Philosophy and the “Art of the Ask”: How to increase financial donations

The old days of placing an envelope on the table at your charity fundraising event or passing around a basket, called “Passing the Hat” are long gone.  In fact, if you did that today, you would find 98% of the envelopes empty.

So how do you get people to donate money and more importantly, large sums of money?  This is a two-pronged strategy and approach.  But first we must understand that society today has changed to a “What will you do for me?” mentality.

In order to get more sponsors and to entice more people to donate, we first must understand this:

#1 - Companies will donate or invest in exchange for advertisement.  The more advertisement they receive, the more they will donate or sponsor.

#2 – Donors, that is people who will or could make large donations, they too want something for their donations.  What do these people want you ask?  To be noticed or have their few seconds in the spotlight.

Understanding the philosophy above is half the battle or the way to uncover the “Secret” to get more sponsors and entice more people to donate.  Here is the other half – the “Art of the Ask.”

Before I tell you or describe the “Art of the Ask”, you have to recall the “Old Ways” of getting financial donations.  Sending out hundreds of mailers or by getting on the phone and cold calling a long list of possible supporters.  Then getting into a lengthy conversation with them about why you need their hard-earned money which inevitably ends up as a “Telemarketer” approach.

Recently, I saw that a friend who is very affluent attended a charity fundraiser.  Knowing he is wealthy, I asked him how much he donated to the cause, he responded was “Nothing.”  When I asked why, he said “Because no one asked us to donate.”  He further went on to say that after looking at everything they had to offer in the silent and live auction, nothing appealed to him so he didn’t bid on anything either.

The fact that no one asked to donate is a simplistic and ironic with the argument being “He should have donated on his own without being asked.”  Today, everyone wants to be appreciated and to be thanked.  When you place yourself at a higher importance than your donors, that is a sure sign you are simply out of touch.

“The Art of the Ask” – Wouldn’t you agree that this is a “What are you going to do for me” society?  Absolutely it is.  Both donors and sponsors need to know there is value in their donations.  What does value mean?  Simply put – what do they get for their donation.  That’s not a question, it’s a statement.  We have already addressed why sponsors donate funds, however we briefly touched on why people donate.

Before you burn me at the stake…yes absolutely, people donate to help the mission of your charity, you’re right.  However, from my 25 years of experience raising 100’s of millions of dollars for charities – we now know and understand the power of simply asking them for a donation.  You cannot, let me say that again…you can not just expect it, you have to work for it.

To answer your question “What should we do?” or “How do we do it?”  First you must hire a professional.  Having “Bob the Weatherman” or “Sam the local politician” who does a great job acting like an auctioneer simply won’t cut it.  If you’re getting surgery, would you ask the same people to cut into your skin?  Absolutely not.  Isn’t raising the maximum amount of funds the goal of the fundraiser? You need a professional to get this done.

Whether you hire us, BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising, or you hire one of the many professional charity auctioneers across the United States, make sure you have a professional do this.  That in and of itself is the most important aspect here and the reason is, they understand the mechanics of how to ask, when to ask and how to do it successfully.

People at your fundraising event will absolutely donate – BUT – they want to be asked and they want to be placed in the spotlight when they do.  It’s called “Pea Cocking” or “Show Boating.”  You may not like that or agree, but it's reality.  They want others to see them donating and love her applause when they do.  Plus, they may want to donate to impress someone else in the crowd.  As an example, one of your board members is someone of importance in your community.  Another guest in the crowd wants to do business with them so they will make a healthy donation simply to attract the attention of your board member.

This “Ask” is also referred to as the “Fund a Need” or “Paddle Raise.”  You would be amazed at how incredibly successful this is.  We have raised as much as 1.8 million dollars at one event simply by asking.  But if you do not know what to do or how to do it, consult the advice of a professional.

The “Art of the Ask” is an art because it has to appeal to your guests and not be a “Beg” instead of an “Ask.”  Your guests can’t feel like you are putting them on the spot, they won’t react.

If we can help you understand and successfully accomplish the “Art of the Ask”, contact us at www.BWUnlimited.com.  BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising is the Premier charity fundraising company in North America in a convenient “One Stop Shop” setting.  What does a charity fundraising “One Stop Shop” mean?  We have everything you could possibly need and want all in one location, staffed by the nation’s foremost experts in charity fundraising.  Give us a call, we would love to help you.  You can reach us at 443.206.6121.  Call anytime, we are here to help you.

"Broken Spoke Fundraising" - Unknowingly repeating unsuccessful fundraising tactics

I’m sure you’re familiar with the old saying “Repeating the same thing over and over expecting different results.”  Well I’m going to introduce you to a whole new phrase which applies to the charity world – “Broken Spoke Fundraising.”  These two sayings have a lot in common because they address the same issue which many charities like yours are experiencing.  But you don’t know why you are having problems.

So imagine this – you and a friend or loved one are a part of a charity who has a fundraising event coming up in a several months.  You are invited to go to another charity fundraiser which a local charity is hosting.  You have little experience hosting a fundraiser since you only do one or two a year.  But while you’re there at the fundraiser you were invited to, you take mental notes on what they are doing to raise money.  You think to yourself “We will do these things at our event.”  Now, what they are doing seems like a great idea and also appears successful – so why not do them at yours right?

The problem is this – you honestly do not know if what they are doing or did do was successful.  What appears popular could have not been a successful way of fundraising.  As a real life example, charities all across the country have been doing a raffle called a “50/50” for decades.  But…have you taken time to think about it?  Let’s say you sell $5,000.00 worth of raffle tickets.  The prize which you give away is $2,500.00.  Why on earth would you give away ½ of your earnings?  Charities hope and pray that the winner donates the money back but after a three (3) year study by our company BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising, 83% of the time the winner does not donate the money.  As a professional fundraising event planner, those odds are bad and we do not ever do raffles or games which give money away as a prize because we are there to raise money, not give it away.

So, you start planning your fundraising event and utilize the ideas you saw at the local fundraiser you attended.  You don’t know if what they did was actually successful even though it appeared like it was.  But while planning it, you didn’t take the time to go and speak to the charity and get the full run down of how the raffle works and what you need to run it – so you miss something when repeating it.  In reality, the fundraising tactic they used wasn’t successful and when you do yours, you missed something making it that much more or less successful.  You now broke a spoke in the wheel which already had broken spokes to begin with.

Then you go through your event and wonder why what you did, did not produce what you thought it would but you decide to move on until next year.  You figure “Well, we will try it again and it will be different” – it’s not.  You begin to repeat the same things over and over and over again, hoping and praying or expecting different results – which never comes.  In fact, you spend days, weeks and months out of your full time life only to not be as successful as you want to be. 

This is what I call “Broken Spoke Fundraising.”  You truly can’t copy what others are doing for many reasons:  #1 – You don’t know if what they were doing was successful and #2 – You don’t realize that people are tired of the same old things. 

Another saying which holds very true is “Everything has a shelf life.”  What this means is…if you don’t change things or evolve, what you are doing will eventually die out and fade away.  In today’s society, people tend to get bored quick.  When you’re planning your next fundraising event, think of innovative fundraising platforms which are different and exciting.  Get away from the old 50/50’s and wheel’s…and do something that people will have fun with. 

More importantly, don’t copy what another charity is doing if you don’t have all the facts – which seldom do.  Most charities just accept what money came in and move forward.  Be smart and plan to be successful.

BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising would love to help you plan your next fundraising event and provide you and your guests with new, innovative, exciting fundraising tactics which not only your guests would love but will be extremely successful.  Contact us today at www.BWUnlimited.com. 

BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising is a North American Charity Fundraising leader in a convenient “One Stop Shop” setting.  BW can help you plan, manage and host an incredibly successful event which has a diverse amount of fundraising platforms which your guests will love time and time again creating a unique fundraising event that they will come back to each year but will also tell their friends.  Let BW help you by contacting us at www.BWUnlimited.com.

How to reduce or stop “Stressing Out” while planning your fundraising event.

We all live extremely busy lives today.  Between our families, work, friends etc. it’s hard to juggle it all.  We live full time lives, with full time jobs, with a full time family, with full time commitments and then…we are asked or we take on planning and hosting a fundraiser for a charity or someone in need of help.  Your stress level increases incredibly with all the responsibilities you take on and our lives become like a “House of Cards” – one mistake and it can come tumbling down.  The stress of it all weighs heavy on our minds. 

If you’re not a full time or professional event planner or fundraiser for a charity as a career, then this extra added pressure will consume you.  We all want to do a great job but if we “Stress Out”and worry – it just makes it that much harder to deal with.

Here are a few tips to help you not “Stress Out”:

#1 – Plan to Plan – create an outline or a plan in the very beginning.  A plan will help you tackle each task and allow you to check them off as you progress.

#2 – Building a Team – Team Building is perhaps the most important aspect of helping you battle stress.  If you are a control freak, try to “let go of the reigns” and ask for help.  You’re not going to be able to handle this on your own.   You can divide up tasks and get much more accomplished if you have people around you involved.  The larger the team, the easier it is.

#3 – Ask for help from a Professional – If you are not an experienced, successful fundraiser, you won’t have the foggiest idea on how to plan a successful fundraiser.  Unfortunately, what normally happens is – we attempt to duplicate the last fundraiser we went to.  However, we really don’t know if that fundraiser or the methods used were successful.  Contact a professional event planner but before you do, “Vet” them to see what “Charity Fundraising” experience they have.  Ask them if they specialize in planning and running a charity fundraiser.  Charity Fundraising is an art, it takes extensive knowledge about current trends, what to do and not to do, contacts with the appropriate vendors and so on.  Event planners are not fundraisers – like Mechanics aren’t Doctors.  Charity Auctioneers have extensive knowledge about what and how to be successful.  BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising is the only full service, Charity Fundraising event planning company in North America.   How many, a few people have the belief that not hiring a professional and saving the money is a much better way to raise funds.  However as the old saying goes “If you think it’s expensive to hire a professional, wait till you see what it cost you when you hired an amateur.”  Ask for help from a professional.

#4 – “Chairman” – As you build your team, determine who are the best at what they do.  Appoint those people as part of your leadership team.  For instance, “Ticket Chairman” – this person handles all ticket sales and questions from potential buyers.  They hand out tickets to your team and collect the money and information from the buyers.  They also can help by doing your floorplan, placing people at certain tables etc.  “Merchandise Chairman” – this person can conduct a running inventory of all the donated items you received while also directing your team to go after certain items which will help your event and also acquire consignment items to build up the excitement level at your event.  “Event Team Leader” – this person can assign certain jobs at your event such as “Check In”, “Check Out”, “Games & Raffles” etc. 

#5 – Start Early – Don’t wait for the last minute to begin to get ready for your event.  Several days prior, start the process of ensuring you have “All your ducks in a Row.”  Get all the paperwork done, pack up everything so that the day of, you won’t have much to do other than go to your venue.  Get to the venue early as well as your volunteers and start setting up.  Leave enough time so you can go home and relax before your event starts.

These tips will greatly help you and your Team have a much better experience while also reducing your stress level.   BW Unlimited Charity Fundraising can greatly assist you by keeping your duties small while also directing you on what to do next.  BW will guide you and your team through the myriad of pitfalls so that everything is streamlined and highly successful.  BW will also help by being a major part of the planning, managing and hosting of your event so that you too can enjoy yourself and spend time with your guests, supporters, donors & sponsors.

If we can help you, please feel free to contact us at www.BWUnlimited.com, email at info@BWUnlimited.com or call us at 443-206-6121, we would love to help make your life a lot easier.