Seth Godin notices something important about charitable giving: It's very good for the giver. See Selling the benefits of charity.
If Seth is right (and he is), shouldn't that affect how we raise funds?
... charity is an incredible bargain. For the time and money it costs, the benefits exceed what could be attained in almost any other way. A bargain compared to chocolate, or an amusement park visit or buying a shiny new car you probably don't need. I think marketers of causes that do good have a long way to go in selling the public on the core reason to give....
We get caught up in selling our programs, as if what we do is the sole reason donors give. Our programs are important to donors, but they're secondary to the inner rewards of giving.
That's why smart fundraising is about donors, not about programs.
It looks like we're asking donors to help us change the world. What we're really doing is asking to be part of donors' self-transformation.
That's why the most important word in fundraising is you.
It's also why organization-focused brands always depress fundraising results.
If your fundraising is not built on the assumption that the main topic is donors, you will always be swimming upstream, struggling pointlessly to motivate giving from people who want to give.
