What is the most effective way to use board member feedback for fundraising?

1 Collect feedback regularly and systematically

One of the first steps to use board member feedback for fundraising is to collect it regularly and systematically. You can use various methods, such as surveys, interviews, focus groups, or feedback forms, to gather feedback from your board members on various aspects of your fundraising strategy, such as goals, plans, activities, results, challenges, and opportunities. You should also ask them about their own involvement and satisfaction with fundraising, and what they need or want to do more or better. Make sure you have a clear purpose and process for collecting feedback, and communicate it to your board members in advance.

3 Use feedback to improve and innovate

The main goal of using board member feedback for fundraising is to improve and innovate your fundraising strategy and practice. You should use the feedback to identify what is working well and what needs to be changed or improved, and to generate new ideas or solutions for your fundraising challenges or opportunities. You should also use the feedback to align your fundraising goals and expectations with your board members, and to clarify their roles and responsibilities in fundraising. You should also use the feedback to recognize and appreciate your board members for their contributions and achievements in fundraising, and to motivate and inspire them to do more or better.

4 Share feedback and actions with board members

Another important step to use board member feedback for fundraising is to share the feedback and the actions you are taking based on it with your board members. You should communicate the feedback results and analysis to your board members in a clear and transparent way, and highlight the key findings and implications for your fundraising strategy and practice. You should also share the actions you are planning or implementing to address the feedback, and how they will affect your fundraising outcomes and impact. You should also invite your board members to provide input or feedback on the actions, and to participate or support them as appropriate.

5 Monitor and evaluate feedback and actions

Finally, you should monitor and evaluate the feedback and the actions you are taking based on it for your fundraising. You should track the progress and results of the actions, and measure their impact on your fundraising performance and effectiveness. You should also monitor the changes or improvements in your board members' involvement and satisfaction with fundraising, and how they relate to the feedback and the actions. You should also evaluate the feedback process and methods, and how they can be improved or refined for future use. You should also report and celebrate the feedback and action outcomes and impact with your board members, and thank them for their feedback and participation.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?