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Faculty Essays

Give, or the Dog Gets Shot!

Written by James Kolakowski on December 5, 2024.

Marketer Seth Godin tells a story about the early days of Mad magazine. Subscriptions had stalled and the publication was in peril. In an attempt to boost revenue, the magazine’s editors made a provocative appeal to readers: “If you don’t buy this magazine we’ll kill this dog!”

Whether implicit or explicit, most annual fundraising campaigns carry this same message. Though usually couched in more sanguine language such as, “Keep the lights on!” or “Cover the gap!” At the heart of campaign copy there is an implied negative consequence for not giving. 

While this can be effective for a time, in the long run it’s not a truly compelling reason for why someone should support your charity. So, fundraising genius, what’s the solution? 

Let’s take a step back. 

When a school begins (I work at a school but this applies to most endeavors), it often does so through a giving program focused on big ticket items such as land purchases, buildings, books, and equipment. These are conspicuous goods that allow the school to open its doors and leap into its work. Donors at this stage of the project are proud to support the undertaking with joy and vigour in order to see the school’s vision become a reality. Giving is public, flush, and exciting. 

Over time the need for grand physical items diminishes. With good cause. There are only so many buildings the land can support or books the bookshelves can hold. And yet, the need for funding continues apace.

Enter the annual fund. 

As all seasoned school fundraisers are aware, most private schools supplement their tuition revenue with voluntary annual giving. This allows the school to keep the price of tuition as low as possible while simultaneously increasing funding for other areas, such as financial aid and community benefits; new sports equipment is not always necessary, but it sure makes you feel good to see the home team take the field in crisp uniforms. 

This is important funding. But it can also feel more like a tax because it is asked for every year while appearing like there is little to show for it – although those families receiving financial aid would certainly beg to differ. Gift officers are therefore tasked with passing the basket every few months to bring in dollars to sustain the programs new parents signed up for at admission and from which so many alumni have already benefited…without anything particularly shiny to show for it. The focus becomes the bottom line. 

Without an appeal to mission, the reason for the school’s existence, it can be tempting to deploy bombastic or worse, gimmicky, messaging to get this job done as quickly as possible. (This is also likely a reason why turnover in fundraising positions is so high…more on that in another article.) Of course these threats are rarely real, and proven so by their yearly repetition, but they are far from cultivating the same enthusiasm that founding families felt when the school first began. 

Instead, growing a culture of generosity should be the aim. 

Ideally, gifts to the annual fund should be enthusiastic affirmations of why parents chose your school for their child and the impact the school made in the life of its alumni. Donors should be excited to continue to support the school’s mission and to participate in growing an already excellent community. 

This is tough work. Which is why I’ve found successful fundraisers often spend less time word-smithing time sensitive copy, and more time emphasizing in word and in person how great their school is in as many ways as possible. Don’t get me wrong, the annual fund is must have money but taking the time to stress the privilege of supporting your work each year for the consequent benefits it provides is worth much more overall.   

When community members are engaged and grateful it is natural for them to ask, what can I do to help? Providing them with an opportunity to support the school they care about, even in a way that doesn’t always result in a big new building, is an investment in growing a generous and thankful community. And this is a compelling case that will necessarily grow in the long run along with an increasing number of donors. Their gift will truly make a difference, even if it doesn’t come with a bronze plaque in commemoration.

But speaking of plaques, annual funds will naturally be supplemented every decade or so by exceptional appeals for support. New books will be needed eventually, and perhaps new classrooms as well to hold all your growing numbers of happy students. But these gifts will come most readily from a mature annual fundraising program filled with people who are excited and proud to give every year. And then the enthusiasm that started the school is rekindled again. 

To sum up:

  • Big giving campaigns can’t sustain a project or a mission indefinitely. Nor can everyone be expected to give at such a high level all the time. Not every at-bat can (or should) result in a home run.
  • Using the annual fund to develop a culture of generous giving will, however, provide a sure foundation for sustainable growth. 

So, please, don’t threaten violence if you can help it.

 

Connect with me on LinkedIn to continue the conversation.