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In many fundraising teams, donor stewardship follows a predictable script: a $250 donor gets a thank-you note and an annual report, a $500 donor also receives a quarterly newsletter and so on. While this approach acknowledges generosity, it also keeps donors in a holding pattern—focused on their last contribution rather than future possibilities.

What if stewardship wasn’t just about recognition and acknowledgement? By aligning stewardship with moves management, we can create a dynamic, forward-facing strategy that deepens engagement and drives transformational giving.

This summer, the Donor By Design Team is considering new ways grow the relationship with our donors… moving beyond the thank you note to a deeper connection. Today’s topic: how do you learn your supporters’ stories? 

Great communicators treat storytelling as an art. They know it’s among the most effective ways to make a point, set a tone and connect with an audience of any size. Stories bring organizational mission to life, give a face to a case and leave long-lasting impressions. As fundraisers, we are eager to tell stories, and if done well, we have the opportunity to entertain, educate and inspire. We often enter rooms prepared to network, armed with our best stuff, ready to impress! What could possibly go wrong?

Listening to author Chimanmanda Ngozi Adichie’s TED talk, “The Danger of a Single Story,” I was reminded of a trap that I often fall into while researching donor prospects.
Through web searches, wealth screenings and giving histories, I begin to develop a profile that guides my assumptions, strategies and engagement plans. From my research, I begin to understand who the donor is and how he or she might connect to a given cause.
Or do I?
As Ms. Adichie points out, when we base our perceptions of a person from limited data and knowledge, we are in real danger of building and perpetuating their “single story.”
Please don’t misunderstand me. There is great value in prospect research to understand giving trends and capacity. My point is that capacity is only one part of the donor engagement formula. Understanding a prospect’s interest is most often the key to unlocking the potential of a deeper connection.
In fact, the most effective way to better understand someone is to visit with them, ask questions and listen! Too often we think we know someone by his or her reputation or public image. Sometimes we simply define someone by their net worth, occupation or past achievements. We fall into the trap of the “single story.”
If you want to truly understand your potential donors, seek to know them beyond their single story. Bruce Berglund, President of Donor By Design, often asks people when he meets them to share their life story from birth to today in 5 minutes. While people are initially surprised by this question, they spend the next 5 minutes (often longer) sharing the many facets of their life journey, including their passions, dreams, victories, disappointments and lessons learned.
Those stories tell us so much more about what inspires, motivates and compels a donor than a simple glimpse at their giving history and net worth ever could.
If you want to go deep, push beyond the trap of the single story.
Watch this powerful TED Talk for yourself:

This blog recently appeared on the NAYDO (North American YMCA Development Organization) website. We thought you’d enjoy it too, if you’re a Y or any other nonprofit, school or church.

A big part of what I do with my non-profit clients is help them to develop and refine their case for support? What’s a “case?” It’s simply a collection of compelling reasons (both data and stories) as to why an organization is worthy of support. You’ve probably made a case for support at some point in your career – be it a letter, a grant proposal or a sales conversation over coffee.

“Nobody really goes hungry in America.”