9 ways to be a more human fundraiser in 2017

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As your supporters get bombarded with more and more messages from advertisers and competitors (other fundraisers) you’ll need to stand out. The best way to do that is to be more human, authentic and real.

Here are nine ways to do just that this year: 

1. Share personal stories with your donors. Be real.
2. Be open, honest and transparent. Suppose your nonprofit got hit with a lawsuit or did something wrong. Don’t cower. Be forthcoming instead. Open up lines of communication. Let your supporters vent. Enable dialogue. And, above all, be honest.
3. Add your own flair to your messages or posts. Be yourself. My friend (and client) Charlotte’s husband is a beekeeper. He gets tons of honey from his honey bees. So he puts it in jars. Then, whenever Charlotte meets a donor, she gives ’em a jar of honey. Isn’t that sweet?
4. Use humor. But be darn sure it’s truly funny. Nothing is worse than having humor backfire.
5. Send personal and real pictures. Suppose you just got back from the field and you had pictures taken with beneficiaries of your donors’ support. Send them those pics along with handwritten notes. “Hi Donna, Here I am with Treyvon. You should have seen the look in his mother’s eyes when I delivered the [whatever], thanks to your magnificent support.”
6. Develop your own tag line. “I’m here to help you feed hungry children.” Or, “I work for [name your org] but I really work for you!”
7. Take videos. If you’re out in the field, take a video and share it right away. That’ll give your supporters a boost knowing that their money is being put to work in real-time.
8. Send links. Copy and paste links to interesting news articles, blog posts, videos or reports that will keep your supporters informed and appreciated. 
9. And, of course, send handwritten letters.

Can you add to this list?