Comments on: Do You Talk or Do You Listen? http://www.asmallchange.net/do-you-talk-or-do-you-listen/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=do-you-talk-or-do-you-listen Making Sense of Fundraising Wed, 08 Feb 2012 18:58:30 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Jeremy Shatan http://www.asmallchange.net/do-you-talk-or-do-you-listen/#comment-864 Jeremy Shatan Mon, 26 Jul 2010 17:19:44 +0000 http://www.asmallchange.net/?p=1085#comment-864 In any kind of negotiation or transaction, it is very important to be a good listener. I do sometimes have to bite my tongue and remind myself that it is about them - the donor. The hardest point of any ask is when you have made your pitch and you just have to stop talking and let them fill the silence - whether with a no, or hopefully an enthusiastic "YES!" In any kind of negotiation or transaction, it is very important to be a good listener. I do sometimes have to bite my tongue and remind myself that it is about them – the donor. The hardest point of any ask is when you have made your pitch and you just have to stop talking and let them fill the silence – whether with a no, or hopefully an enthusiastic “YES!”

]]> By: Miriam http://www.asmallchange.net/do-you-talk-or-do-you-listen/#comment-863 Miriam Mon, 26 Jul 2010 16:55:40 +0000 http://www.asmallchange.net/?p=1085#comment-863 You bring up an excellent point and observation. I am definately extroverted so I have had to work at being a better listener and ask questions that help me learn more about a donor. I remind myself "one mouth, two ears" for a reason. In the end, it is so rewarding to know more about our donors and by knowing more, it is actually easier to help them connect to specific aspects of our work. Story: We are raising $5 million for our new domestic violence shelter. In March, we invited all $500 and up donors to the YWCA Pierce County to a thank you reception in the new building before we started to renovate it. Over wine and appetizers, we connected with donors who care about our work. One woman came who I had not met before. Long story short, she fell in love with the new project and in short order, gave a gift of $20,000. This week she is coming by with another check for $20,000 because she wants to "name" another room. Every donor that does a naming gift ($10,000 and up) gets to share a story and photo of someone who inspired them. These stories will be framed in the hallways of the shelter to inspire our clients. We also ask donors to share one word that describes the person they are honoring. The word they choose becomes the name of the room...so far we have rooms with the words justice, hope, serenity, dignity and values. We just contacted our naming donors to let them know about this. I think asking donors to share a story and choose a word relates to your blog about listening.....it is about making the gift personal and meaningful. You bring up an excellent point and observation. I am definately extroverted so I have had to work at being a better listener and ask questions that help me learn more about a donor. I remind myself “one mouth, two ears” for a reason. In the end, it is so rewarding to know more about our donors and by knowing more, it is actually easier to help them connect to specific aspects of our work.
Story:
We are raising $5 million for our new domestic violence shelter. In March, we invited all $500 and up donors to the YWCA Pierce County to a thank you reception in the new building before we started to renovate it. Over wine and appetizers, we connected with donors who care about our work. One woman came who I had not met before. Long story short, she fell in love with the new project and in short order, gave a gift of $20,000. This week she is coming by with another check for $20,000 because she wants to “name” another room. Every donor that does a naming gift ($10,000 and up) gets to share a story and photo of someone who inspired them. These stories will be framed in the hallways of the shelter to inspire our clients. We also ask donors to share one word that describes the person they are honoring. The word they choose becomes the name of the room…so far we have rooms with the words justice, hope, serenity, dignity and values. We just contacted our naming donors to let them know about this.

I think asking donors to share a story and choose a word relates to your blog about listening…..it is about making the gift personal and meaningful.

]]>