Try Less Engaging and More Inviting

The topic of donor engagement is everywhere if you’re a fundraising professional. Do more donor engagement, do better donor engagement. I’m sure you’ve heard these words before.

The guarantee is that it will lead to more gift income, better donor numbers, etc. “Just engage more donors and your numbers will improve,” the experts say.

There’s just one thing wrong with this advice: No one seems to have a good answer as to how to “do” donor engagement well.

Some experts tell you how to measure donor engagement by looking at such factors as event attendance, giving consistency, social media interactions, volunteer hours, etc. Others suggest that donor engagement is a series of steps or phases you guide a donor through. Those phases, though, look very much like the well-known, Discovery, Cultivation, and Stewardship cycles we’re all familiar with.

At Rescigno’s, though, we encourage our nonprofit partners to do more: If you’re trying to increase your gift income (and who isn’t?) or have a goal of having your total number of donors increase over time, you must invite more.

That is:

• invite more people to share their insights, experiences, and perspectives.

• Invite more people to speak about why your organization matters to them.

• Invite more people to give more generously.

• Invite more  people to serve.

• Invite more people to volunteer.

• Invite more people to be a part of a cause-your cause, your mission. 

Because this is something that’s task oriented you can begin right away, as opposed to the non-specific donor engagement. When you invite more donors and prospects in the above meaningful ways, you are opening your organization to them. You’re saying, “ Your contributions aren’t just needed, they’re welcome here and so are you! Come be a part of something that transforms lives.” When you do this, you’re inviting them to be more connected—to care more deeply.

And that’s what real donor engagement is all about.