Part II of Answering Your Money Story Questions
Last week I answered some terrific questions about sharing your money story or as I like to refer to it: Your Funding Gap.
There were so many thought-provoking questions I’ll answer a few more this week.
Q1: If leadership is not ok with sharing funding gap, do you have any tips for getting them excited about the idea?
Q2: Would telling the funding gap potentially limit the ‘give’ from your donors?
A1&2: I find it is a common occurrence that new concepts are met with fear, uncertainty, and push-back. Talking about money in a way that is much more transparent than you’ve ever done before, well, that’s one of the more challenging things for an organization to take on.
Here’s a list of my 5 tips on how to start sharing your “Money Story” regularly.
1. Tell the truth.
You have an amount of funding you seek from contributions every year. Talk about. it Invite supporters to ask you about it. All year long.
2. Break your funding gap or fundraising goals into “mini-campaigns” throughout the year.
Get your leadership and your donors excited to help you reach smaller goals much earlier in the year.
3. If there has been a change in your funding streams, e.g. you lost a large contract or grant, you have even more reason to share your “funding gap” update regularly.
How will your community KNOW to give more or regularly if they are not “in the know” about your funding situation.
4. The WAY you share this message with your leadership and your supporters makes a difference.
It’s a positive message about how much you’ve raised so far. It is not a message about how “badly” you are doing.
5. You are simply sharing “what is missing” so others can see how to support you.
Your donors are giving to other organizations throughout the year. Why wouldn’t you want to invite & inspire supporters to give to you on a monthly or multi-year basis by showing them how to increase their own impact with a larger gift?
Watching CEOs, board presidents, finance committee, and fund development staff embrace sharing their money story is one of the most rewarding parts of my work.
When it’s done thoughtfully and well I’ve seen $100 dollar contributions turn into $1000 dollar contributions. I’ve watched occasional donors turn into monthly or multi-year donors, pledging many more thousands then they ever imagined.
The results I’ve observed in hundreds of organizations: The more you talk about your impact (people stories) combined with your money story (funding gap) the MORE money your organization will actually raise.
