FULL TRANSCRIPT OF THE PODCAST

Hello, and welcome to Fundraising Growth Now, the podcast for arts and cultural organizations that want to build stronger donor relationships and raise more money. I'm Bob Swaney, founder of RSC Associates and today I’m joined by RSC Associates CEO Catherine Heitz New.

We're often talking about RSC’s fundraising coaching approach and how it is geared towards time-tested best practices and fundamentals that arts and cultural organizations can rely on to grow their fundraising programs. While coaching fundamentals, we regularly adapt best practices to present day realities. The tactics that worked 10 or 15 years ago have to change with the times so they don’t lose their effectiveness.

Today we’ll look at how fundraising is changing, what's different, and how we can adapt if we haven't already.

What do you think have been a couple of the big changes in the arts that have impacted fundraising's role in the past 10 years?

Catherine Heitz New: We're hearing that while organizations are seeing pre pandemic audience levels again, there's a lot of new faces, in the hall, in the audience, in the museum. Keeping those new faces engaged and converting them into donors is one of the most expensive things we do from a relationship building standpoint.

And so we're having to talk about making that investment in these new audience members because that's the key to long term sustainability.

Bob Swaney: They look different too. Demographics are starting to change and the attitude toward fundraising is different in terms of giving and approach. Ticket buyers are more often now having an affinity for the performance, but not always with the organization. Given that, what are you seeing in terms of that changing the landscape of how people respond to fundraising?

Catherine Heitz New: Younger generations are more compelled to give to a cause than they are to an organization. Loyalty to an institution is not as strong, but the loyalty to an idea, to something that advances a cause they care about, is extremely strong.

But there is no need to fear that these generations are more cause driven, and instead they can lean into it. Every single one of our arts clients is a cause, and they advance not only an artistic and cultural cause, but they advance their communities and the people within them in deep and meaningful ways.

Bob Swaney: One of the major shifts is the idea that an arts organization should align itself really strongly with its community. You could argue and say that they've always done that, and it's not that we didn't see it. It just wasn't nearly as pronounced.

Moving on, what do you think are some of the most important things that arts organizations are getting right that help advance fundraising and make it a better, stronger program?

Catherine Heitz New: There was just an article in the Chronicle of Philanthropy about fundraising being flat overall, striking the tone that fundraisers were missing opportunities to solicit. And in working with clients,  we see that is true.

People hesitate because they're waiting for perfection. That might be the perfect moment, the perfect opportunity to engage with the donor, or the perfect moment where the donor is raising their hand in an obvious way.

The reality is the perfect moment is rarely going to come. If we're waiting for perfection, we're always going to be in delay mode.

To get through that moment of uncertainty, fear, and uncertainty, flip the script. Instead of you thinking the perfect moment and ask, simply ask the donor. What do you care most about? What have you enjoyed most from our organization? What has felt most impactful that we've done in the last year? What would you need to see from us to be ready for a major gift conversation?

So instead of waiting and hesitating, simply engage with the donor.

Bob Swaney: The really successful programs do that extremely well and it's natural, even when it is not easy.

Catherine Heitz New: I have had a question come up a lot lately about what level of research to conduct on major donors before asking.

What's your take on that? What do we need to know? What's nice to know?

Bob Swaney: I think that it's important, but I get a bit cynical about the depth of research that’s necessary. There's a higher value in relationship development. We have the time, resources, and boards to build genuine relationships, and too often we sacrifice getting to know people.

Catherine Heitz New: The thing that I find most fascinating about wealth screenings is that the vendors acknowledge there is a limit to the information they have on your donors. It’s critical that we add to that incomplete data what we know ourselves about that donor. That's so much more powerful than an incomplete data set alone.

Bob Swaney: I find more value in anecdotal information because I need to understand the psyche as best I can of that particular donor, which I'm not going to get through any amount of research.

What do you see that makes up a really case statements? What are the components of a good case statement?

Catherine Heitz New: The top mistakes in messaging center around using a self-serving message.

We see that most often by leaving the donor out of the message and instead talking about our organization and what it does, rather than about our patrons and what our community enables us to do.

The other major issue that we don't turn the message outward. Instead we offer a laundry list of information, thinking that if we get to the right thing, then all of a sudden they're going to make a gift.

Instead, the message has to be much more organic than that. It has to include the by, for, and of this community lens in order to be effective. When you start to talk about your value in terms of a cause the level of information our donors need about our organization drops exponentially.

It’s the difference between talking with them and talking at them.

Bob Swaney: There's also the thinking that our organization’s value is based on our organization’s volume of work, and if we can show the greatest volume, it will convince donors to invest in us.

Catherine Heitz New: The common variation on that is from our counterparts in health and human services, where they can equate gifts to tangible items. For example, $X buys two book backpacks. It's equating gifts to impact or mission driven work, and that doesn't have the same value proposition in the arts. Don't emulate something where you can't be competitive.

Instead, use your message and talk about yourselves in a way that only the arts can. Lean into the idea of how we're building community, making connections, educating our students, and other points that are unique to you.

Bob Swaney: One of the things that we coach is to use a combinationof facts, finances and feelings if you want a good case statement.

The first two, are easy. You can pull them from the annual report for example.

But the third one comes from personal experiences with the organization and personal reflection about those experiences. The facts and the finances become the filler, while the personal experiences are what connects with a donor or a prospective donor.

If an organization is really struggling with developing a case, try attaching personal stories to it. In a previous podcast, I talked about an exercise we take clients through called Finish the Sentence, where I start a sentence and you finish it. We don't ask a question because that's got a different dynamic to it than finishing a sentence.

Those kinds of exercises help staff, volunteers, and musicians work on their own stories. If you are struggling to develop a case statement, go back and listen to that podcast. Think about how you can apply the exercise to your team.

Catherine Heitz New: The facts, finances, and feelings approach to a case gives you a strong case. But so often I get the question around how to communicate those feelings. What does that look like from a practical standpoint?

An example of how we can communicate those feelings comes from planned giving asks. There's a lot of anxiety around adding planned giving to the fundraising program.

Every time someone notifies you about an estate gift, they say, I've included you in my plans. Learn why, not only because that's good stewardship, but because it also allows you to communicate to others about the value and  personal return that individuals have by becoming a member of the Legacy Society.

Bob Swaney: This talk about planned giving brings up other fears people often have. One, that they don’t feel equipped to talk about it. Another that they have to start and maintain yet another program.

Catherine Heitz New: And many have great fear that it will be the donor makes a plan gift to the organization and stops making their annual contribution. What we find is it's the exact opposite. Once donors say “I'm including you in my life long legacy plan,” it's more likely they'll continue to do what they do on an annual basis. Many even increase their relationship with you through the process of closing and confirming that planned gift.

Bob Swaney: As we start to wind down here, what are the high level skills that you see successful askers have?

Catherine Heitz New: What we see so often is that fundraisers will dance around the ask, and they're not specific in the ask. It should sound like “we'd like you to make a gift of $100,000 to our education programs.” It has a specific number and you're tying it back to their interest. And then immediately following that meeting, you need to send them a formal proposal that outlines that major ask.

Bob Swaney: Why don't people do that?

Catherine Heitz New: They haven’t used permission based asking. They haven’t said “we'd like to have a conversation with you about investing in a major pillar of what we do as an organization. Would that be okay to explore today?”

It lets you go right to that direct, crisp, clear ask, and then go to the follow up proposal.

Bob Swaney: That prospective donor has likely done this more times than the staff member or volunteer who is asking. They know what's coming. They're not surprised. Most donors who we're going to ask at six figures or above are in the business of generosity.

And that's part of the reason to build a relationship so there's a trusted dialogue there. If I ask you for $100,000 and they say I was not thinking about that number, we can still continue on and discuss what kind of number they were thinking about. And then we adapt to that and bring some naming opportunities, recognition, and relationship with the organization that would make this rewarding.

Catherine Heitz New: When our asks are specific, we actually make the consideration process easier on the donor. Dancing around the ask complicates the consideration process for the donor. By being specific, it's a straight line. They don't have an overwhelming number of options, which only gets in the way.

Bob Swaney: When you go in being vague or going in with eight choices I think what that signals to the donor is you don't know them very well. Instead you’re throwing everything at them to see what sticks onto their wallet. That is not good relationship based fundraising.

Hey, we're going to wrap up. It's been great to talk with you on this cab just to have this kind of a conversation, but I think that's all we have time for today.

To wrap us up, what would you like the listeners and readers to remember from this particular episode?

Catherine Heitz New: Remember these two things: take action and be specific. It will change your fundraising fundamentally.