guest post // Got Fundraising Fatigue? Make These 4 Changes Today
By 99Pledges
As a nonprofit professional, you’ve undoubtedly faced fundraising challenges over the years. For example, maybe you’ve missed a deadline for a funding goal or fallen short of your attendance target for an event. But have you ever faced internal barriers when it comes to fundraising?
Fundraising fatigue is just that—a feeling of burnout that prevents you and your team from doing the best you can during a campaign. This impacts fundraising organizations across many sectors, from schools to nonprofits to associations.
This quick guide outlines the basics of fundraising fatigue and a few changes your organization can make to keep it at bay. To get started, let’s walk through the classic symptoms of fundraising fatigue so you know what to look for.
What is fundraising fatigue?
Fundraising fatigue occurs when your team feels emotionally, mentally, or physically drained from fundraising activities. This is different from donor fatigue, which refers to the overwhelm or exhaustion supporters feel from frequent fundraising appeals.
Look for these common warning signs in your fundraising staff:
Stress and anxiety associated with juggling too many responsibilities, struggling to meet goals, etc.
Decreased morale and engagement at work, along with feeling disillusioned by the perceived lack of progress.
Emotional exhaustion caused by continually soliciting donations and engaging with supporters. Staff may dread phone calls, meetings, and rejections from donors.
Burnout, or chronic exhaustion and inefficacy. Prolonged fundraising fatigue can lead here, making your fundraising team feel emotionally detached and unfulfilled.
These symptoms also have an impact on your nonprofit. For example, eCardWidget explains that disengaged employees lead to decreased productivity and retention, ultimately resulting in more turnover and less funding for your mission.
Remember that your staff members are not machines. You need to have strategies in place to prevent burnout. Being aware of and proactively preventing this problem is key. Next, we’ll cover tips you can use to prevent fundraising fatigue from occurring in the first place.
How can your nonprofit overcome fundraising fatigue?
1. Set achievable goals.
One major source of stress for fundraisers is attempting to meet ambitious—and sometimes out-of-reach—fundraising goals. While you do need to push your organization to grow, it should be feasible for staff to accomplish the goal within the campaign timeline.
For example, if your nonprofit usually raises $20,000 during its annual walk-a-thon fundraiser, you should set this year’s goal at $35,000 rather than $60,000. Reference your nonprofit’s past campaign data to determine a reasonable goal.
When setting goals, consider using the SMART goals framework. According to this framework, goals should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-based. Your goal should contain a specific dollar amount, be attainable while requiring hard work, be relevant to organizational needs and goals, and fall within a set timeframe.
2. Use quality fundraising software.
One factor that can make a significant difference in fundraising efficiency and fatigue prevention is the quality of your fundraising software. Look for solutions with the following capabilities:
Automation: Choose a tool that automates draining, repetitive tasks such as donor communications, receipts, and data collection and reporting. This can drastically reduce your staff members’ mental loads and free up valuable time to dedicate toward high-value, creative activities (e.g., prepping talking points for a major donor meeting).
Reporting and analytics: Look for robust reporting and analytics tools that allow you to track and view trends at a glance. For example, reference reports during the campaign to see how close you are to your goals. This can boost team morale if you are on track (or ahead!) to meet the goal. If you’ve fallen behind, you can proactively adjust your strategy to increase the likelihood that you’ll reach your target.
Training and support: Ideally, the software should offer access to tech support professionals to help you troubleshoot and resolve issues. Look for a company that will handle the bulk of the implementation and setup for you.
Make sure your software can facilitate fundraising ideas that help take the burden off your staff. For example, 99Pledges’ guide to sports fundraising ideas recommends using specialized software to support peer-to-peer fundraising. This method allows supporters to fundraise on behalf of your nonprofit, taking some fundraising tasks off your team’s plates.
3. Delegate tasks and work as a team.
Avoid having one team member wear a dozen hats during fundraisers—instead, spread the work across your staff members. Delegation prevents fatigue and burnout for overloaded staff members and helps other workers learn new skills, take on more responsibility, and gain confidence.
Create a delegation plan that:
Describes the task you need help with in detail.
Explains why you chose this staff member to take on the task (e.g., they have prior experience).
Asks if the staff member accepts the task.
Lists deadlines, quality standards, and reporting expectations for the task.
Asks the staff member what assistance, training, or support they will need to complete the task.
Outlines a follow-up process.
Additionally, make sure you are working as a team by collaborating on campaign-wide initiatives. For example, the fundraising idea you choose should be exciting to everyone, including your staff and your target audience segment.
For a school, this might mean choosing kid-friendly fundraising ideas that will excite students. Nonprofits should analyze supporters’ preferences and responses to past fundraisers to determine which ideas resonate with them.
4. Look to your supporters.
Last, don’t forget about connecting with your supporters! They are likely willing to pitch in to provide help with your campaign by donating their time and services or helping you spread the word.
Asking supporters to further your mission through acts of service can mitigate donor fatigue caused by frequent solicitations. For example, a local law firm could give an in-kind donation of pro-bono services by writing a waiver for your upcoming fundraising event. Then, you can recruit volunteers for the event to take some of the burden off your staff.
To spread awareness of these opportunities, share them on your nonprofit website. Create a dedicated landing page that lists additional ways to get involved and mention these options on your donation form, newsletters, and marketing emails.
Remember to consistently show your appreciation for your employees and thank them for their hard work. Foster a culture of continuous improvement by sharing resources like books or webinars with them to help them improve their fundraising efforts. Combined with the strategies in this guide, these tips will help you keep employees happy, healthy, and motivated while reaching your funding goals.
This guest post was written by 99Pledges.
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