In his book, The God Ask, Steve Schadrack tells of a legend where...
...after a particularly long and brutal battle, the great French Emperor Napoleon and his army finally conquered a highly prized Mediterranean island and its many inhabitants. Afterward, while he and his generals were sitting, drinking, and savoring the victory, a young officer approached Napoleon. When the revered general asked the man what he wanted, he looked straight at Napoleon and said, "Sir, give me this island!"
Instantly, all the other generals began to laugh and mock the audacious young man, that is until Napoleon turned and asked one of them for a pen and another for paper. To their amazement, Napoleon wrote out a deed to the island, signed it, and handed it to the lowly, but bold soldier.
"How could you do that?" stammered one of his generals, "What made this man worthy to receive this great island after we fought so hard to win it?"
"I gave him this island," Napoleon reflected, "because he honored me by the magnitude of his request."
This story illustrates the number one reason why people don't give to help you accomplish your mission: YOU HAVEN'T ASKED THEM TO.
James, the first pastor of the Christian church in Jerusalem, says it plainly:
You have not because you ask not. James 4:2b
Fundraisers who fear asking donors to give don't understand that one of the most significant ways to help donors feel needed is to ask them to make a difference in the world with their money.
Sharing your organization's need is one of the most generous things you can do for the beneficiaries of your mission. It is an act of selfless generosity on your part because you ask, not for your benefit, you ask for those who have no voice. Fundraisers whose hearts are filled with selfless generosity ask boldly for their mission.
Selfless generosity. Selah, pause and think about that.
When you boldly ask for the money your mission needs, your donors feel important. When you plainly tell them that if the funds aren't raised, there will be consequences, donors feel important.
When you boldly present a problem to donors that they can fix with a gift, you give donors a vital role in your organization. Donors feel unneeded when you don't boldly ask for the money you need.
Because of their timidity to ask, fundraisers often make appeals that tell a story about someone they helped (a finished story), talk about more people like the person in the finished story that they have helped, quote a bible verse about love, then buried at the end of the appeal, they will squeamishly ask donors to give.
STOP BURYING YOUR ASK AT THE END OF LONG AND BORING APPEALS.
STOP BEING AFRAID TO ASK YOUR DONORS TO PLAY A VITAL PART IN YOUR MISSION.
STOP APOLOGIZING AND COWERING IN TIMIDITY FOR HAVING A VISION TO CHANGE THE WORLD.
INSTEAD...
START TELLING AN UNFINISHED STORY ABOUT SOMEONE WHO NEEDS HELP TODAY.
START TELLING THE DONOR HOW THEIR GIFT WILL HELP THAT PERSON.
START BOLDLY ASKING THE DONOR TO HELP THAT PERSON TODAY WITH A GIFT.
When visionaries boldly ask me to give to make a difference in the world, I FEEL IMPORTANT. I FEEL NEEDED. When I get this kind of bold ask in my inbox, I feel like I can make a difference in the world: ALL BECAUSE I WAS ASKED.
Asking boldly involves being vulnerable. In the book Daring Greatly, Brene Brown describes a talk she gave on vulnerability:
"Last year, I gave a talk on vulnerability to 350 SWAT team officers, parole officers, and jailers. (Yes, it was as intimidating as it sounds.) A SWAT officer walked up to me after the talk and said, "The only reason we listened to you is because you're just as bad at being open as we are. If you didn't wrestle with being vulnerable, we wouldn't trust you one bit.""
WHEN VISIONARIES MAKE THEMSELVES VULNERABLE IN ASKING FOR THE MONEY THEIR MISSION NEEDS DONORS TRUST THEM.
Brene Brown says that when we spend our lives waiting until we are perfect or bulletproof before we walk into the arena, we ultimately sacrifice relationships and opportunities that may not be recoverable...(Daring Greatly).
The key is to know what your donors care about and boldly ask them in a manner that honors their values. Then, like the visionary fundraiser Moses, you are merely looking for the generous hearts with a divine stir to help you.
Keep saying thank you, telling stories, AND asking donors to make a difference in the world.
David
MORE POPULAR POSTS FROM DAVID L OAKS:
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Your Response To A Gift Speaks VOLUMES
Why Your Nonprofit MUST Be Able To Describe A World Where It Is NOT Needed
Stop Asking Donors To Help You Help People
Do I Have To Meet With Donors Face-To-Face?
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