Are $$ the sign of success?

What a silly question to ask fund raisers...are $$$'s the sign of success???  Of course they are.  But wait.  Perhaps that is not the best question to ask.

Let's start with a more basic question before we jump to the jugular.

Are you doing fund raising or are you doing ministry?  If your fund raising is not part of a deeper ministry, this blog is not for you.  This is not to condemn anyone. This is just a different approach. Different is different not wrong.

So, if you are still reading,  I am assuming you answered...I am doing ministry, not JUST fund raising.

If you are doing ministry then stewardship/giving is part of the work but not all.  Therefore in TG, getting dollars is only part of the story not the entire story. Here is one way of setting goals my development teams uses in training.  This helps see the entire story and go beyond dollars to ministry.

If support raising was a college course,  what would an “A” look like?  No one takes a college course without getting a syllabus in order to know what to do to get an “A”.  All the work done in the class is done with the final grade in mind.

 

So here is what the syllabus might look like.

Fund Raising Syllabus

Goals of class

1.      Mobilize current champions to deeper involvement

2.      Enlarge team with new champions for The Cause

3.      Hit budget (Doing 1 and 2 will lead to #3)

How to accomplish class Goals

Plan

·        Fund raiser set goals for their work

·        Identify Champions activity according to PEO

·        Identify a few champions to work on migration goals with them

Implement Plan

·        Activity must align with class goals

·        Activity needs to align with CMS principles

·        Activity needs to be regular!!!

Evaluation

·        Success is measured by the goals of the class stated above.

·        Monthly identify what is working and what is not.

·        Evaluation is done collaboratively with a coach.

What to Measure - Part 2

I want to follow up from the previous post by joining Covey’s’ lead measures’ in 4 Disciplines of Execution (4DX) to Moore’s ‘scattering matrix’ in Seize the Vuja De .  Let’s see how these concepts reflect each other in what we measure.

A goal in fund raising is the income.  So this is the lag measure: what you measure when you are done. It is also a gathering matrix because it is what you take in. But we said “A goal in fund raising is income”, not THE goal. In TG the goal is greater than the dollar amount; it is lives transformed through giving.  Hitting the dollar amount is a portion of the goal and the easiest to measure.  But in order to measure transformed lives we have to have lead measurements that help us see if we are scattering the message not just gathering the money. 

In the 4DX book one example is a lady who is a top seller in a shoe store.  The statement made about her is, “The manager knew what she did differently.  She would get lost in the customer’s world.”  This lady would notice what the customer was wearing, offer options to fit their style, ask what they did for a living, etc.  In other words it became about the customer’s need for shoes not the stores need to make sales.  Sound familiar. 

TG is based on the need of the champion not the need of the agency.  If this principle is key in the selling something as temporal as shoes, just think of the importance this principle can play in helping someone in their discipleship journey of giving.  TG happens when it is about the champion’s bottom line not ours.  The beauty is, God then adds fruit to the agency’s bottom line when the champion is transformed. 

So you have a budget to raise.  Your board or someone is monitoring the bottom line.  But what should you monitor.  In TG with a scattering matrix let me suggest a few items you and your leaders can be measuring:

-        Did my encounter with that champion leave them richer than they were before, i.e. Did it add value?

-        Did I give the champion what they need to get involved?

-        How many have I equip to tell others about the outreach?

-        How many of my champions testified that they shared the outreach with someone else?

-        Are people passing on what they learn?

-        How many champions are moving forward in their discipleship journey, i.e. How many are migrating from Participation to Engagement, Engagement to Owner?

Granted, this list is harder to measure than the bottom line.  But remember the bottom line is not just to get funded.  Part of the bottom line is to grow champions for the Cause. So we also need to keep in mind, how many we bring with us on the journey, not how many report back to about the journey.

I would love to discuss these measurements.  Drop a note if you have a comment or question.

Growing

Transformational Giving can pop up anywhere.  In the last post I mentioned Paul Borthwick’s book, Western Christians in Global Missions. As I read this book I see Transformational Giving principles popping up all the time.  But this is only because Transformational Giving has far more to do with our spiritual walk than just giving our money.  As believers we are to live transformational lives (some call it The WholeLife Offering).  So TG is one key component of Transformational Living.

 

Borthwick reflects this truth in a chapter of his book called “Sacrifice-Not Just Generosity”.  He touches on the old truth that is “it is often easier to be financially generous than personally sacrifice.” (page 143. Western Christians in Global Missions). This truth is a big reason I am an advocate of our giving being transformational and not simply a transaction between parties. 

 

Borthwick goes on to say that issues facing the world today are not solved by generous checks.  They are solved by long-term work and sometimes sacrifice for the endeavor God has laid on our hearts. To illustrate this teaching Borthwick uses examples that are straight out of a ‘Participate-Engage-Owner’ type thinking.  Let me give you a few quotes he gives as examples in his book.

In our world long-term sacrifice grows as we get involved.  It can progress

·        From dedicating thirty minutes a day to pray for the nations of the world, to building cross-cultural friendships, to going to serve in a multicultural organization

·        From going on a short-term mission trip to reach children in a poor barrio, to supporting a child for forty dollars a month, to becoming a social worker dedicated to serving children.

 

You can see how these examples reflect the teachings that TG gives in regards to moving our champions from participants, to a level of engagement, to being owners of the cause.

 

A key word for our spiritual journey and in TG that Borthwick uses above is GROW.  Growth is a long-term venture.  One-time shots at it do not make it happen.  I do not plant new grass seed and expect to mow my lawn the next morning.  Our activity in God’s work must grow.  And what is planted today does not bloom by morning.  However, with work, progress and maybe even sacrifice we see fruit in the long-term.  So don’t bail out early.  Stick with your champions and be the example for them that long-term activity in their cause is where the growth is.  Help them Own it.

3 Simple Questions

There can be three easy questions you can have in your mind to help know the level a donor/champion is in his/her transformational journey. To refresh your memory of the transformational journey and its three levels of activity, Participant, Engaged, and Owner, you may need to click the level and see how these are defined.

The individual who is involved and begins to participate has answered the question:  “What can I do?”  This is the entry for us all.  We need to start somewhere.

The Participant who begins to ask, “Who else should do this with me?” is ready to function with the cause at the engagement level.  The sphere of influence is now getting bigger than the person and the project. 

The Engaged champion whose actions reflect the question, “Who else needs to know about this?” is now ready to be an owner and transfer the cause to others. Once the cause is being transferred, the individual has owned it is so much duplication begins.

It is really not hard at all to identify the level a champion may be functioning. Your role can be one to help the champion ask the next question to keep the involvement moving in a positive direction.  I fear some fail to disciple the champion because it seems too hard or cumbersome.  Hopefully these three questions help make the moving our champions simpler to understand.

Sometimes it just takes a small adjustment

Be careful not to slip into transaction when the pressure is on to get to the funds now. The method of “10 more donors at $10 a month” can end up being just about YOU. This old method can become stale and ‘me’ focused quickly if we are not careful, because by itself it does not move folks to transformation. A few simple tweaks of this appeal can move this to transformation.

But before we tweak it let's look at the dangers of it without looking for transformation.

Dangers using this appeal in your newsletters:

• Keep in mind that the majority of the ones getting the letters (email) already give monthly so this type of appeal may be preaching to the choir.
• This appeal tends to be all about the missionary and not about the champion.
• This appeal fosters no involvement outside of cash.

So we need to move this appeal to transformation…

1. The time has come for the “O’s” on the mailing list to get different info than the rest of the list. For example the “O” can receive an email the week before the general email saying something like, “Next week we will be sending an update to the team. In this update we will be asking the team to rally together for the last bit of the financial part needed for the ministry in ..wherever.. Let’s join together in prayer this week as God prepares the hearts of those who will receive the coming update.” This now gets the “O’s” mobilized. Then they can also receive the general letter to so they can see it firsthand.

2. When the general letter goes out it needs to move people to action greater than giving. For example it could state, “For those already assisting in the financial goal of the team, ask God what may be next for you. If the Lord shows other ways you can help the cause we would love to hear what God is doing in your journey.”

3. When the general letter goes out it needs to focus on the team and the champion rather than language like “We need or I need only 25 more donors” The “I need” once again makes the champion a spectator not a player.

Example of the tweaks to the “We need only 25 more donors at $40 per month and we can get to the field.” appeal.

“As we all have been working these past few months to mobilize the Gospel for _____, here is an update on how we are doing. To have the ministry extend to _____, $$$$ are needed to reach the financial portion of the outreach goal. So as a team let’s trust God as we work together to see Him provide. One way God can provide is for this need to be shared. For example, the need would be met by 25 new champions at $40. Pray about what God would have you do or whom God would have you talk to about being part of the outreachto _____.”

This is just an example. There are several ways this could be presented. Maybe you could even attach to an email a coupon the champion could print and use to recruit others.

Ownership

In the PEO spectrum of Transformational Giving, most ministries choke a little in thinking of the ownership. Some hate to think of the champion owning. We equate ownership with decision making and control and so we squirm at the idea.

First of all we need to get our need for control under control. God needs to be THE Owner, so perhaps we exercise too much control and the 'non-professional' feels devalued in our ministry. If control equals ownership then we need some redefining.

Transformational Giving does not go well for control freaks (whether the control freak is the ministry leadership or the champion.) You see transformation worries little about who gets credit or who wins the debate. So the word, 'ownership' in a transformational setting need not make us nervous. Rather it can open us up to be more collaborative with our champion base while at the same time not giving everyone who gives a vote on what this year's budget should look like.

Rather ownership can be the guide for our transformational giving and lifestyle. Ever watch a football game? See all the fans with the same color shirt on when the stadium looks all red, or blue or whatever color. The fans all dressed in the same color and dyed hair and painted faces are owners. Ever hear these fans talk about their favorite team. The say things like, "our guys" and "my players". Do the owners get worried about control when 'Joe fan' says, "MY team". Not at all. That is what they want. They want that fan involved and not just a spectator. They want them yelling and making noise and being an influence.

The owners are excited about the ministry. They influence others to get on ‘our team’. They get others excited to part of something big. Give us owners of The Cause!!!

One Size Does NOT Fit All

The last three post we did a flyby of the three levels we can disciple donors/champions in the cause. We have champions who are at the Participation level, Engagement level and Owner level. Now as we think of the champions in these levels of their journey, we begin to see that our communication cannot afford to be a ‘one size fits all’ approach.

Think about the champion who is an owner of the work. They assist in funding, they rally people for prayer and even get others to go on a team or volunteer. Now think of the newest members of your support team. They are just learning the ropes of what is means to be mission active. The idea of being involved on a regular basis is still churning in their mind. Should these two types of champions receive the same communication? Not if the communication is speaking into their need not your need.

TG is about the need of the team member and equipping them for the journey. Most champions are in one of these three levels of activity. The time has come to write communication in at least two, if not three different ways. One letter needs to target the “P” level champion with challenges for them. The second letter could be a letter combined to target the “E” and “O” level champions. This letter is more involved and shares deeper aspects of the ministry and how the champion can continue to be an impact.

Each communication needs to incorporate a challenge. Certainly the challenge to the “E’s” and “O’s” would be different from the challenge to the “P’s”. A good starting point to move your fund-raising into a transformational giving focus is to divide your champions according to their level of activity and then target your communication accordingly. This then reflects the champions need and where they may be in their journey. Now you become a part of their growth in the team and thus we see the discipleship of giving impacted.

The days of one mass newsletter to all level champions, ie. one size fits all, needs to be a strategy of the past.