Engaging Supporters Effectively

All organizations must find ways to engage their donors in order to maximize giving. The question is one of scale: how to effectively and efficiently engage a critical mass of donors who want to be engaged. While one-on-one engagement can and should be part of an overall engagement strategy, it will be limited, especially at organizations with a smaller staff and fewer resources. 

One effective and efficient engagement tool is to build a robust advisory board as an important supplement to your organization’s fiduciary board of directors. Advisory boards can and should be quite large and membership of the advisory board should come with clear giving expectations. Additionally, advisory boards should have a well thought out structure and be deeply involved in the ongoing conversation about how to make your organization stronger, better and more impactful. Robust advisory boards should include social activities and regular, systematic interactions with the fiduciary board. Your investment in an advisory board is an investment in a powerful engagement tool that will pay incredible dividends for your fundraising program. It is unrealistic to effectively engage 100 or 200 donors one-on-one on an ongoing basis. With an advisory board however, this level of engagement is realistic. 

Keep in the mind too that the engagement is not just between members and the organization, but it is between the members of the group themselves, thereby creating a deeper sense of community around your organization. Another great benefit of an advisory board is that it will expand your organization’s connection to the community you are seeking to serve. 

Building a robust advisory board is about building a bigger tent with more people on the inside helping to determine the direction of the organization. Advisory boards create more ownership, and it is the owners who will always be your most significant philanthropic contributors.