Nobody's Fool: Chipping Away on

Donor TrustBy Jonah Halper

Nobody's Fool: Chipping Away on Donor Trust

There is nothing more damaging to a relationship than betraying one’s trust, and in marriage, trust is the bedrock of a long lasting relationship.

While betrayal is most often portrayed as infidelity, the reality is that it isn’t usually a single shock to the system that undoes a relationship. It tends to be small betrayals. Small lies, half truths and other actions where a partner feels like they aren’t playing on the same team as their significant other.

Relationships in non profit fundraising are also beset by these small betrayals. Here are 4 common practices, where the organizations may think that they are helping their cause, but in fact are chipping away at their donor support

Misrepresentation

Misrepresentation

We have all received those letters that seem to come from an official government agency (better open it, don’t want to get into trouble!) or an envelope that makes us think there is a check inside (Woohoo! Money!)

Yes, you got me to open it and improved your direct mail open rate, but as soon as I see what it really is, I feel like a fool and not in any giving mood.

False Sense of Urgency

False Sense of Urgency

Similar to #1, but the deception is more than skin deep. Whether it is a phone call, email or blog article, there is often the opening line that leads us to believe the organization has something that will benefit me, and that needs to be acted upon RIGHT NOW

Once I let them have my attention , I quickly realize that they are self serving and they are the one’s that feel a sense of urgency…not me

The most recent violator of this false sense of urgency, are blog posts that bait me into clicking through to the article by teasing a sense that I NEED to read it! NOTE: If you found this article on Facebook, I just did it to you!

Auto-Renew Subscriptions

Auto-Renew SubscriptionsHow many times have you found yourself automatically billed for a magazine, when you didn’t renew? This is a marketing tactic called opt-out marketing and sales, when the customer (I use that term loosely) is billed without their knowledge, simply because their initial purchase period ended

Believe it or not, some organizations will assume that if you have been a supporter for a number of years, they will assume that you will want to continue your support if they are unable to reach you in person, and put a recurring pledge on the books

If you didn’t opt-in for the donation, chances are that it will leave a very bad taste in your mouth. No giving should do that.

The Bait & Tackle

The Bait & TackleMany organizations do admirable work engaging people through service and volunteerism only to quickly turn on them for financial support

Bait them with volunteerism and then tackle them with donation requests. One of the biggest aggressors of this is the American Red Cross

As soon as you give blood you can expect a barrage of phone calls from the American Red Cross asking you for donations. It is obnoxious, disruptive, and a betrayal of your time and energy