Is Your Online Reputation Getting the Attention it Deserves?

Customer-evaluation-feedback-smiley-emoticons

Protect this most valuable asset

You simply can’t afford to ignore your online reputation. Stakeholders, both current and potential, will be searching your name, looking through reviews, and investigating your social media presence before choosing to do business with you.

Yet, so often company leadership has little to no interest in making sure this vital asset is protected until a crisis is burning bright. To shed some more light on this issue, Zeno has put together an infographic that shows just how often online reputation goes neglected:

social media corporate blind spot

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is vice president for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

– See more at: https://staging.management.org/blogs/crisis-management/2016/04/21/spear-phishing-stats/#sthash.hGZZeSMm.dpuf

Questions from A New Organization About Their Annual Event

Questions on business

The email said that the “new” organization has one major event every year, and their Executive Director appointed one of their new board members as the event chair for this year because she (the ED) was pretty much burned out from doing everything over the last two years.

She anticipates having to continue to play an active role because volunteer contributions and commitments are minimal. She indicated that last year the Event Chair held/conducted/attended no planning/progress meetings after the initial one; and, she only got involved in those activities that benefitted her own agenda which, in many cases, were at odds with the agenda/needs of the organization.

This year the board assigned the Event Chairmanship to their new board member who has a doctorate and experience on other boards and even is the Executive Director of one of them.

But, again, The ED is seeing the same behavior. A person that is promoting their own self interest and doing their own thing and not conducting matters as they should but as they see fit to align with their personal and professional agendas.

The ED says that she is baffled. “What should I do? Have an event chairperson and a vice chair? Should my role include always stepping in when others drop the ball. Should this be included in the bylaws. What is the appropriate action for an ED to take?”

After reading the above (which I have paraphrased and edited for brevity and so as not to identify the writer and her organization), I responded as follows:

Putting something in the By-Laws locks you into doing “it” that way. Having the board adopt a policy would put the requirements in writing, and would be changeable as required by circumstances.

But, whether in the By-Laws or as a Policy, it makes no difference if the person(s) responsible for planning and implementing an activity won’t follow the “guidelines.”

You indicate that your organization is new, which leads me to ask how the Board Members were recruited, and what is required of them?

You also mentioned that you appointed a Board Member to be Event Chair, and the question that comes to mind is how you, as the ED, gets to appoint/direct the Board or its members to do anything. That’s backward. The Board Directs the Executive Director … who is not a member of the Board.

So, back to your Event Chair…. It may be that your organization is so young that the people you have been choosing don’t feel obligated to put your organization’s needs first. They may see the Event Chair position only as a means to enhance their own visibility.

It also strikes me that recruiting Board Members and/or Event Chairs who hold positions with other nonprofits can set up a conflict of interest … with your interests lagging behind.

Your Event, at this early stage of your organization’s existence, may not be one of the activities that community members see as a must-attend. If it’s not one of the “highlights” of the nonprofit community, it won’t draw Chairs or Co-Chairs who will put the required energy and time into it.

Like any activity you want someone else to do, they have to want to do it, so you must determine what it is that would make your “Chair” adopt that frame of mind.

And, as to the duties of an Event Chair, typically the focus is on making a significant $ gift to support the event and getting others to do the same. An Event Chair should not have to deal with the logistics.

And, if the Board Members you are “asking” to make the Event happen don’t have the appropriate experience/skills/willingness to learn….!!

I seem to have raised more questions than I’ve answered, but the issues are part of the reality of successfully running an organization/event.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have you heard about
The Fundraising Series of ebooks?
They’re easy to read, to the point, and inexpensive ($1.99-$4.99)
This posting is a sample of what’s addressed in the series.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have a comment or a question about starting, evaluating
or expanding your fundraising program?
AskHank

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
We’ve been posting these pieces for the last five years,
and we welcome your questions/problems.
They are likely to engender further discussion.
Look forward to hearing from you.
Comments & Questions

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

If you’re reading this on-line, and would like to comment/expand on the above piece, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply.” If you’re reading this as an email, and you want to comment on the above piece, email Comments to offer your thoughts. Your comments, with appropriate attribution, could be the basis of a new posting.

Spear-Phishing Stats

hooded-computer-hacker-stealing-information-with-laptop

Eye-opening figures on targeted attacks

In our last post we discussed spear-phishing and “whaling” attackstargeted hacks that take aim at specific companies and even specific individuals. According to Symantec, these attacks are drastically increasing, rising 55% in 2015 alone. This isn’t like being struck by lightning, either. Research found that large businesses targeted for attack were likely to be targeted again at least three more times throughout the year.

If you’re hungry for more info on these frighteningly effective attacks, click through to the Symantec infographic below.

spear phishing infographic symantec

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
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[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is vice president for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

– See more at: https://staging.management.org/blogs/crisis-management/2016/04/18/are-spear-phishing-and-whaling-attacks-putting-you-in-danger/#sthash.Z5PXs5NV.dpuf

Creating The Small/New Organization Fundraising Plan

Creating The Small: New Organization Fundraising Plan

Far too many small/new nonprofits think of fundraising in the context of an activity, but a Fundraising Plan is not the equivalent of “Let’s Put On A Play….”

For those of you who don’t recognize the Mickey Rooney reference, the phrase is the equivalent of “let’s do a fund-raiser,” the kind of thinking that does more to harm an organization than it does to help.

A fund-raiser is a stand-alone activity that tends to be a one-time event, an event that’s not part of a plan to ensure the continuation/survival of an organization.

Fund-raisers, where they may generate needed income in the short-term, tend not to lay the groundwork for future fundraising. They take a lot of work, work that can rarely be built upon for the future.

Of course, we do recognize that many small/new nonprofits don’t (yet) have a base of support that can be counted on over the long-term, and quick fixes are necessary.

But a fundraising/development plan, by definition, considers future financial needs. A Plan, when properly researched, constructed and followed, provides confidence and assurance that an organization will be able to continue to provide needed services to its constituents.

The basic focus of a Plan is the people who do-and-will care enough about what the organization does for them and for others that they are likely to become donors.

I emphasize the above as a reminder that people give to satisfy their own needs, not (necessarily) the needs of the organizations they support.

And, since 80% of all contributed funding from individuals is in the form of “major gifts,” the people on whom you should be focusing are those who are potential major donors.

So, the first step in the creation of a fundraising plan is the identification of those people who can help you the most … and are likely to do so, if properly motivated.

Please, do not just make up a list of everyone you think has lots of money. Limit your list to those to whom you have (or someone close to you has) or can get access. Then note how you have access, and “research” what it is that is of interest/meaning to each of those individuals.

The next step is to look (creatively) at what your organization does-or-can-do to make those people see you as a way to satisfy their needs – keeping in mind that it’s not always your mission, programs, activities and the people you serve that would engender their interest.

Once you have the above information, the creation of a Plan would involve how you are going to convince/educate those individuals that they can get what they need by supporting your organization.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have you heard about
The Fundraising Series of ebooks?
They’re easy to read, to the point, and inexpensive ($1.99-$4.99)
This posting is a sample of what’s addressed in the series.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have a comment or a question about starting, evaluating
or expanding your fundraising program?
AskHank

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
We’ve been posting these pieces for the last five years,
and we welcome your questions/problems.
They are likely to engender further discussion.
Look forward to hearing from you.
Comments & Questions

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

If you’re reading this on-line, and would like to comment/expand on the above piece, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply.” If you’re reading this as an email, and you want to comment on the above piece, email Comments to offer your thoughts. Your comments, with appropriate attribution, could be the basis of a new posting.

Are Spear Phishing and “Whaling” Attacks Putting You in Danger?

A-phishing-account-format.

Targeted attacks can cost you big bucks

Spear phishing, or using what appears to be a legit email to fool specific targets into divulging sensitive information or taking other detrimental action, is growing in popularity thanks to the widespread availability of personal information on the internet. The latest variant of the attack, being called “whaling”, even specifically targets upper management in order to make bigger scores.

Whether it’s posing as legitimate vendors invoicing for services, tricking employees into running malicious software, making away with confidential files, or yet another clever scheme, hackers are finding these targeted attacks quite profitable.

How costly can these events be? Try the $3 million Mattel nearly lost last month on for size.

The most effective way to reduce your organization’s vulnerability to attacks is by training employees from the bottom up on safe practices. Then, make those practices a part of the daily routine.

Of course there is no guaranteed protection against every avenue of attack, and that’s where a tested response plan and pre-approved messaging comes in.

Prevent what you can and mitigate damage where you can’t. That’s the name of this game.

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
——————————-

[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is vice president for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

– See more at: https://staging.management.org/blogs/crisis-management/2016/03/20/online-reputation-lessons-from-vw/#sthash.Lh41uJ14.dpuf

A Positive Reputation is No Accident

Young-business-woman-checking-satisfaction-checklist-box

It takes work to share with people how great you really are!

Protecting and growing your reputation should be a daily activity for any organization. It’s no accident that you hear about certain brands over and over again. The smart ones are out there proactively working to make sure you know exactly how awesome they are.

Not sure where to get started working on your own reputation? This infographic from w3police will get you underway:

Ps-for-Online-Reputation-Management

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For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Crisis Management
——————————-

[Jonathan Bernstein is president of Bernstein Crisis Management, Inc., an international crisis management consultancy, author of Manager’s Guide to Crisis Management and Keeping the Wolves at Bay – Media Training. Erik Bernstein is vice president for the firm, and also editor of its newsletter, Crisis Manager]

– See more at: https://staging.management.org/blogs/crisis-management/2016/04/21/spear-phishing-stats/#sthash.qqtZCWBL.dpuf

Designing the Business Plan (Part 2)

creating a business plan

The previous content (Tips For A Business Plan – Part 1) defined and showed the relevancy of a Business Plan. But how will we build the plan. The Business Plan needs to show the worth and importance of a proposal, detail how the task will be accomplished, and include tasks, i.e., a migration, purchasing new equipment, or hiring consultants. Most importantly, it will also specify time and expenses and the benefits and risks involved.

At the start of the Business Plan

  • Denote only the important ‘must have’ items to prove and validate a point.
  • Create an outline and be sure to include key elements, e.g., the vision, resources, issues, marketing, and of course financing.
  • Specify your timelines and critical points.
  • Plan to break up the Business Plan into categories such as Introduction, Summary, Business description (Operations), Strategy and Risks, Recommendations, Research, Marketing plan, Problems and Resolution, Resources, Finance (Support), Costs, Benefits, and Time

Overview

  • Create an introduction to the plan and be specific.
  • Describe the purpose and reason (justification) behind this project, and its goals.

Summary

  • Explain the circumstances that led to this new project.
  • Provide a sentence or two on the business goals, funding, technology, or the intended audience of, e.g., a new product.
  • Display an applicable prototype or describe it to show that the outcome is doable.

Structure

  • The Business Plan is usually written using a logical format. Organize it first by presenting a brief introduction to the plan.
  • Present it in a form for those who will make the decision to authorize it. Write for your audience and provide an outline.
  • Use simple terms to describe the plan. If the document is of considerable length, indicate what sections should be read by which party.
  • If a plan is complicated or includes a lot of scenarios, then the Technical Writer should develop business cases to help with explanations. The writer can also create training sessions with demonstrations or instruction videos. Content in some form, however, should still be written to reinforce what was presented.
  • When there is too much information to present, break it down into charts, figures, and diagrams for easier understanding and analysis, and to also assist in explanations. For example, for a business process, create the business diagram and then break it down into logical detailed explanations or functionalities.
  • Maintain continuity in explanations and format. If continuity within the content is not clear, then misunderstandings and wrong interpretations (with detrimental or chaotic outcomes) can occur within the organizations environment (business, manufacturing, pharmaceutical, etc.).
  • To maintain the Business Plan continuity provide supporting material backing up your information and work on Identifying, assessing, and analysis of the plan.
  • Provide guidelines and policies needed to maintain the plan.

For a Successful Business Plan

  • Analyze it to ensure that all the necessary content has been included.
  • Ensure that it is feasible and compliant within any restrictions.
  • Always stay informed of any updates or changes within your organization or environment.
  • Get it reviewed by others.
  • Get it authorized if need be.
  • Get the plan tested.

If you have other suggestions of what a Business Plan should contain, please leave a comment. Thank you

The Role of the Board in Church “Owned” Nonprofits

Role of the Board in Church “Owned” Nonprofits

An email began: A chapter of Catholic Charities is set up as a single-member corporation, that member being the diocese as represented by the bishop. The board is convinced that they are really just an advisory board and have no right, authority, or need to question the actions or expenditures of the CEO, and are utterly clueless about their regulatory or fiduciary responsibilities. They assume the diocese has all the power and all of the liability. And the diocese — and its legal counsel — has no interest in having them think/act otherwise.

I’ve worked with a number of NPOs “affiliated with” the Catholic Church, and in every instance, the corporation was set up as a single-member corporation, that member being the diocese as represented by the bishop. And, in each case, there was a Board of Trustees/Directors/Governors that, in reality, had no authority or responsibilities other than what the Diocese granted. And, often, the authority and responsibility was changed periodically.

Boards of NPOs “owned” by the church (any church) serve at the pleasure of the church.

The responsibilities of Board Members, as traditionally known, don’t apply in those circumstances.

In my experience, the more common scenario is where the Diocese (or Archdiocese) lets the “board” believe they have the “authority and responsibility.” The key is the phrase “lets the board believe.”

I recall working with an NPO that had been created by an Archdiocese to provide the community with a cultural center and a variety of cultural experiences – within “acceptable” limits.

My work was with the “Board” – to create Board-like processes/procedures and committees, suggest revisions in the by-laws, create development and marketing programs, and, in general, lift them out of the rut they’d been in for many years under the direction of a priest/Executive Director.

This Board was left alone as long as they raised money, but the entire Board had to report to the Archbishop and his council once each year, where the Archbishop’s counselors recommended that he approve or disapprove what the NPO’s board was doing/planning, especially any changes in by-laws.

The frustration of the process was that, no matter how much progress I might make with the Board, it was all subject to review/revision/approval/ disapproval by the hierarchy.

Of course, I understood the relationship going in, and did feel much was accomplished, but church-owned NPOs will never be like those we experience in the secular world.

Not a comment, just an observation.

The email continued: How would YOU advise a lone board member in this or a similar situation? How do they buck a “get along” board, a despotic CEO, and the perceived power of a major institution (the diocese, in this case) to expose and correct the misuse of charitable funds?

To your other questions, I would observe that CEOs of these NPOs are (usually) appointed/hired by the hierarchy (read, diocese), and that, in the context of the situation, are more the voice of the hierarchy than is the Board. The Board (literally) has no choice but to “go along.”

Dioceses (usually) have very good business managers and legal counsel, they do their own audits of the NPOs that they own, and it would be very surprising if they didn’t know of the CEOs activities/actions. Along with the business-like operation, there is an atmosphere of “don’t rock the boat.”

Any Board Member (or other individual) could bring their concern directly to the diocesan legal staff, or the (Arch-)Bishop’s clerical staff. But that’s no guarantee of any result or consequence.

Taking the matter outside the “church” can get real messy.

Recommendation to the concerned Board Member: Think very carefully about how committed you are to making a change, and how your efforts to effect that change will impact your life.

Not saying you should or shouldn’t…. just think hard, first.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have you heard about
The Fundraising Series of ebooks?
They’re easy to read, to the point, and inexpensive ($1.99-$4.99)
This posting is a sample of what’s in the series.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have a comment or a question about starting, evaluating
or expanding your fundraising program?
AskHank

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
We’ve been posting these pieces for the last five years,
and we welcome your questions/problems.
They are likely to engender further discussion.
Look forward to hearing from you.
Comments & Questions

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

If you’re reading this on-line, and would like to comment/expand on the above piece, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply.” If you’re reading this as an email, and you want to comment on the above piece, email Comments to offer your thoughts. Your comments, with appropriate attribution, could be the basis of a new posting.

10 Best Content Marketing Tools

content on a laptop screen

Guest Author: Jessica Davis

Make Your Life Easier

Do you multitask constantly? Need a little bit of help? Several content marketing tools will make life easier. And if you need a little more help, you can always turn to Chrome extensions.

Browser extensions are really handy little workhorses. They assist you with tasks like content curation, organizing passwords, links, images and much more. Just arm your browser with these extensions, so they’re just a click away when you need them. Let’s take a look at some of the best Chrome extensions that can boost your content marketing efforts.

Lastpass – Free Password Vault

Was it your birth-date? Your first pet’s name? Or was it the name of the guy/girl you had a crush on in high school? Remembering passwords for various websites and applications can be frustrating. It’s terribly annoying when you forget your password and have to reset it. But, with the LastPass extension, you will only ever have to remember one password – your master password for LastPass.

All passwords for your other accounts can be saved on the extension, and the extension can log in to all the websites you use automatically. It also lets you synch your passwords wherever you require them. Plus, it is a free tool that supports multiple browsers and operating systems.

Lastpass free password vault

  1. 2. DrumUp – Free content discovery, curation and scheduling

The DrumUp Chrome plugin is just as efficient as the web and mobile application. It provides you with story recommendations related to the article or blog post that you are currently reading. Once you download the extension, you will be able to see a small DrumUp icon on the right hand side of your browser. To get your story recommendations, all you have to do is click on the DrumUp extension icon. The recommendations are displayed in a drop-down window and these stories can be shared on your Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn pages directly from the browser.

If you aren’t logged into any of your social media accounts, the extension directs you to a sign in page on the main DrumUp homepage. It’s a great way to share engaging content to keep your social media pages active with minimum effort.
DrumUp – Free content discovery, curation and scheduling

  1. Nimbus – Free Screenshot and Screencast Capture

Grab screenshots in a heartbeat with the Nimbus Chrome extension. We all know the importance of having visual content accompanying blog posts, articles or even social media posts. If you’ve been avoiding taking screenshots simply because it was cumbersome thing to do, Nimbus can really help. The tool even lets you record screencasts and edit your screenshots to add in stickers, arrows, patterns and text boxes.

Nimbus – Free Screenshot and Screencast Capture

  1. OneTab – Free Browser Tab Management

Going through multiple tabs on your browser while researching can be quite frustrating. OneTab provides a clean solution to this problem by saving all the open tabs in a simple list. This way, you can easily organize all your tabs and go back to them whenever you need to refer to them.

With OneTab you don’t have to save your links on a different document or bookmark dozens of links, only to wonder later about which ones you were planning on using. You can access your list of tabs even after you have completely closed the browser window. Apart from that, OneTab gives you the option of either opening all tabs at once, or opening them individually. You can even share the lists with your colleagues, if you are collaborating on a project.

OneTab – Free Browser Tab Management

  1. Riffle – Free Twitter Management

Using the Riffle Chrome extension, you can find out who the most popular users on Twitter are, and also find a way to engage with your followers. You can instantly build connections with other Twitterati, and get access to valuable data like the number of followers, and retweets a particular user has.

The extension can also provide you with real-time activity analysis which allows you to have more personal conversations with your followers. It’s a great tool for not just content marketers but also for others who work in sales and customer service related jobs.

Riffle – Free Twitter ManagementGrammarly – Free Grammar Checker

Live no longer in the fear that you have published a post or sent out an email riddled with silly grammatical errors. The Grammarly Chrome extension is designed to spot grammatical errors and awkward sentences in your content. You can go back and edit your work to ensure that is completely error-free before publishing or sending it out.

The extension is easy to install on your Chrome browser and it constantly keeps working in the background to verify spellings, grammar and sentence structure. Grammarly can spot and fix over a 100 types of mistakes if you use the free versions. With the paid version, it provides you with an explanation as to why the content is incorrect and what can be done to fix it. Millions of writers from more than 200 countries trust Grammarly’s products to help perfect their written English. Also see more info, browse Grammarly services, download the software, and see Grammarly’s customer reviews

Grammarly – Free Grammar Checker

  1. Giphy – Free GIF engine

No matter how you pronounce it, GIFs are all the rage right now. You may have seen them on various blog posts, and might have reminded yourself to use one the next time you write a blog post. You can immediately attract a lot of attention by placing a funny GIF in your content, but finding the right GIF to match the reaction you are trying to show can be tough.

The Giphy extension has a repository of over a thousand GIFs and with it’s simple search function, you can find the right one in a matter of seconds. To place it where you need it, you can either drag and drop it or right click on the GIF. Every time you use the extension, you will be able to see the most trending GIFs.

Giphy – Free GIF engine

  1. Ritetag – Free Analytics and Social Crafting

Adding memes and images to your posts just became much easier with the Ritetag Chrome extension. It suggests various gifs, memes and images that are related to your post, and if you like, you can add them in to visually boost your post. It also offers precise statistics so that you can create the perfect hashtag for your content. Use Ritetag with other applications and take advantage of the other features it offers such as bulk upload, analytics and shortened URLs.

This Chrome extension works on most social media networks like Facebook, Twitter and Google+. For Twitter, Ritetag also recommends trending hashtags so that your posts can be discovered easily.

Ritetag – Free Analytics and Social Crafting

  1. Snip.ly – Free Link Shortener with Custom Message

With Sniply, you can easily add a call to action to any content that you post and still link back to your own website. This is especially helpful if you are posting content on someone else’s blog, and you would like to attract visitors to your website. If you decide to publish someone else’s content, you can still add a personalized message and a Sniply link that links back to your site. This is a great way to engage customers with your brand.

Using Sniply, you can monitor how many clicks you received on your posts and the number of conversions that resulted from it. The tool also gives you information about the amount of time a visitor might have spent on your page.

Snip.ly – Free Link Shortener with Custom Message


  1. Rapportive – Free Networking Tool

    This is a great extension for marketers as it helps you connect with new people. Using Rapportive, you can extract basic information from a person’s LinkedIn profile, allowing you to see exactly whom you are communicating with.

Rapportive – Free Networking Tool

This is a superb feature if you are in talks with a potential client or a partner, and it also lets you confirm their email addresses. You can directly connect with your contact on LinkedIn without having to leave your inbox.

These Chrome extensions are easy to install and can make your life much simpler – be it content discovery, tab organization or grammar corrections. These extensions are a great help and you can easily utilize them in your day-to-day management tasks.

Author Bio: Jessica Davis represents Godot Media, a leading content marketing firm. Her areas of interest include technology, science and fashion.

For more resources, see the Free Management Library topic: Marketing and Social Media.

.. _____ ..

About Lisa M. Chapman:

Lisa Chapman helps company leaders define, plan and achieve their goals, both online and offline. After 25+ years as an entrepreneur, she is now a business and marketing consultant, business planning consultant and social media consultant. Online, she works with clients to establish and enhance their online brand, attract their target market, engage them in meaningful social media conversations, and convert online traffic into revenues. Email: Lisa (at) LisaChapman (dot) com. Her book, The WebPowered Entrepreneur – A Step-by-Step Guide is available at:

So, You Think You Want To Be A Fundraising/Development Consultant !!

A fundraising/development consultant holding a laptop

You may be an experienced, knowledgeable development professional, and you may know/discover what is it that a (prospective) client needs, but a basic concept of the consulting business is that you can only sell a nonprofit what it wants to buy.

The larger the NPO, (usually) the better they understand the elements of the development process and the more sophisticated their development operation. The corollary relates to the smaller/newer/less sophisticated NPOs; but, for both extremes (and the middle), it’s still what they want to buy.

I’ve been in single practice since ’83, and I found, early on, that I sign up fewer clients when I try to sell them what (I think) they need, than I do when I submit a contract to sell them what they think they need.

A colleague has often talked about the amount of time she spends with prospective clients working to arrive at a meeting of the minds — a point at which she understands where the NPO wants to go and where they need to go, and where the NPO understands what needs to be done to get to where they want to be. And, only then, do they write a contract incorporating all of what they agreed was needed to achieve the agreed upon goals.

I believe that approach is the ideal, but for consultants who find themselves in the valley – the period of reduced income between clients, I would suggest a simpler approach – simpler in appearance, not intent.

After the initial meeting(s) with the prospective client, when you have a pretty good idea of what they want and what they need, you can prepare a contract that has as its “Objective” the attainment of the NPO’s “wants,” but includes in “Methods” (whatever you call that section of your contracts/proposals) those activities (worded appropriately) that will help them satisfy their “needs.”

There should/must be a section of your contract/proposal that describes those activities for which the client organization will be responsible, and that section should also take the above into consideration.

As not everyone can be (fully) educated via the one-on-one (pre-contract discussion) process, we must often rely upon them seeing the light through their involvement in the process we create after our contracts are signed and the relationship proceeds.

I found out a long time ago that I can be more effective using the subtle/indirect method of educating a client, than I can using a more direct (pre-contract) approach.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have you heard about
The Fundraising Series of ebooks?
They’re easy to read, to the point, and inexpensive ($1.99-$4.99)
This posting is a sample of what’s in the series.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Have a comment or a question about starting, evaluating
or expanding your fundraising program?
AskHank

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
We’ve been posting these pieces for the last five years,
and we welcome your questions/problems.
They are likely to engender further discussion.
Look forward to hearing from you.
Comments & Questions

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

If you’re reading this on-line, and would like to comment/expand on the above piece, or would just like to offer your thoughts on the subject of this posting, we encourage you to “Leave a Reply.” If you’re reading this as an email, and you want to comment on the above piece, email Comments to offer your thoughts. Your comments, with appropriate attribution, could be the basis of a new posting.