The game changing tip that gets the vibe right for F2F charity fundraisers
Presenting as warm and personable is proven to be the absolute best way to motivate giving. Whilst lots of professional fundraisers do this naturally, we’ve found a simple way to get the vibes just right before the ask.
As we’ve already established in our other fundraising blogs magic words that work for fundraisers’ and ‘fundraisers tips for grabbing and keeping attention’ the words we use hold enormous power.
But apart from choosing the right words to speak to donors, there are ones we should be avoiding too! In particular, jargon and technical terms can actually harm the fundraiser pitch.
Let’s explore more about simplifying your fundraising can be a game changer for donors and your charities.
It feels good to know stuff right? And we’d be forgiven for wanting to show off about all the different things we know.
But sometimes when we’ve learned about something in depth, it’s easy to get carried away and forget others don’t have the same insight.
We take for granted that everyone else knows what we’re talking about and often start using spiel that really only others in the industry actually understand. And that’s when people stop listening.
Don’t get us wrong; using industry type language definitely does show authority and expertise. This is especially effective when we want to show that we’re knowledgeable among our peers because it’s the ‘proper’ and correct way to discuss what our company does.
But this type of language should be kept in-house and not out in the field.
It’s not about dazzling your potential donor with fancy long industry driven words.
Memorising facts, reciting information and using industry jargon might mean someone is an expert, but it doesn’t buy them automatic respect and donors.
Being a charity fundraiser is about having a library of information and being able to select the most relevant bits to share in each individual conversation that triggers that all important emotional response. That’s the difference between being a charity buff and having great salesmanship.
A true ‘expert’ encounters a new situation and their ability to accommodate and adapt relies on how well the can apply their knowledge in the here and now.
Learn more about why charity fundraising is the best sales job there is
Why is jargon bad in charity fundraising?
In fundraising, terminology, abbreviations, colloquialisms, technical terms and formal language put donors off for two main reasons.
These words are simply not meaningful to them and unless you want to turn it into a charity tutorial (which would be even more off-putting), jargon should be replaced with simple easy to understand words.
This type of tech-speak language immediately signals ‘business’ which totally contradicts how people want to think of charity
When most people think about charity, they envisage and like the change-making, do-gooding, philanthropic elements to shine through the most. With the monetary side of things it’s less comfortable because nobody wants to think of charity as money-making.
Aside from an unwanted emotional link between charity and business, there’s also the ‘selling’ angle.
The fact is, nobody wants to feel like they’re being sold to (unless they’ve specifically put themselves in a situation where they’ve asked for the information).
If they’re open to a conversation, only to be bombarded with business-like terms and language, they could get bored and worse, defensive, which is possibly the worst state of mind a potential donor can be in.
So why is fundraising different to selling?
Charity fundraising uses sales skills, but is far more than just ‘sales’. Trying to persuade someone to regularly donate to charity is nothing like selling a car or a house or a new sofa. It’s not about listing benefits and describing top features. There are far more barriers and there is a lot more psychology and human connection involved.
In fact, the chemical reactions in the brain during a sales transaction and a fundraising transaction are completely different.
Brain imaging research shows that, while there are some shared neural processes in both types of transactions, there is a key difference.
With charitable donations, the part of the brain that’s stimulated produces oxytocin. Oxytocin (OT) has been shown to facilitate trust, empathy and other prosocial behaviours.
In other words, donating and giving to charity makes people feel a sense of bonding and love.
When a person gives, it’s instinctively about a social emotion connection. Coincidently, the social emotion connection appears most in family bonding, such as when a parent looks at their child or when a partner looks at their spouse.
Another thing that stimulates oxytocin is human touch.
Touching is a powerful and universal way to communicate distinct emotions. Even a squeeze of the hand can mean several different things from support to comfort to conveying love. Each one feels slightly different, even when it’s delivered by a stranger.
To demonstrate this, one study paired up strangers and separated them by a barrier with a small hole in it. One participant put an arm through the hole, while the other tried to communicate 12 different emotions by briefly touching their partners arm. Overall, the subjects who were touched could detect gratitude, sympathy and love with a nearly 60% accuracy
So when fundraisers pat someone’s back, touch their arm or shake someone’s hand, they’re initiating a positive bond. Pair that up with informal, warm language and tone and they’re altogether winning.
In fact one study showed an increase of 243% in giving with those touched, to those not!
““We found that touch significantly elevated circulating oxytocin (OT) levels but only when it was followed by an intentional act of trust. Touch followed by trust increased monetary sacrifice by 243% relative to untouched controls. ”
Getting the right fundraising vibe
If fundraisers routinely check in and ‘humanise’ their conversation they’re far more likely to win the time and the heart of the prospective donor.
By stopping for a moment and asking ourselves if we’d use the phrase in a normal conversation with our granny or a favoured aunt, fundraisers will instantly know if they’re on the right track.
Think about it, what sounds better?
Make a financial transaction to this canine
Or
Give a gift to this sweet dog in need
Using the same theory of how language, touch and giving releases oxytocin and promotes a sense of social wellbeing in face to face fundraising, charities would do very well to use the same techniques with their regular donors too.
In other words, when we want to build relationships and bond with family members we call, write and visit. We share our news and we show them we love them. And guess what - charity donor bonding works in exactly the same way.
Face to face fundraising is a challenging career choice for anyone, but we know how rewarding it can be too because our own Charity Link fundraisers tell us exactly that.
Our award winning training academy sees people with no experience at all transform into fantastic professional fundraisers who make a meaningful difference whilst earning a great income.
If you’re thinking about a career change, we welcome your contact and would love to chat more about the opportunities we have nationwide.
