This post from John Haydon http://goo.gl/FI5Bq really hit a chord for me - the last few presentations I've stressed how imperative it is to hit upon one very simple theme - are you asking the right questions? Besides engaging are you finding your flag carriers?
I always like to tell the story about the pet owners who gift wrap a present for their dog - it's a crazy story http://goo.gl/qnqwB but one that helps drive home the point of asking the right questions to find who in a large group of members will have no problem going into battle with you. As John points out in his piece about asking the most important question of a first time donor, this process of data mining is key to understanding what you are doing right or what you need to change.
The tools we have available are plentiful and as I reminded a recent attendee who asked questions related to comparing Google + versus Facebook - it's not always about the new tools but more about why you and your organization are reaching out and can your culture from a resource perspective support these tools.
We sometimes forget it's not about having and using ALL the tools, it's about using the right tool for the right job. Have we forgotten about the Phone? Has the "industry" and "caller ID" services made us gun shy about actually picking up the phone every so often and reaching out to our donors?
Yep, it's time consuming making phone calls - you can reach more people more quickly with an email blast with links to impersonal polling services and while most people may find the call intrusive there is a theory that they gave you their phone number for a reason. Perhaps we are overlooking an opportunity or a hidden subliminal message that our members want to connect, they DO WANT YOU TO CALL . . . . it's OK talk to them.
Making that phone call in todays world is kinda old fashion - much like that letter writing thing we do - ahhh, letters. Yep, just another tool in the shed, keep those lawn blades sharp folks!
Michael Sola finds solutions and can translate tech into english. He's a blogger, invited presenter and speaker, he listens - he also rarely has to show ID to walk into a pub. Follow him at http://twitter.com/michaelsola orhttp://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelsola : his views and comments are his own. He doesn't like talking about himself in the 3rd person, just ask him.
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