How does your brand leave space for your donor to be a part of your story? At the end of the day, effective fundraising has very little to do with your logo or brand story. In fact, your branding could be working against you and pushing donors away.
Sorry, not sorry.
Throughout my career, I have seen too many great ideas dismissed with a swoop of the hand and someone saying, “I’m sorry. This doesn’t adhere to our brand guidelines.” #cries
Every director or fundraiser I have worked with will tell you that I've tried to skirt around their “guidelines.”
That's because guidelines are often created by branding agencies or by people who do not have donors at the front and center of their mind. They are getting in the way of your ability to tell great stories and create effective fundraising that your donor will love and cherish.
There. I said it.
Branding is a commercial idea, acting as a sort of professional bubble wrap, that tends to get in the way of emotive, vulnerable fundraising conversations with our loving donors. In the context of effective fundraising, your branding guidelines and your logo really aren’t that important.
In fact, I’ve seen instances where including your logo on the outer envelope lowers the response rate.
That said, branding and your logo probably are not the deal breaker between getting a gift vs. not getting a gift.
Your brand should be about how your donors experience you in the stories you tell them and about the problems you solve together. It is the way the donor feels when they give to you. It is the promises you make to them and the values you and they share together.
All branding, all marketing, all communications, are part of fundraising. They serve the same master, which ultimately is your ability to raise funds and meet the needs of your mission.
Your donor doesn’t know, nor do they care:
• what your font is
• what PMS colour your logo uses
• that it’s your 10th Anniversary
• about your latest “awareness” campaign
• when they are scheduled to get your next e-blast or piece of mail
• about all the amazing things you do
• about your brand story
• what your mission statement is.
Your donor wants to:
• know how you used their last gift
• feel like they are important to meeting the needs of your mission
• know what problem they can help solve today and why they should care
• know what the problem is
• feel needed, like a part of the team
• feel appreciated for their efforts
• be remembered
• make the world a better place
• help you WIN.
John Lepp is a direct response, marketing and graphic design expert with almost 25 years of experience working with charities around the world to help them tell better stories and to inspire donors to give, both online and offline. He is a respected and coveted international speaker who has traveled the world helping fundraisers be more “human” and “vulnerable” to these other amazing humans we call donors. Let him know what you think! You can reach him at john@agentsofgood.org
