Latest / The Nonprofit Podcast / Ep 195| How to Build Donor Retention Between Campaigns

Transcript

Ep 195| How to Build Donor Retention Between Campaigns · The Nonprofit Podcast

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_02: Better fundraising doesn't necessarily start with a better ask.
• 0:04
  SPEAKER_02: It starts when supporters actually understand what's going on.
• 0:08
  SPEAKER_02: And for most nonprofits, email is where that understanding gets built.
• 0:13
  SPEAKER_02: The Nonprofit Podcast, powered by DonorBox.
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_02: Welcome to the Nonprofit Podcast.
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_02: I'm Jenna Lynch, Head of Community Engagement here at DonorBox.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_02: Each week we bring you practical strategies, clear insights, and inspiration to help you raise more, reach further, and take your nonprofit to the next level.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_02: Email is one of the primary ways supporters experience your organization over time.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, people encounter your work through campaigns, big moments, and big appeals, but a lot of how fundraising feels later is shaped in the quieter, everyday communication in between.
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_02: Last week in episode 194, I talked about donor retention and how it rarely falls apart during a campaign.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_02: It tends to slip over time quietly when people stop feeling connected and nothing is really carrying the relationship forward.
• 1:06
  SPEAKER_02: That's where communication becomes decisive.
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_02: Communication can make or break an organization.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_02: And for most nonprofits, email is the core infrastructure for that.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_02: It's how relationships are carried between moments, and over time, it determines whether those relationships stay strong or slowly start to fray.
• 1:27
  SPEAKER_02: Our on the ground correspondent, Kara Augsberger, is here with us today.
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_02: Kara is the executive director of Grace Care Center Foundation and a frontline fundraiser.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_02: Kara, I'm really glad you're here.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_01: Well, hey, Jenna.
• 1:40
  SPEAKER_01: I'm really glad to be here too.
• 1:42
  SPEAKER_01: Thanks for having me.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_02: Of course.
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_02: This is a great conversation for you and I to have.
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_02: I think our listeners have a lot to learn from you.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_02: But first, I want to start by naming something I see across a lot of nonprofits, and you may have experienced this as well, Kara, or have seen this in your own work and consulting and coaching.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_02: And I want to say this gently because I've been guilty of it too.
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_02: Email often becomes output, something you send because it's on the list, or something you do because you're supposed to.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_02: You know, something that proves communication actually happened.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_02: And that pressure is so real.
• 2:19
  SPEAKER_02: No one wants to go quiet or make supporters feel forgotten, and no one wants to look like they're not communicating with their community or their supporters.
• 2:29
  SPEAKER_02: So I think sometimes email becomes reactive.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_02: Something happens, you send an email.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_02: There's urgency, you send an email.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_02: There's an appeal, you send an email.
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_02: Things settle down though, and sometimes email fades into the background.
• 2:46
  SPEAKER_02: And over time that pattern becomes the relationship.
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_02: So, Kara, earlier in your nonprofit work, did email feel more like something you used or something you were trying to keep up with?
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_01: That's a great question.
• 3:00
  SPEAKER_01: I am going to say both.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_01: Um, it really was both.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_01: So I came into an organization that was in a real communication drought.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_01: Our best supporters hadn't heard from the organization in a meaningful way in a very long time.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_01: They were getting fundraising appeals, they were getting those asks, but not much else.
• 3:18
  SPEAKER_01: No gratitude, no updates, no sense of connection.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_01: And nobody wants to just hear from someone when they're only asking for money.
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_01: You see that friend coming down the road who always asks you for cash, you turn the other direction.
• 3:31
  SPEAKER_01: And it's the same with our organizations.
• 3:33
  SPEAKER_01: So pretty quickly, I saw that communication and especially email communication as the best tool we had to engage supporters.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_01: When you look at healthy organizations, they all have one thing in common, and that's good communication.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_01: So literally on my first day, I sent an email to our supporters.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_01: I expressed gratitude.
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_01: I opened the office door.
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_01: I wanted them to know there was a human on the other side.
• 3:59
  SPEAKER_01: And I got in-person feedback the next day.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, a few people could tell that the tone had changed, and it really set a tone to build trust in the organization.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_01: And at the same time, I can be really honest and say that it was hard to keep up.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, when you're running programs, you're fundraising, you're managing people, you know, all those things that it takes to keep an organization going, you know, email can really start to feel like it's just one more thing on the list.
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_01: And that email communication did fall off sometimes.
• 4:30
  SPEAKER_01: So it is hard.
• 4:31
  SPEAKER_01: I've lived that tension, just knowing how valuable email is, knowing that when you're doing it well, it really makes really great things happen, but also knowing how easy it is for it to slide when your capacity is stretched, if that makes any sense.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_02: I I think the tension you just named is so real.
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_02: Uh like you said, you're kind of holding two truths, right?
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_02: You know very much how powerful email can be when it's done with intention, but you're also living in that reality of what it takes to run an organization day to day.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_02: And those two things can compete sometimes, right?
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_02: For sure.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_02: Sitting in the middle of that push and pull.
• 5:12
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and and you know, supporters are always dipping in and out.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_02: They might read one email very closely one day, skim the next, or miss another one entirely.
• 5:25
  SPEAKER_02: Um, email is a great tool to blast information out and it casts a very wide net, but not everyone catches everything.
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_02: I'm the same way when I read my own emails, right?
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_02: And and that makes it difficult for organizations sometimes.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_02: So, from your seat, how have you seen that play out in your email communications?
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_01: I agree wholeheartedly.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_01: And yes, my inbox is exactly the same.
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_01: There are organizations I care very much about, and and I leave things unread sometimes.
• 5:54
  SPEAKER_01: So I see it all the time from a leadership role too.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_01: And I noticed it just this week.
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_01: Um, we had some pretty big organizational news.
• 6:02
  SPEAKER_01: It was something really worth celebrating.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_01: And we shared it a couple times at the end of last year.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_01: We wrote a blog, we posted it on social media, and I ran into a volunteer um on Monday who said, you know, you should really share this out.
• 6:17
  SPEAKER_01: And I was like, wait, I thought we had.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_01: So what that taught me is that repetition isn't annoying.
• 6:24
  SPEAKER_01: It really just is necessary.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_01: It and I feel this way, but just because you feel like you've said something a hundred times, it doesn't mean your supporters have heard it even once.
• 6:34
  SPEAKER_01: So most of the time they need to hear those important things multiple times in multiple ways before it really lands.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_01: And I think, isn't there an advertising truth somewhere that someone needs to hear something seven times before it sinks in?
• 6:49
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and I'm the same way, you know, I will see something in my inbox and then eventually I'll act on that sale, you know, or whatever it is that's coming to me.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_01: But from an organizational side of things, I think when someone says you should share this, it's not a failure of communication necessarily.
• 7:06
  SPEAKER_01: It's actually a sign that whatever that is really matters.
• 7:10
  SPEAKER_01: It's a cue to keep showing up, keep telling the story, keep communicating, especially communicating with clarity and generosity.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_01: So that was a little bit of a reality check for me.
• 7:21
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but it just means I need to keep it up.
• 7:25
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 7:25
  SPEAKER_02: And you know what?
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_02: I'll tell you, I think that magic marketing number has gone up.
• 7:31
  SPEAKER_02: It may even be 10 or 12 touch points now.
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_02: And oh yeah, that's a really good point.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_02: People are distracted now more than ever.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_02: And I think what you shared is such a good reminder of how um uneven communication can actually land.
• 7:46
  SPEAKER_02: Like from our side, it can feel repetitive, like you're spamming folks.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_02: You may even feel a little bad about it.
• 7:52
  SPEAKER_02: But from your supporters' side, it's usually uh, I mean, it can be the first or second time they're actually really taking it all in.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_02: And I don't know about you, I really appreciate when I see get, you know, a nudge.
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_02: I'm like, oh yeah, I did want to look at that.
• 8:07
  SPEAKER_02: I just got busy the first time, the second time, the third time, right?
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_02: And I think that's where the pressure can creep in for leaders.
• 8:15
  SPEAKER_02: Like, am I saying too much?
• 8:17
  SPEAKER_02: Am I bothering people?
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_02: In reality, I think the bigger risk is disappearing.
• 8:23
  SPEAKER_02: You don't want to do that.
• 8:25
  SPEAKER_02: Um, so I'm curious how that realization, uh, which was very recent, um, changed the way you actually sat down to write emails or will be changing the way you sit down to write emails.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it it has.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_01: And I think um my own thinking shifts when I'm actually sitting down to write.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you mentioned I don't want to be pushy.
• 8:46
  SPEAKER_01: I don't want to write, you know, I don't want to seem oh repetitive, but realizing that I have a bigger call to make sure that I have support for my organization is a big push I have when I'm writing.
• 8:57
  SPEAKER_01: So every month um I write what I call a newsie letter.
• 9:02
  SPEAKER_01: Everyone's a little different.
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_01: There's no single approach that works for everyone here, but I'll just share what I work for me.
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_01: And so my newsie letter works.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_01: I keep it short and succinct.
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_01: I write it exactly the way I talk.
• 9:13
  SPEAKER_01: And so I actually got this idea from another donor box user years ago, and it was a game changer for me.
• 9:19
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm not sending a newsletter, I'm sending a newsy letter, if that makes any sense.
• 9:24
  SPEAKER_01: And so my my newsie letters are um in first person.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_01: I'm sharing something I've been a part of or something I saw firsthand.
• 9:32
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe it was a moment with one of our participants, a conversation I had with a volunteer, a small win that, you know, really showcases impact somehow, but it's not a report, it's not a to-do list, it's just a recollection of what I've seen and experienced.
• 9:47
  SPEAKER_01: And so I'm definitely not trying to cover everything that's happening in the organization.
• 9:51
  SPEAKER_01: Sometimes that's too overwhelming for the reader and it's so much work.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_01: I'm just inviting the reader into one moment I've had and saying, hey, I thought you'd want to know this.
• 10:01
  SPEAKER_01: Sometimes it's a couple of paragraphs, sometimes it's just a handful of sentences.
• 10:06
  SPEAKER_01: In this day and age, short, digestible, authentic is what people are really responding to.
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_01: And so it's been really positive for me.
• 10:15
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I'm getting a good response.
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_01: I get a lot of good feedback on these emails.
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_01: People will either reply and continue the conversation in my inbox, they'll ask questions.
• 10:24
  SPEAKER_01: Sometimes if I see someone after I've send it, it's a conversation starter.
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_01: They'll share their own stories.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_01: So this type of email has started a lot of really good conversations.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_01: And that tells me that it's doing what it's supposed to.
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_01: It's strengthening the relationship.
• 10:39
  SPEAKER_01: All of the communication in our organization should have one goal, and that's to strengthen the relationship.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_01: So to answer your question, when I'm sitting down to write, and then before I hit send, I ask myself three things.
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_01: I say, does this sound like it's coming from a real person?
• 10:57
  SPEAKER_01: I ask, is it clear why I'm reaching out?
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_01: And then does what I'm sending respect the reader's time?
• 11:05
  SPEAKER_01: If I could answer yes to all three of those things, I hit send.
• 11:09
  SPEAKER_01: So that's what is kind of going through my head when I sit down to write an email.
• 11:14
  SPEAKER_02: That is a great rule of thumb.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_02: And having these guiding questions uh will be a game changer for a lot of our listeners too.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_02: Especially, does this respect the reader's time?
• 11:26
  SPEAKER_02: There may be an email that I get.
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_02: Actually, there's like a marketing email that I get.
• 11:31
  SPEAKER_02: It probably comes in weekly.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_02: And it's something that I enjoy immensely.
• 11:36
  SPEAKER_02: The emails are very uh first person, cheeky, casual, stream of consciousness, but they're so long.
• 11:44
  SPEAKER_02: They're so long that sometimes I read the first bullet and then I move on uh because I just don't have the time to read a novel, right?
• 11:54
  SPEAKER_02: Um, so I think when you start thinking about email this way, these three questions, right?
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, what did you say?
• 12:00
  SPEAKER_02: Does it sound like it's coming from a real person?
• 12:03
  SPEAKER_02: Is it clear what the goal of this email is, why I'm reaching out, and does it respect my reader's time?
• 12:09
  SPEAKER_02: I imagine that really changes how you choose what you're putting in your emails and how you're structuring those messages.
• 12:18
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I I would say it definitely changed where I spent my energy.
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_01: So instead of trying to pack everything into one single email, like a never-ending newsletter, I focus on giving each email one job.
• 12:32
  SPEAKER_01: So, for example, if an email is intended to be an ask for money, I don't beat around the bush, I don't stack it with other calls to action, I don't bury that ask in paragraph three.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_01: If I'm asking for a financial gift, um, it's very clear.
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm also in that email, if I'm asking for a financial gift, I'm not also asking them to read a blog, follow us on social, sign up to volunteer.
• 12:57
  SPEAKER_01: You need one call to action.
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and that what that says, it says, I respect the reader enough to be clear about why I'm showing up in their inbox.
• 13:07
  SPEAKER_01: Their time is valuable.
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_01: And so when you sit down, that clarity actually makes writing easier.
• 13:13
  SPEAKER_01: I could ask myself, okay, what's the one thing I want someone to do after reading this?
• 13:18
  SPEAKER_01: And maybe it is to read a blog, then my my email is just about, hey, this happened, go read more about it here.
• 13:25
  SPEAKER_01: Um, if it's follow us on social, it's, you know, hey, um, here's a great image.
• 13:30
  SPEAKER_01: There's more of these on social media, go follow us here.
• 13:33
  SPEAKER_01: If it's a fundraising ask, it's hey, this is why this is important, this is the ask, and this is how you can give.
• 13:41
  SPEAKER_01: And so when you write, um just kind of keep everything in that mindset.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_01: And I think supporters feel that clear emails are really easy to read, they're easier to respond to, they're easier to say yes to.
• 13:55
  SPEAKER_01: And so when we stop trying to do everything in one message, our communication gets simpler and it gets more effective.
• 14:04
  SPEAKER_02: I think that's a great tip.
• 14:06
  SPEAKER_02: And when you start thinking about this is a journey now, right?
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_02: You're thinking about longer arcs, you're focusing on that one call to action.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_02: I think the next question that often comes is around cadence.
• 14:21
  SPEAKER_02: So, not how often you should email in theory, but what rhythm you can actually keep up, right?
• 14:28
  SPEAKER_02: This is your promise to your readers too.
• 14:31
  SPEAKER_02: How did you land on a cadence that felt realistic for you and your capacity?
• 14:37
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it has to be sustainable or you'll never do it, right?
• 14:40
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 14:40
  SPEAKER_01: Um, yeah.
• 14:41
  SPEAKER_01: So this is where fundraising and relationship building stops being about what should I say in this one email?
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_01: And instead starts being about how you show up for donors over time.
• 14:54
  SPEAKER_01: It's not just one message.
• 14:56
  SPEAKER_01: Those emails are part of a rhythm, a plan, a long conversation that happens over months.
• 15:03
  SPEAKER_01: So how I do this, when I plan my year, I start with those big pieces first.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_01: I map out my fundraising campaigns.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_01: I usually do four big ones a year, roughly one per quarter.
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_01: So I put those dates on my tracker so I'm never scrambling.
• 15:18
  SPEAKER_01: I don't want my asks to feel last minute.
• 15:20
  SPEAKER_01: And so I plan those first.
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_01: And then I layer in those things that donors already expect, like our annual report, our tax mailing, any sort of regular communications, I'll layer those on next.
• 15:33
  SPEAKER_01: And then I fill it in, make sure there are two or three social media posts to support those main communications, plus that monthly newsy letter, that newsy email that keeps our donors in the loop.
• 15:45
  SPEAKER_01: And so when you plan this way, everything feels calmer.
• 15:48
  SPEAKER_01: Your donors are getting steady, thoughtful communication.
• 15:52
  SPEAKER_01: You get less stress and more clarity.
• 15:55
  SPEAKER_01: You're not sitting down to write a haphazard email.
• 15:58
  SPEAKER_01: So if your fundraising feels chaotic, don't start by writing more or try to improve your email.
• 16:04
  SPEAKER_01: Start actually by zooming out and deciding what your year needs to hold.
• 16:11
  SPEAKER_01: And now is a really great time to do that if you haven't done that yet.
• 16:16
  SPEAKER_02: You know, I'm gonna play devil devil's advocate here.
• 16:19
  SPEAKER_02: Even with all this in mind, uh, and I've seen the way that you plan emails, and I've learned a lot from you, kind of really zooming out and plugging in those big moments and then sprinkling in the rest.
• 16:31
  SPEAKER_02: Um, but best blade plans, am I right?
• 16:35
  SPEAKER_02: Um, sometimes things can still fall apart.
• 16:38
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 16:38
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, what do you think tends to cause email to slip even when leaders know it really matters?
• 16:45
  SPEAKER_01: Oh gosh.
• 16:46
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you're right.
• 16:47
  SPEAKER_01: Things do slip.
• 16:48
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, we're human, our organizations are usually in flux, things change.
• 16:53
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but honestly, I think emails usually slip because there's nothing holding them in place.
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_01: So if email lives only in my head, it's fragile.
• 17:04
  SPEAKER_01: We've talked about this before with to-do lists and things like that.
• 17:07
  SPEAKER_01: If it lives in my head, it's causing me stress.
• 17:09
  SPEAKER_01: I'm thinking about it.
• 17:10
  SPEAKER_01: I'm probably having trouble sleeping.
• 17:12
  SPEAKER_01: It's competing with everything else that feels urgent.
• 17:16
  SPEAKER_01: And so I have to get it into a planner.
• 17:20
  SPEAKER_01: I have to get it into a tracker and find somebody to hold me accountable.
• 17:23
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 17:24
  SPEAKER_02: Okay.
• 17:24
  SPEAKER_02: So you mentioned a tracker.
• 17:25
  SPEAKER_02: What do you use?
• 17:27
  SPEAKER_01: I use a simple Google Sheet as a communications tracker.
• 17:31
  SPEAKER_01: It's literally just a spreadsheet where we track email, social media, blogs, everything.
• 17:37
  SPEAKER_01: We start writing copy in the spreadsheet, nothing fancy.
• 17:41
  SPEAKER_01: And so I keep it bookmarked.
• 17:43
  SPEAKER_01: I look at it a couple of times a week.
• 17:45
  SPEAKER_01: I also use my calendar and create time blocks to work in communications to make sure that they're getting the attention they need.
• 17:52
  SPEAKER_01: So on Fridays, I use the tracker to note what happens the following week.
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_01: And then on Monday morning, it's the first thing I pull up so I can stay on track before the week even gets away.
• 18:01
  SPEAKER_01: And then I'll add in writing like block calendar holds on my calendar so that I have a block for writing and a block for creative.
• 18:09
  SPEAKER_01: And I'll also say the other thing I learned, and sometimes it's the hard way, is that I need accountability.
• 18:14
  SPEAKER_01: When things got busy for me, communication was the first thing to slide.
• 18:18
  SPEAKER_01: So I hired a part-time consultant just a few hours a week to help me plan and to keep me accountable.
• 18:25
  SPEAKER_01: And it's been incredibly valuable.
• 18:27
  SPEAKER_01: She's helped me stay consistent and actually deliver what I intended to send.
• 18:31
  SPEAKER_01: And it's really great collaboration too.
• 18:33
  SPEAKER_01: So if email feels hard or slippery, it's not always a willpower issue.
• 18:39
  SPEAKER_01: It's sometimes you just need a system, give it time on your calendar, and if you can, give yourself some support.
• 18:45
  SPEAKER_01: And that's what that's what's made communication sustainable for me.
• 18:49
  SPEAKER_02: I really love that you name this as a systems thing, not a willpower thing.
• 18:54
  SPEAKER_02: I think that is really important.
• 18:56
  SPEAKER_02: You know, you didn't just decide to try harder, you built something that could actually hold the work when things got busy.
• 19:02
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 19:03
  SPEAKER_02: And um, whether that is a Google Sheet tracker or a great email marketing system that you can use and schedule things ahead of time the best you can, uh, having a system for anything that requires a regular cadence, especially when it's going to your supporters, to people that your mission uh really depends on is so, so important.
• 19:24
  SPEAKER_02: And this is also where that impact piece starts to show up.
• 19:29
  SPEAKER_02: Like even when you're not sitting there thinking, oh, emailing is a fundraising tactic, uh, all of this affects fundraising later, right?
• 19:37
  SPEAKER_02: When you feel it down the line and sometimes months later, um, and how people respond when you do make an ask.
• 19:44
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 19:44
  SPEAKER_02: This is such an important thing to keep in mind.
• 19:47
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly, yes.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_01: And if you think of that friend analogy, if you have that friend that only comes to you when they need something, um, you respond differently to the friend who is there for you, who inquires about you, who um regularly checks in with you, but then when they have a need, then you're really quick to respond.
• 20:06
  SPEAKER_01: So our organizations are really not too much different there.
• 20:10
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I've noticed that a lot of nonprofits struggle not because they lacked impact.
• 20:16
  SPEAKER_01: You know, they're doing a really great job helping people or they're saving animals or whatever it is, but they struggle because they overthink communications to the point of inaction.
• 20:25
  SPEAKER_01: So they refine, they they strive for perfection, they're passing it back and forth between staff members looking for approvals, they're second-guessing things, and then all that really does is create silence.
• 20:39
  SPEAKER_01: What I've noticed is that most underperforming organizations share one thing in common, and that is poor communications.
• 20:48
  SPEAKER_01: When organizations undercommunicate, they're essentially opting out of that relationship building.
• 20:54
  SPEAKER_01: No story told equals no emotional connection and no financial support.
• 21:00
  SPEAKER_01: The organizations that are thriving aren't the ones waiting for perfect messaging.
• 21:05
  SPEAKER_01: They're the ones communicating clearly, they're communicating consistently.
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_01: And email is such an easy way to do that.
• 21:12
  SPEAKER_01: So, again, just plan it, track it, give yourself a little grace if your communication slips off track or it's not perfect.
• 21:19
  SPEAKER_01: Just jump back in next time.
• 21:20
  SPEAKER_01: Just be consistent because you're right, you're gonna see those downline fundraising results.
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_01: Communication builds trust in your organization and it really deepens those relationships.
• 21:32
  SPEAKER_02: Mm-hmm.
• 21:32
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 21:33
  SPEAKER_02: And when you put all that together, I think it actually makes this feel more doable, not as intimidating.
• 21:41
  SPEAKER_02: It's really less about chasing that perfectly polished messaging.
• 21:45
  SPEAKER_02: Actually, the ones that aren't as polished, I find the most enjoyable.
• 21:49
  SPEAKER_02: And it's more about putting a few things in place that just help you to keep show up showing up.
• 21:54
  SPEAKER_02: And that feels like a good place to land this.
• 21:57
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 21:57
  SPEAKER_02: If you are listening to this and thinking, okay, I get the concept, uh, but I could really use some concrete examples of what good, what a good nonprofit email actually looks like, we do have a blog post that we'll link in the show notes for you today that walks through some practical email marketing tips specifically for nonprofits.
• 22:18
  SPEAKER_02: There is some good guidance in there that will help you adapt to your own specific context.
• 22:23
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, Kara, before we wrap up, if someone listening wanted to take one small realistic step this week, what would you suggest?
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_01: I would say, here's your homework.
• 22:35
  SPEAKER_01: Pull up the last three emails you sent to your supporters, all of them, and ask yourself, okay, if someone only read these three messages, what would they understand about my organization right now?
• 22:48
  SPEAKER_01: Would they be overwhelmed or would they be ready to jump in?
• 22:52
  SPEAKER_01: And then before you send your next email, write one sentence just for yourself.
• 22:57
  SPEAKER_01: And it it's simply this this email is helping supporters understand whatever it is.
• 23:03
  SPEAKER_01: This helping this uh email is helping supporters understand the big cause or the program or whatever.
• 23:10
  SPEAKER_01: So if that's hard to fill in, helping your supporters understand blank, that's your signal to pause and reframe, maybe rewrite, but make sure you do it and get it out the door.
• 23:24
  SPEAKER_02: That's great advice.
• 23:25
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, and a very doable place to start.
• 23:28
  SPEAKER_02: Okay, thanks, Kara.
• 23:29
  SPEAKER_02: I really enjoyed this conversation today.
• 23:31
  SPEAKER_01: Well, thank you, Jenna.
• 23:32
  SPEAKER_01: I appreciate you having me on.
• 23:34
  SPEAKER_01: I love talking about email and all things fundraising with you.
• 23:38
  SPEAKER_02: You too.
• 23:39
  SPEAKER_02: And thank you for being a part of the nonprofit podcast community.
• 23:43
  SPEAKER_02: Your work matters, and we are honored to support it.
• 23:46
  SPEAKER_02: If you enjoyed this episode, share it, leave a review, or subscribe to our YouTube channel.
• 23:52
  SPEAKER_02: Until next time, take that first step and stay inspired.
• 23:57
  SPEAKER_00: That warm feeling when you help someone, it's not just happiness, it's fulfillment.
• 24:02
  SPEAKER_00: And we believe it should be available to everyone.
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_00: From frontline heroes to first time fundraisers.
• 24:08
  SPEAKER_00: Our tools empower you to help others.
• 24:10
  SPEAKER_00: This is our mission.
• 24:12
  SPEAKER_00: This is Donorbox, helping you help others.