BeCause

Guest Post: Don’t Get Dumped by Your Donors

March 24, 2015
(We’re happy to turn over our blog to Christie King of cKing Benefit Auctions and the Benefit Auction Institute this week. It can take a lot of effort to attract a new supporter, but just a little more work can turn a one-time donation into a long-term relationship. Read on to find out more.)

Many donors only give once. This may be a shocking statement, but it’s true. One thing almost all nonprofit organizations have in common is the issue of how to keep donors engaged and giving year after year. Here are a few suggestions to help with donor retention.

After each event, print the list of donors who attended, then pick up the phone and call them. Do not go this alone. Divide the list among your board members and have them assist in making these calls… I already know what you’re thinking – “We’re going to get our board members to do this?” Yes! As leaders of your organization it is critical that they make these calls. And their part is easy, rewarding and fun. All they need to do is thank your donors for their support. If the donor does not answer the phone, they can simply leave a message of thanks. Ideally these phone calls should take place within 24 hours of your event, but no longer than 48 hours afterward.

This simple gesture conveys to your donors that they are appreciated and that they matter. This is critical because nonprofits are often competing for the same dollars, causing donors to become more strategic in their giving.

Keeping donors engaged and informed is also important in donor retention. I suggest you reach out to them via a special email every quarter sharing progress of various activities their money has supported. This tells your donors that you respect their investment enough to share its impact over time. And, of course, time builds trust—critical to building long-term donors.

Develop a Donor Retention Plan and follow it. Don’t leave this very important step to chance.

Thanks for the tips, Christie! To find out more about cKing Benefit Auctions, find it on the web at ckingbenefits.com. For the Institute, head to benefitauctioninstitute.com.


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Get Warm, Get Active!

March 18, 2015
We’re big fans of the outdoors at Mitch-Stuart, Inc., and you can see that in our non-profit auction fundraising travel packages. We send donors to Jackson Hole, to Aspen and even to Quebec for winter adventures.

But when the sun comes out, some people default to lounge chairs, tall drinks and beachside reading. Don’t get us wrong, we love heading to the shore for a day of relaxation, and we certainly love our beachside resorts and bars. There are some activities, though, in which it makes a lot more sense to engage during the warmer months. If your donors are looking for a warm-weather retreat, maybe it’s time to look into one of these activity-based consignment travel packages.

There’s a reason that NASCAR takes the winter off: Driving at triple-digit speeds through snow is not an appealing thought. But it’s not just the professionals that get back in the driver’s seat after a few months off for holidays and cold temperatures. Winners of our “It’s Just You and the Speedway” package can get in a real life racecar and take it for a spin with the Mario Andretti Racing Experience. In a three-hour experience, the driver gets a meeting with a crew chief, two-way radio communication with a spotter for tips while out on the track, and personal racing instruction from the experienced Andretti crew. Available in four different states (Arizona, Illinois, New Hampshire or North Carolina), the Experience is also convenient for the donor who may not know where (s)he wants to go, or would rather stay closer to home.

For those who really want to get away, though, there’s the Great White North. While there may be a form of “romance” to roughing it while ice fishing in the wilds of Canada, the slightly-warmer climes of the spring make wading out into a river a lot more comfortable. Making the process even nicer: Unwinding at a Fairmont resort afterward. With our “Freshwater Fishing in Gorgeous Canada” package, your donors could find themselves at one of four different Canadian resorts, spending time with a guide during a private freshwater fly fishing experience (and yes, the bait and gear are included) and trying to catch that night’s dinner. Don’t worry about a donor going hungry, though: Each of the Fairmonts have fantastic dining options, too, if your charity’s supporter wasn’t able to reel in the night’s entrée.

With the skies clearing a little, now might also be the time to get in the cockpit. Yes, Mitch-Stuart, Inc. can send your donors into the sky with a “Top Gun” package, available to any one of twenty-five different cities. Your donors will fly on a “fighter pilot mission experience,” practicing formation flying and basic maneuvers before engaging in a few dogfights. Multiple cameras in the cockpit will capture the experience for posterity and give friends a chance to be jealous (or maybe a good laugh!) back on land.

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Holiday Globe-Hoppin’

March 11, 2015
For many, the first thought of Independence Day involves fireworks over the National Monument in Washington, D.C. When Thanksgiving comes up, invariably so does the tradition of watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, live from New York City. New Year’s Eve? It’s hard to separate the day from the ball dropping in Times Square, isn’t it?

One can celebrate a holiday anywhere, of course, but there are some places that have become ingrained in the culture as the “home base” for a certain day of the year. Mitch-Stuart, Inc. can send your donors to some of the world’s most interesting destinations with our non-profit auction travel packages, but one trait that some don’t realize is that there are few to no “blackout dates” on these trips. So, if you’ve got a donor itching to go to the Big Apple for Thanksgiving, we can make that happen.

Here are a few other places that we can send your donors who want to celebrate specific holidays:

When thoughts turn to St. Patrick’s Day, many immediately think of two east coast cities where many of the Irish who came to America settled: Boston and New York. But only one major metropolis go so far as to dye a natural resource green. Yes, Chicago may be better known for pierogies and deep dish pizza than shamrocks, but Irish-Americans are the city’s largest ethnic group. The city’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade is one of the country’s grandest, and the dying of the Chicago River has to be seen to be believed: Thousands line up and watch a boat dispense the green-colored dye into the river each year.

Unlike St. Patrick’s Day, Labor Day doesn’t lend itself to massive celebrations on its own. The commemorating of the labor movement in America is important, sure, but it’s often conflated with its place on the calendar and the changing season; Labor Day is much more about the end of summer than overtime laws. For that reason, thousands flock to Las Vegas every year to get that last bit of consequence-free Vitamin D before hunkering down for a long winter. From massive pool parties to decadent (and celebrity chef-filled) restaurant scene, there are plenty of ways to celebrate the excess of summer’s freedom in Sin City.

Other holidays have become synonymous with the cities that recognize them the loudest. Patriots’ Day is the third Monday in April, and was set aside to celebrate the Battles of Lexington and Concord. Technically, it’s recognized in Maine and Wisconsin, but it tends to be known around the country as a holiday specifically for Boston, where it’s a day off from school and work, along with a chance to relax (hopefully) in the spring sun. For Beantown, it’s a big sports day, too: The Boston Marathon is run in the morning, and the Boston Red Sox have had a home game at Fenway Park on nearly every Patriots’ Day since 1959.
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Destination Spotlight: Costa Rica

March 03, 2015
When one thinks about vacations south of the border, Mexico is often the first destination that pops to mind. For others, a cruise around the Caribbean may be in order. But the travel experts, those whose passports are running out of room for new entry stamps, know that Costa Rica, even with its upswing in “ecotourism” over the past couple of decades, is the hidden jewel of the equatorial Americas.

Mitch-Stuart, Inc. has non-profit fundraising travel packages ready for destinations all over the world. But while cities like London and Paris attract a lot of attention, Costa Rica is sometime overlooked. This is great for the knowledgeable traveler: It means fewer tourists and more space to explore all the country has to offer! In fact, Costa Rica has something for every type of vacationer.

For the beach-comber: With coasts on both the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, the nation has almost 300 beaches, with more than a handful sure to suit the personality of any sun worshipper. The Papapgayo Gulf is a favorite for those visiting the resorts of Guanacaste, while the isolation of Uvita makes it a perfect place to hide out from the world. The youth and culture surrounding Montezuma make it the equivalent of a Southern California coastal community, and it’s impossible to take a photo of the white sands of Nosara that is less than postcard worthy. With such a diversity of experiences, one could spend a whole week in swim gear. For the jungle explorer: Around 25 percent of the land in Costa Rica is in either a national park or other protected area, but the best to explore might be Corcovado National Park. Once called the “most biologically intense place on Earth” by National Geographic, Corcovado contains endangered species like the Baird’s tapir, a sort of pig-hippopotamus hybrid, and the Central American squirrel monkey. The stars of the show, though, are the two- and three-toed sloths. Other smaller parks and rainforests are scattered throughout the country, and tour operators take visitors sightseeing using everything from cars to zip lines. For the luxury lounger: While the outdoors are attention-grabbing, there’s plenty of beauty to be found indoors as well. The view of the ocean from the room balconies at the JW Marriott Guanacaste Resort and Spa is tremendous, and the on-site spa includes saunas, pools and even palapas, or thatched-roof huts, to mix clean air with a massage. In San Jose, the Cala Luna Boutique Hotel and Villas features a poolside dining experience unrivaled, with local flavors and farm-to-table foods. Visiting the city is no excuse to skip finer living, either: The Hotel Grano de Oro in San Jose is a converted Victorian mansion, with a secluded rooftop Jacuzzi terrace that has to be experienced to be believed. Beach, jungle and luxury – Costa Rica has it all! Let your donors bid on a once-in-a-lifetime trip at your next gala auction. Contact a Mitch-Stuart, Inc. Travel Expert today to get started!

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