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The Elevator Speech

Naked Consulting - Elevator Speech

We’ve all been indoctrinated to believe that we must have an elevator speech. That 60 seconds you get to tell some random person the things that you are most passionate about. Depending on what your role is in the agency, your speech should be different. AND depending on who you’re speaking to, the speech should be different. Just know that you should have a few different ones in your pocket, you know, next to that receipt that you KNOW you need to turn in for reimbursement (but that you never will)

The Stranger speech: This is standard, the pinnacle of elevator speeches. It’s the one you practice for, where you are literally in an elevator with folx you don’t know and instead of breaking into a dance number, you randomly tell people about your mission. We all do this? Right? I mean, I have been known to randomly dance in elevators, but I have also just shouted out my mission. I was surprised when one person handed me five bucks just for being brave enough to do that. But honestly, I was a wee little unicorn and literally thought that’s what we were supposed to do.

The Ambassador speech: I wish this were as glamourous as it sounds. To have an audience with “ambassadors”….fancy.  While not quite as fancy, your ambassadors are probably more important to you than a dignitary from thousands of miles away. Your speech to your ambassadors should be filled with gratitude for their stewardship, and words of wisdom on how to keep doing the work you are so grateful for. This should also be the speech you close at least one board meeting a year with. Get some words into their ears for their own speeches.

The Donor speech: You totally got this. Remember the worst thing that could happen is that the person you’re talking to says “no”. But hopefully, this is the kind of donor that you are speed dating with. You are both seeing if this is going to be a good fit. Does your passion for the mission match the energy they have for the mission? Will you help them to know that you will be a good steward of their donation? Is this a person you want to steward even further? Do you both like the same ice cream (I’ve had MANY conversations over a scoop in the summer).  So maybe this is a little bit longer than the traditional elevator ride, but maybe not. Be specific. This is an opportunity to tell the donor that you have a specific need- your clients need to be able to purchase groceries so you’re asking for grocery gift cards. Use this speech to give your donor the opportunity to feel good about their contribution. AND give them them the opportunity to give simply and within reach (you may not have been able to do any research when you get here, but people really do want to help!).

There are literally dozens of opportunities to give a speech, or have a speech. Be creative and fun, even if you know that your work is very serious, and your need is very serious. But you know, I’ve been playing in the ED sandbox for a while now, and I KNOW that you all got jokes. But if you need to borrow one, I DEFINITELY have a few I can lend you.

PK

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Capital Campaigns

Naked Consulting - Crisis Center Case Study

You’ve made the decision that it’s time to undertake a major campaign to improve your facilities, your infrastructure, your agency. You’ve set an aggressive goal, and now you have to ask yourself HOW? If you’ve made it this far, chances are you have a pretty clear picture in your head (or at least hope you do). You’ve identified your major donors, cultivated your asks, and maybe even thought about materials. Putting it all together in campaign will be key. The best part of running a major campaign is that you should never have to do it alone.

Campaigns go in phases: The planning phase, the quiet phase and the public phase. Each one is distinct and vital to the success of your campaign. And, importantly, there is no predetermined length of time for the planning and quiet phases. Take your time, be generous with yourself in that regard. Plan, plan again, try, and then make more plans.

Planning

Support for your capital campaign should come from a dedicated committee of people, and perhaps even a consultant to guide the process.  Your committee should be composed of people who don’t entirely serve on your board of directors, unless you have that rare unicorn board every non-profit executive is seeking that does all the fundraising. You should really look at who in your community is willing to champion your cause on  your behalf. They should be connected, they should be willing to do the work, and they should be willing to make asks. If they aren’t willing to do all of these things, move on from them. Capital campaigns require all the work from all the committee members.  Succeed together, fail together.

Your plan should include things like creating a case for support (if you don’t know what this is, call me. Seriously, call). You should explore the creation of your campaign materials- what will they look like and feel like. They should be different than your everyday materials.  It should include your asset inventory, and the inventory from your committee. It should be the place where you create and fine tune your pitch and your asks. It should be the place where your committee has lunch and talks about how your are going to pull this off. It should be a place of learning and training and sharing. AND it should be the place where you establish the majority of the budget you are going to expend to make the money you need.

Shhhh… Quiet phase in progress

The quiet phase of your project should be like a candle lit dinner with your favorite person. The dinner where at the end you’re going to propose, or surprise them with tickets to their favorite show, or that all-inclusive vacation package. Except everyone knows why they are there, and what to expect. The only surprise *might* be the actual amount of the ask. You should expect to raise 50-70% of your goal during your quiet phase, so give it time

. Maintaining momentum throughout the life of your campaign  will be an essential part of the design. If your campaign is long term (more than a year) make sure you are planning activities accordingly. Don’t front load the kickoff with all the exciting events if you haven’t done the work during your quiet phase. And don’t send it out with a bang if your intention is to make up for dramatic shortfalls. Planning looks better on you than desperation.

ATTENTION! ATTENTION! We are doing a thing, and our thing is INCREDIBLE

Let the celebration of your mission begin. Don’t hold back. Tell people about your dreams with impunity. Be real, be vulnerable and let everyone know why your mission matters. This part of the campaign should be the most exciting. There should be media, and videos and thank-yous. There should be emails, and letters and many other strategies. Peer-to-peer fundraising, corporate sponsorships, and timing.  During this phase it’s important hat you also recognize that there are restricted dollars. These funds can’t go to operating, or programming. Be cautious in knowing how to design your “regular” fundraising around this campaign. WOW, that felt like a lot. Remember, the planning phase is important. Take your time so you can have the best public phase, and  fundraising continuity ever.

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When it’s time to go, you always know.

It's Time to Go

Have you ever sat back and asked yourself, “how will I know when it’s time to leave my organization”? Well, I suggest that if you’re asking that question, it’s probably time for a check in. How’s it going, Unicorn? Want to have some tea?  Do you have a plan in place or have you been thinking about one?

I remember taking my very first leadership position (queue the rainbows and Erykah Badu’s “Love of my Life” <—— my favorite song for almost every personal celebration) and I thought that everything was in place if anything ever happened to my ED. I lived in this ignorant bliss for 3 years. I did all of my assigned tasks: I pushed program growth, grew the collective skills of the team, added structure where structure didn’t exist, peeked at the budget, you know… all the things.  Then, one morning I got to work and everything was different. The normal pictures I was so used to seeing in weekly supervision were down from the wall, and boxes were on the desk. My ED gave her notice. MY ED GAVE HER NOTICE.

MY.EXECUTIVE.DIRECTOR.GAVE.HER.NOTICE

No, I wasn’t shocked. It was fine, I was fine, everything was fine. I knew we were going to get through it. I knew that the Board had a plan. I mean, they HAD to have a plan, right? I knew I had never SEEN someone else in the building learning the tricks of the trade, but that didn’t mean things weren’t in motion. I was safe in that thinking until the call came. Their plan was ME.  In all of my time there, this was NEVER once a discourse I entered into. Not one single conversation. Not for a moment did I feel set up for success. The Board was pretty much hands off and said, just business as usual. I had never attended a board meeting. I didn’t know what to prepare (turns out, my predecessor didn’t really prepare anything and my Board didn’t really know how to be a Board) so I got to work, and so did they. We came through that period of transition as a team. We all understood what needed to be done, and how we were going to accomplish it. After my first year, I started my succession planning. It looked like this

PK’S BINDER OF KNOWLEDGE

  •  A copy of all grant reports, ever. (seriously, every one you write)
  • A copy of important donor profiles- the one’s that the new person should probably contact in the first month
  • A Board Binder- complete with the last several months board reports you put together
  • The strategic plan
  • Any Employee evaluations you’ve done in the past year
  • Any employee Performance Improvement Plans
  • Copies of grants
  • An indication of where they can find all the financials they need and at least a quarters worth of P&L’s
  • Your Board list and a list of any potential board members that may be in the queue
  • Any outstanding issues (especially the bad ones), partnerships or MOU’s
  • Anything else you think is important to pass along. This can be anything from a list of vendors to your favorite local ED support group to memberships your org holds.

Most of all, when you are getting ready to transition, don’t hold on to any ill will (if it exists). Set your predecessor up for the success you wish you’d been set up for, or better. Bring them out for lunch and have a really candid conversation about the job, the hard parts and the best parts. Make sure they aren’t surprised by ANYTHING (especially if it’s financial). Most of all, Unicorn, help them shine. Even if your time stewarding the mission is over, the mission must carry on. It is still going to be all of the good things you imagined it would be, all of the good things you dreamed for it, but now it’s just time for someone else to take charge and live their dream (queue the rainbows and Erykah Badu)

PK

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No, Thank you

Naked Spectrum Consulting - No, Thank You

So we have either all been there, or you will get there. We run across a donor who is adamant that they don’t want a thank you; not a card, not a letter, not an email, not even a wave across the counter at the Starbucks in acknowledgement of their gift to your org. HOLD ON TO THOSE PEOPLE!  When you get the initial rebuff of your offering, it’s important to listen to WHY the donor doesn’t want you to take the time out to thank them. You will get a myriad of answers from “don’t waste my donation on a stamp and paper” to “thanks you-s make me uncomfortable” to “you have so many better things that need to be done with your time”. Each of these is valid, and deserves to be respected. It is also fair to ask (I mean, you’re ALREADY speaking), how CAN I acknowledge your donation? If they don’t know, it’s ok, but make a suggestion. Try asking if their cancelled check from their bank is enough of an acknowledgement, or ask if a phone call is appropriate.  They may say, don’t ever contact me, I’ll contact you!  Take them at their word. I know, it’s hard, but it’s all part of stewardship. Think of how much more that donor will feel like they can give because they were heard! And anyway, at the end of the year when you are sending out all of those cumulative “this is how much you donated this year” letters, they’ll see it, and be thankful that you listened.

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Balance.

Naked Spectrum Consulting - Balance

This definitely isn’t an easy one for me to write, or to admit, but I’ve lost myself in a deep spiral to the mission. And not only did I lose myself, but there was collateral damage,  A LOT of it.  Just to give you an example:

  • My 23 year marriage
  • Endless numbers of my kids school events
  • Several family holidays (the big ones)
  • I don’t exist in pictures with people I love
  • Vacations, daytrips and escape rooms
  • Friendships
  • All of my hobbies
  • Baby showers
  • Weddings

You get the picture. I put the mission before anything and everything. It was a convenient escape and a terrifying realization. Now, 2600 miles away from the only place I’ve known as “Home” for the last 25 years, 2600 miles away from my teenage son, 2600 miles away from my sister and brothers, I’m rebuilding. I’m grateful to the ones that stuck around to help me through this, because they deserve better from me. I’m thankful for better boundaries and for people who hold me accountable to the life I said I want to create for myself. But it makes me sad to know that I am definitely not alone in this. There are so many of us who lose ourselves to our missions, and we don’t talk about it enough.

So I think it’s time to recommit to ourselves. With all the pivots, and quarantines, and endless meetings, it’s time to really evaluate what we are doing. I realized today that it is easier for me to say yes to more meetings because I don’t have to drive anymore. It’s easier for me to schedule six, one hour long zoom meetings because non of it requires any travel for me. It’s easy for me to not take a lunch break because I feel like stepping away, while working from home makes me feel like I am not holding up my end of the deal. But you know what, the narrative I am speaking to myself is in direct opposition to how I truly feel.

It’s ok to say no to the 5th meeting. It’s ok to not turn your camera on. It’s ok to take a sick day. It’s ok to plan a day off and sit on the couch and comfort eat chips and dip (Original Ruffles are my favorite). It’s ok to want to snuggle your pets or partner at 2 in the afternoon after a marathon morning. It’s OK to not be productive for 12 hours a day!! Mostly, it OK to find your personal joy. Give yourself permission to acknowledge that you deserve it. For all of you Unicorns that are losing people, losing your passion, losing your wits…It’s ok to ask for help. I wish I would have listened to myself sooner.

PK

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Burnout

Naked Spectrum Consulting - Burnout

I’m feeling it, you’re feeling it. It’s ok to admit it. Covid has been a real strain on our resources, our emotions, and on our positivity. I feel like the messages of “just keep swimming” are falling over into the toxically positive realm and as much as I want to be here for it, I’m not here for it.

Self care looks different for everyone. For some it really is taking a long hot bath and reading a book. For others, its a hike or a really aggressive bike ride. Finding what works for you is like shoe shopping, keep trying pairs on until something feels just right. I used to have a really good self-care routine. It involved a lot of time sitting in front of the ocean, picking up rocks and throwing them is. The thing about it was that each rock and I had a long conversation about what was troubling me, and when I felt strong enough to let that go, I threw the rock in the ocean and literally let it go. Sometimes, rocks would stay with me for a week or more. Every time I had to take it home with me, I wrote a little something on the rock as a reminder that I still had much to work through. But, my friends, I moved away from the Atlantic Ocean and I have yet to find anything as therapeutic as the rock throwing. I’m toxically positive that I will find a replacement though! California living is kind of a cool thing in that I have “access” to all the seasons that I want to access, and I can literally find an activity to do indoors or out during every season of the year!

For now, I still seek some solace in rocks. I find myself picking them up, even collecting a few. I found one that looks like my old home state of NH and I hold onto it a lot. Me and NH have history y’all.

How’s self care looking for you in this Covid spun world? I’d like to feel the burn of the sun on my skin soon (not in a melanoma kind of way, but with plenty of SPF for sure) and I’d like to get on a plane soon. What has your journey looked like? I feel like some people were just born with an understanding of how to care for themselves emotionally and physically, and me, well, for now it’s just me and this rock.

PK

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Design for all Materials

Naked Spectrum Consulting

Make a mental outline. Let your brain organize the information and then lay out your design in a way that communicates((Something that is difficult for most people to do. Often a language barrier also exists.)) that order. If the band’s name is the most essential information, place it in the center or make it the biggest element on the poster. Or you could put it in the strongest, boldest type. Learn about color theory and use strong color combinations to make the band name pop.

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Logo Design

Shann Kathleen Logo

Your logo needs to be easily identifiable at a glance. Allow for changes of size and colour. Good logos deliver something unexpected and are unique without being complicated.

Starbucks, this logo is universally recognized worldwide. The story behind the Starbucks logo gives it a very unique quality among its contemporaries. Can you think of any other globally known coffee company that has an identity as unique as the Starbucks logo where the story and values permeate the identity in a simplistic way? The execution of the logo is clean symmetrical and its application into multi purpose usage backs up how simple the visual representation is.

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Planned Giving

Naked Spectrum Consulting - Planned Giving

You know, it’s never easy to talk about this topic. It’s not easy for some of us to even think about it. Planned giving is an opportunity that so many of us are missing from our fundraising strategies simply for this reason. SO it’s time to make it part of the conversation. Start small, maybe with your own will, or ask someone you know and trust to have the conversation with (be clear that it’s just for practice…unless you think the actual ask is appropriate), but start nonetheless.

Planned giving is not about death, and well, you probably shouldn’t frame it that way.  Planned giving is about a  donors continued support of your agency through their legacy. When talking about planned giving it’s important to get a clear understanding of what your donors intentions are and to give them clarification on what your agency’s intentions are. Do they want to leave you stock and do they know exactly what it is that you are going to do with it (because you ARE going to sell it)? Are they going to leave you a cash gift and does it have any contingencies on it (*think* restricted dollars)? What about a home that they want you to use as a new shelter? Are you equipped financially to take on that kind of capital expenditure for upkeep/maintenance/ renovation?

Planned giving is also not like your standard everyday giving. You won’t see any Facebook fundraisers of people leaving your agency legacy gift.

(DRAFT)

Before you jump out there and make all of these asks, first, be prepared. Your agency needs a brokerage account. You’ll probably have to have your Board President or Treasurer sign off on this step, but if you skip it, you could be left unable to receive any gifts of stock

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CRM Support

Naked Spectrum Consulting - CRM Support

Data management can be a drag. Tracking, logging, entering, rechecking, reports, dashboards OH, MY! What makes the task even more overwhelming to me is the actual place we house all of our data. CRMs are inevitably part of our everyday existence. The fidelity of our data will ultimately help us in so many ways from donor relations, to grant reporting, to getting a snapshot (or a deep dive) into the people that we are serving.  But our data is only as good as the people entering it, and only as useful as our ability to extract the data from our CRM.

If you ask the Google Machine about a CRM, it will give you north of 2 million results. Everything from “the 10 best CRMs for Non-Profits” to ads selling a particular make and model. Read those articles, talk to your ED friends, make a list (check it twice) and ask for demos.  Scheduling a demo is easy; send an email, get a calendar request and set aside 30 minutes to be dazzled. I’ve not participated in a demo yet that wasn’t impressive. But remember- the people dazzling you with all of their fancy graphs and tables are professional users of this CRM. Of course they know how to make all the fancy things work, but I’m sure they couldn’t tell you how to write a grant report with that data, or how to introduce shelter animals to foster care, or how to support a victim of wage theft get what’s owed to them.

Finding a CRM that fits for you and your agency can be a labor of love.  Go to any non-profit support page and it is filled with suggestions from Neon, to Little Green Light, to Salesforce and on and on. Ultimately, what you choose will be important to you and your mission.  Take the time to do multiple demos, and after, make a list of questions for each of them and ask for a follow up demo. The second one could be as long as 90 minutes, but it is imperative that you get all of your questions answered. Be sure to ask about specific functionality: Do you want to be able to make a scan/ID card for your participants to make data entry easier on your staff? Do you want to track case load by employee? Do you want to see how many times a participant interacts with your mission? Do you want to run a donor report that covers every cash donation, EVER? How about the user interface? Is it intuitive? Will it take an expensive TA package to get you up and running? Will it help you in creating the monthly Board report? Will it magically erase all of your data one day but thankfully, it backs itself up? Where is your data stored? And a HUGE one to ask EVERY SINGLE CRM rep you speak with….Who owns your data and is there a cost to extract that data if you decide to leave the software? Trust me on this one fellow unicorn, that last one is a very important piece of information to  get.

Have fun on your search. Don’t get them all jumbled in your head-because they can be very similar (especially since you are asking all of the same questions). Space out the demos and don’t ever feel pressured to purchase something you aren’t sure about. They will all be around in Q3 when you have that last minute tech spend down that you’ve been planning for! Many EDs have gone before you in the search, and many will come after you. Let’s have some fun while we change the world, enjoy a demo and some popcorn (call me, I’ll send it!)

PK