I received a thank you letter for a donation I made that is something of a testament to just how important customer service is in the non-profit sector. I made a donation to a public radio station about 5,000 miles away from where I live. I like the music and while I don’t listen all the time, I do so enough that I feel obliged to help support the cost of the high speed internet stream I am using.
(By the way, I am willing to wager that my relationship with the station represents a strong possible future of radio listenership.)
Anyhow, I received a nice thank you letter and noticed that there were about 2 paragraphs thanking me, 4 telling me what my benefits would be and seven paragraphs making pledges to me.
The first pledge is prompt service by phone or email rendered personally to me by the person whose business card was inserted in my letter. The first thing I wondered was if the station was well enough organized to make transitions appear seamless as staff turned over. There are going to be some people who never call their rep and others who will establish a relationship with the staff member. A well-kept database will make donors love the station forever if donors feel important to whomever they speak.
The second and third pledges promise my contribution will be processed as quickly and accurately as possible and my thank you gifts will be sent out promptly.
The fourth pledge is that “All appeals for contributions will be honest and straightforward.” (I guess I have quoted and summarized to an extent that I need to cite WXPN as my source.)
The fifth pledge is to “raise funds in the most efficient way we can, assuring that as much of your contribution goes to supporting the music you love.”
These last two pledges are a real acknowledgment of the negative perceptions about fundraising that have emerged in recently years in reaction to outright scandals and stories of how funds have been used for purposes barely connected to the ones solicited.
The final pledge is to continue to bring me the music and programming I rely on them for. While general and vague, this pledge might be important to some people in light of the controversy at WDET this past year. They changed their format and angry donors threatened to sue saying they were solicited under false pretenses since the station knew they were going to change.
As I read over the letter, I wonder if my own acknowledgment letters need to do less thanking and citing of specific instances donations have helped and promise more fidelity and honesty. I don’t know that these latter issues are as important to donors in my community as they are in others. I do think that the the letter portends a possible change in what people will value in the organizations they give to. If nothing else, I will be keeping my eyes open for other signals.