I’ve written quite a bit about how to prepare donors for their client experiences and what should be included in their guidebooks, but there’s one very important thing we need to address: assumptions and expectations. Although these words are often used interchangeably, in my work, I draw some critical distinctions between the two: Assumptions are our
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As a fundraiser and intercultural communications consultant, I’m often asked to help prepare donors and staff for the cultural differences they will encounter when interacting with populations both within the United States and around the world. For example, if a group of donors from the United States is traveling to Ethiopia to tour projects they
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In my last article I cautioned you against overextending, burdening, and miscasting your Program Staff and Local Partners (the people who work for you on-site where your organization’s work is happening). Now let’s dive in to discussing the three most meaningful ways to make use of their skills and knowledge. 1. For direct client engagement “Client,” in this
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For all those folks in fundraising who are planning your next donor trip with the help from locals on site: this article is for you. Your on-site Program Staff and Local Partners have important roles to play—just not necessarily the ones you think. Support them by allowing them to do their actual jobs. Don’t overburden
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I recently wrote about how a donor trip can be used effectively with donors at any stage of the donor cycle. But let’s get real: while some organizations have large enough travel programs to offer different trips for different donors at each stage, many organizations only do one trip (or a handful of trips) a
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I’ve written a lot about having one clear goal for your donor trip.But what should that goal be?Are donor trips about acquiring new donors, cultivating existing donors, or recognizing recent donors?The answer is…all of the above.But it is helpful to distinguish your approach based on where a donor sits in the donor cycle. In fundraising, there
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So much of the social impact sector relies on the support of volunteers. This is true both domestically and internationally. Volunteers play a vital role in our operations and our ability to effect change. With so much good being done by volunteers, it seems ungrateful to complain about harm that can be perpetuated by them.
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In 2019 at the Global PDX Conference, I moderated a panel called “Voluntourism: Power, Privilege, and New Possibilities.” We didn’t shy away from the controversies of sending people overseas for short-term assignments, some of which I’ve documented in the article “5 Pitfalls of Voluntourism.” While the challenges and disappointments of voluntourism have been well-documented in the
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