When you walk into your doctor’s office for your annual physical exam the first words usually spoken to you are some version of, “Ok, let’s get your vitals.”
“Vital Signs,” that is. When someone takes your temperature, blood pressure, pulse and respiration—those are your “vitals” when it comes to your physical health. They help your doctor to gauge your general health, offer clues to possible illness or disease, and provide insights for your future health and well-being.
Usually, this is routine.
Perhaps you’ve experienced a time when everything didn’t exactly go routinely during your check-up. If so, you know how quickly routine can become something of a concern.
If an obvious answer to a particular issue isn’t immediately evident, they order tests so that the doctor can get a clear understanding of your condition and suggest any treatment that may be needed.
In the world of fundraising, there are also vital signs. They include, but are not limited to:
Whether or not you’re growing your data file of donors
New donor trends
How many new donors are giving a 2nd gift
Donor retention rates
Kind of routine stuff. So routine, in fact, that many nonprofits don’t bother to assess them on a regular basis.
Resolving these types of issues with a “plan of action” in a timely fashion is a great way of ensuring your organization’s fundraising health. You should be checking your vital signs regularly to identify potential issues and address any problems early on.
The sooner you see the problem, the faster you can get back on track and achieve the results you want and need.
If you’d like to talk with us about doing an assessment of your fundraising health, please give Ron a call at 708-974-2600, 105 or email him at ron@rescignos.com.