Nonprofit Nation November Ramp 🌍

November Nonprofiteers! Its the 11th month of the year which means I turn into a Red-headed Movember Werewolf. But, if you’re light on the cheek whiskers, November’s got you, it’s also National Gratitude month (and ya know what… I’m grateful for that).

• 1: November Ramp-up

• 2: Highlight Impact Stories

• 3: Building Community with Traditions

Strategic
November Statergery

Giving Tuesday, the largest concerted fundraising effort of the year, is right around the corner. These early November weeks presents a final opportunity to get the ducks in a row and plan out your strategy.

Key actions for mid-November:

• Plan and launch a Giving Tuesday campaign:

  • The Tuesday after Thanksgiving is a BIG DAY, so mid-November is the perfect time to finalize your campaign strategy, prep your compelling content, and get ready to promote it across all channels.

• Send out donation appeals:

  • Craft your donation appeals to highlight your organization's impact and the need for support during the holiday season.

• Segment your donor base:

  • Tailor your messages to different donor segments with personalized appeals based on their giving history and interests.

• Share impactful stories:

  • Craft stories of the folks who have benefited from your services to emotionally connect with donors. This is all about people.

• Optimize website and donation pages:

  • Ensure your website is user-friendly and donation process is streamlined for easy giving. Think like a Amazon Grocery Store - how much friction can we remove. Less clicks = better.

• Social media engagement:

  • Utilize social media platforms to spread awareness about your Giving Tuesday campaign and share inspiring stories. It’s not enough to post. Comment, reply, chat, DM, and talk to you people.

Its important to take a few hours and really sit down with your plan. What you did last year can always be improved. What you’re doing this year, will act as a base for next. Strategery is a life style.

Storytelling
Sharing Impact Stories

I’m sure that the work your nonprofit organization does is important. Thousands of other nonprofits also do important things. The truth is, it’s up to YOU to convince your community that you’re making a significant impact. The best way to do that is with an impact story.

What is an Impact Story?

An impact story is a real narrative, featuring actual people you’ve helped, and events, to make an emotional impact between your audience and the valuable work that you do.

Sometimes we generalize the work we do. “We help the less fortunate.” That doesn’t make a huge impact. “This year we helped, Jan, a struggling single mother with two children, Kevin 8 and Jalen 5, forced to live in their car, into a furnished apartment and a steady job.”

That has way more impact!

How Do You Tell an Impact Story? —> Think Like a Movie!

Telling impactful stories is all finding the emotion from those you’ve helped.

Movies are packaged stories following a hero. Though a real life situation may be nuanced and detailed, when telling a story for impact, you want to be as concise and focused as possible.

• Act 1 (beginning). Someone find themselves in a tough situation.

• Act 2 (middle). Something happens to help.

• Act 3 (ending). New better normal.

To tell an impact story, first we need someone to impact: A Hero.

• Act 1 (beginning). What were they going through? How was it hard?

• Act 2 (middle). What was done to help?

• Act 3 (ending). How has the situation changed for the better?

Telling a truly impactful story is about feel. You have feel out the emotion and communicate it best as possible. Try rewriting it a few times to see where the emotion lies.

Donors want to help! We all want to feel we’re making a difference. Helping them feel the difference they’re making involves a bit of art.

In this together
Community Community Community

The Holidays Can be Hard

Sure… this is a time to push, but the holidays are also a time to check in on those closest to us. Our volunteers, employees, anyone that comes within the orbit of the organization, can succumb to the difficulties presented in the holiday season. No position is immune to loneliness. We’re all human. Be aware of those around you and take a minute to has how they’re doing.

We’re all a community.

In an unrelated note: my wife and I love the show Community! So funny.

GIF
Feel the Energy!

RAISING AWARENESS

• SOFTWARE: Auction & Event Solutions has a premiere streaming feature to suit overseas donors. Distance no longer has to hold an organization back.

• SPOTLIGHT: GivingTuesday has a ton of useful tools on their website. The Generosity Toolkit is among the best. Check it out!

• GALA: Everyone is trying to provide new photo opportunities for their guest. This might be the most complete list of options there is.

• INSPIRATION: Get endless inspiration for your fundraisers, drives, and events with a look at what’s going on around our nonprofit nation.

• MARKETING: Digital marketing for your nonprofit has never been more complicated. Make PR an issue of the past.

• AUCTIONEERS FOR GOOD: These auctioneers have gone above and beyond and are making strides for their organization.

• DATA: Is philanthropy up or down? Use your CRM and data analytics to find out.

• Fundraising Effectiveness Report: Get a glimpse of the state of the industry with the Quarterly Reports from the FEP.