How committed are you to supporter care and experience?
I’m currently doing research about supporter care teams and how to best structure them to deliver a great experience for the supporter.
I’ll be sharing thoughts and ideas on what I learn in future blog posts.
As part of my research, I came across this post from the excellent Beyond Philosophy blog: “7 Questions That Reveal Whether Your Company Is Committed to CX”. I thought these could be adapted for supporter care and experience.
Why not add the questions to your next team meeting and discuss open and honestly on how you’d score your current efforts?
1. Where does your supporter get put on your agenda?
Crisis’ ‘supporter-in-the-room’ philosophy means that supporters needs are part of the discussions about fundraising. Where, and when, you discuss supporters reflects on how your charity prioritises them.
2. What measurement is in place?
How do you know if supporters are happy? How do you measure their satisfaction or loyalty? What metrics do you have in place to show your supporter care is having a positive impact?
3. Is supporter care seen as an admin/cost-centre rather than a key part of the relationship and an opportunity to increase lifetime value?
In many organisations, thanking is often seen as an admin process rather than a chance to shine. Make sure your team is properly resourced and empowered to go the extra mile for supporters.
4. Are you too focused on short term fundraising income ?
We know the stats about the cost of recruiting a new donor versus retaining an existing one. However, do our budgets reflect this? Do you have a robust retention budget line that you can use to strengthen the supporter experience?
5. How do people talk about supporters at your charity?
Culture matters. How do you talk about supporters when they are not around? Do you use respectful language? Are you focused on experiences and not processes?
6. How much time do senior managers spend talking to supporters?
This is telling. I sometimes meet fundraiser’s who rarely, if ever, speak to supporters. By existing in a bubble you’re missing an opportunity to listen and learn from your supporters. No matter what your role, you should schedule in regular time to speak to your supporters.
As a director of fundraising, I made it my business to try and speak to at least five supporters a week.
7. What sacrifices does your charity make for your supporters?
Do you do the right thing by supporters, even if it is tough? For example, when events were cancelled during covid, did you instantly offer no-quibble refunds? With the cost of living crisis, are you offering your supporters direct debit holidays or the chance to reduce their gift?
It might lose you income in the short term, but these sacrifices will likely be repaid in trust and loyalty over time.
I hope you find the questions useful. If you’ve got any suggestions or examples of great supporter care and experience, then I’d love to hear from you.
Craig