Thanks For Everything!
Stewardship Strategies For The
Small Anti-Violence Organization
Alyson Culin
Development & Marketing Director
Orange County Rape Crisis Center
[email protected]
What Is Stewardship?
• Definition: Maintaining
good relations with
people who are already
supporting your agency.
• NOT cultivation, which is
bringing in new people.
• Today’s focus: Strategy
around thanking
• Consider resources and
return on investment (ROI)
• Create a strategy, not a
checklist
Stewardship
Solicitation
Cultivation
Who is Your Audience?
• Donors
• Volunteers
• Board of Directors
(current and former)
• Staff (current and
former)
• Grantors
• ??
Thanking Donors – Process
• Each task, who is responsible for it, and general timeline
• Consider separation of duties
• Legal and contractual (grant) requirements
• Tax deductible info
• Technical info
• How to use the database
• Who to contact if difficulties
• Templates for letters
• Alternate instructions for different types of giving
• Different plan for different levels of giving
• Checks vs credit card vs online giving
• Recurring gifts
• In-kind donations
• Corporations, businesses, groups
ASC gets and opens
mail
DMD processes
deposit
ASC enters
donations into
database and prints
TY letters/envelopes
(ASC takes deposit
to bank)
(ED approves
deposit)
(Bookkeeper…)
ED signs and adds a
short handwritten
message
DMD adds a
personal note to
contacts
ASC stuffs, mails.
New donors get
welcome package.
ED writes note card
for
acknowledgements
ED writes
handwritten note card
within about a month
Board (Exec Cmte)
calls $100+ donors
within about a month
Thanking Donors – The TY Letter
• Warm, sincere,
quick.
• New letter every
6-12 months.
• Special letter for
each campaign
or event.
Thanking Donors –
Components of the TY Letter
• Date
• Donor’s name and address
• Personal greeting (i.e. “Dear Mary,” NOT “Dear friend,”)
• IMPACT of gift
• Donor-centered language (i.e. “you,” “your gift,” etc.)
• Feelings > Facts
• Special events, recent news, etc. Offer a tour/visit.
• Who the donor should contact with questions.
• Real signature with a personalized note.
• Tax info
Thanking Donors – The TY Call
• Short time investment and has the potential for large
impact
• Much easier to convince your Board to make TY calls
rather than solicitation calls!
• Components:
• Hello
• Thank you
Sample Call Report Form
• Pause
• Question
• Thank you
Call Date
Donor Name
Left message
or chatted
Notes
Thanking Donors – Ideas?
• Handwritten note card
• Phone call
• Email
• Call or note from the ED
• Call or note from the Board
• Call or note from a program staff member
• Note from a client
• Photograph of your agency in action
• Invite for a tour
• Lunch or appreciation event for biggest donors
• ???
Appreciating Volunteers
• Communicating authentic gratitude
• Ideas
• Volunteer socials: parties, potlucks
• Provide meals at trainings, meetings
• Small gifts
• Recognition in newsletter, social media, etc.
• Volunteer awards
• Saying a simple thank you
• Writing/emailing notes
• ???
Interacting with Supporters
• Important to have real relationships and display sincere,
personalized gratitude
• Create opportunities to interact that don’t ask for money
(or have a passive ask)
• Communications that don’t ask for money. Personal is
best.
• Identify biggest supporters and create a specialized plan
for them.
Takeaways
• SINCERITY
• Create a strategy, not a checklist
• Consider resources & ROI
• What is one idea from today that you want to try to
implement immediately?