page)

We’re sending this out as quickly as possible because this formula is WORKING. Every email that’s been sent out using it has been a big success.

If you’d like to watch a video of me explaining the formula in more detail, along with an example of an email that follows the formula, click here.

Resist the urge to over-explain. Keep it simple and get it in front of your donors as quickly as you can!

Then get in touch and let us know how well the formula worked for you and your organization!

Newsletter Picture Captions that Help, not Hurt

Steven Screen | March 12, 2020August 12, 2020Report

People read picture captions.

So make sure your picture captions do a great job delivering your newsletter’s main message.

Thankfully there’s an easy way to do this.

One Simple Rule

Here’s how we think about every newsletter picture caption.

The caption should not be about what’s happening in the photo.

The caption should be about the donor’s role in what’s happening in the photo.

That means that every single picture caption should mention the donor.

Example Time

Here are a bunch of examples from real, money-raising, donor-retaining newsletters:

Thanks to you, Linh and her baby are both getting the food, necessities, and long-term support they need!

Because of your generosity, doctors were about to repair Jun Jun’s cleft lip. Jun Jun will join his adoptive family soon!

Your generosity helped Maria re-discover the courage and strength she had lost while she was homeless.

Devi was able to begin her freshman year, making her dreams come true with everything she needed for her dorm room at Georgia Tech – thanks to you.

Your gift helped women in Uganda receive the physical and emotional healing they desperately needed.

This year’s graduating class celebrates – thanks in part to your generous giving!

Your generosity has trained more than 500 police officers and first responders to stop and prevent child abuse.

Answer the Question Your Donor is Asking

One of the questions running through a donor’s mind as she looks at your newsletter is this: “Did my gift make a difference?”

Photo captions that follow this model show and tell her, again and again, how her gift made a difference.

They answer her main question.

And remember, when your donor knows that her gift made a difference, she trusts your organization more.

When she trusts your organization more, she’s more likely to respond to the next appeal you send her.

So because newsletter photo captions are one of the most widely read parts of your newsletter, they are wildly important for you to use correctly to let your donor know that she and her gift made a difference.

Follow the simple rule above, and you’ll be on your way to raising more money and retaining more of your donors!

Read the series:

Newsletter Headlines That Work

Steven Screen | March 5, 2020August 12, 2020Report

My recent post gave you a simple outline for how to easily write newsletter stories.

Today is about newsletter headlines: a massively important part of your newsletter’s success, but a part that most organizations spend very little time on.

Remember our belief that about 80% of the people who open your newsletter will read only your headlines and picture captions?

Doesn’t that make your headlines important? Maybe even more important than the story the headline is for?

We think so. So here’s how to write successful headlines…

Headlines Have One of Two Jobs

We try to do one of two things with newsletter headlines.

Be so dramatic and interesting that the reader wants to read the article. Think of it this this way: the headline is the ad for the story.
Share the outcome of the story and involve the donor. Think of it this way: your reader should know, just from reading the headline, that their gift did something powerful.

Example Time

Here are a handful of examples of ineffective headlines – taken from real newsletters in our files. They don’t accomplish either of the objectives above:

IFI Training Day Expands
Elizabeth’s experience encourages others to get their annual mammogram
Committed to change lives
Together We Rise
5^th Annual Zip 5k + Fun Run Breaks Record for Participation
Board of Directors Highlights/News
What is Extreme Poverty?
Upcoming Fundraisers
Camp and Retreat Centers as Holy Ground
Staff Updates
Pathways Supported Employment program fills in the missing pieces for people recovering from homelessness

And here are examples of effective headlines:

You’re helping find “Desperately needed” new treatments
“I wanted to Die”
The power of One Meal
“There is no more disease!”
Blind from a Chemical explosion, today he can see!
You did this!
You’re a hero!
Food delivered!
He used to eat garbage, you gave him dumplings!
“We never expected this to happen”
Cancer Patient Living on French Fries and Soda Pop
From Abuse to Prison to Redemption
“Your baby has cancer”
100 Happy Children
You helped save Darryl’s life
The Joy of Clean Water – Thanks to You!

Take a look at those effective headlines again.

Don’t you want to read the stories for those, more than you want to read the stories after the boring headlines?

And don’t you know – just from scanning the good headlines – that your gift made a meaningful difference?

In other words, you didn’t even have to read the story and you knew your gift made a difference. Which made you trust the organization a little bit more. Which made you more likely to give them a gift the next time they asked you. Which made the organization raise more money and retain more of its donors.

All that from a good headline.

You are in a BATTLE for your donor’s attention

Always remember – nobody has to read your fundraising.

You’re competing with people’s phones, with the internet, with making dinner, and with all of the other mailings from nonprofits that your donor received that very same day.

Strong dramatic and/or donor-focused headlines are one of the most powerful tools you have to convey your main message and get donors to read your stories! They are an integral part of whether your newsletter is going to raise money… or not.

So go look at your headlines – for both your printed newsletter and your e-newsletter. If they aren’t doing either of the two jobs above, it’s time to fire them and get some headlines that will do their jobs. There’s too much at stake to have your headlines causing fewer people to read your newsletter!

Read the series: