A man walked into our organization today wishing to donate several hundred dollars in cash. He casually identified a passionate volunteer whom he knew and admired, and wanted to help out the cause his friend was a part of. An act of true altruism.
When prompted to provide his name and address for a tax receipt he was fairly adamant that he would rather not share them – mostly over his desire to remain off of our mailing list. After much reassurance that we could mark his record anonymous and ensure that he did not receive mail solicitations, he eventually did share.
Now, I just happened to be passing through our reception, and with some degree of coincidence I knew the volunteer he spoke of. But it got me thinking, how many times must this happen?
This donor’s behaviour presents a real challenge for fundraisers. As incredible as it seems that someone would be so selflessly generous, their very desire to remain under the radar for their giving prevents those who benefit from saying thank you, and prevents the charity from presenting them similar chances to help out again.
His concern over being a part of a mailing list is troublesome as well. If we can not communicate with those who are most passionate about our cause, how do we continue to do good? It’s unfortunate that years of aggressive mass direct mail has tarnished its reputation as an acceptable method of generating revenue (for as long as it may exist). It is a great reminder for us to continue to check in with donors about how frequent they would like us to contact them and in what format.
I’m actually quite surprised this donor paid us a visit instead of giving the donation directly to his friend, but I’m so glad he did. He educated us, inspired us to do better, and nudged us to uncover the real story more often.
everydaygiving 