Explain your role and reduce confusion
I was at a meeting with a donor who almost rejected a solicitation from a nonprofit because the Executive Director WAY overstated their role in a project. My client, who is a funny guy, looked me deadpan in the face when I walked in the room, and said - “you know that X group is solely responsible for Y victory?” I looked at him confused because we both knew that many nonprofits, decision-makers, and public agencies were involved. The nonprofit leader almost lost his donation because in saying that his nonprofit was responsible for the entire victory he became untrustworthy in the eye of the donor. Don’t let this be you.
I offer you the tips on how to explain your role so that the donor is impressed, but also how not to overstate your importance so that you lose credibility and trust.
Pro Tip: Don’t pretend that your nonprofit is the only group necessary to conquer the major societal issue you are trying to solve. Be clear about your worth, but be humble in your delivery.
Now let's get into the top two things you should do when describing your role:
Explain your expertise
Think carefully about the staff and volunteers at your nonprofit. When you think about them, what stands out to you? For example, are they scientists, educators, policy wonks, or communications gurus? Be sure to talk about your nonprofit’s expertise in your pitch.
Demonstrate your worth
Explain how your nonprofit offers tangible value to the cause you care about. Ask yourself, if your nonprofit did not exist what is the gap you would leave behind, and why would it be a problem? Then talk about your worth from a place of abundance - explain that you are essential because you fill a role that no other organization can cover. Don’t forget to also talk about how important other nonprofits and decision-makers are in the effort so that you don’t overstate your worth, but be sure to explain your importance in bold terms.
And now for the two mistakes I don’t want you to do, and I see all too often:
Solo practitioner - You act like you are the only nonprofit that does the work you do. I’ve never seen a situation where only one organization is needed to address any major societal issue. I stated this already, but I want to repeat. Be sure to explain your role in the context of the big picture and what everyone is doing together to address the major societal issue you also care about.
Forget to address your role all together - You don’t explain how your organization fits into the bigger picture and just assume that a donor knows your role in addressing the major societal issue you want to solve.
And now for positive examples of what you should do (facts altered to preserve anonymity)
Explain your expertise
X staff attorney, Lynn Radish, is a co-lead of a larger coalition of top environmental protection organizations working to promote the adoption of the Natural and Working Lands policy and the Healthy Soils policy initiative. This project reflects X co-leadership for the Climate Local Network in the natural and working lands sectors.
Demonstrate your worth
Water Quality: X staff serve as members of the Land Coalition, Water Futures project, Water Policy Table and the State Agency’s Pesticide Stewardship Partnership Group (informing practices related to water quality impacts of chemicals exceeding aquatic benchmarks).
And now for the mistakes - Why do you think that this summary is an example of what not to do?
X nonprofit negotiated a new conservation proposal that is much improved and more viable than previous proposals, including by generating expansive, broad-based public engagement on the Y landscape, as outlined below. We also gathered a coalition of organizations to develop a new campaign to build public and political support for protecting this landscape. The monument campaign publicly launched in September 2023.
I hope you now have a good understanding to explain your important role to a donor so that they will be as passionate as you are about what your nonprofit does.
Check out the recording of my live training on this issue by searching for “Do Your Good” on any of your favorite podcast streaming sites and then listening to my training on this matter.