January 6, 2011

Donors Have Needs, Too

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs may remind you of your freshman Psych 101 class, but Mark Phillips of Queer Ideas makes a convincing argument that meeting donors’ needs is the key to successful fundraising.

People give because they have a need to help. They don’t give because they want a specific charity to do the work. By focusing on answering this need rather than just presenting a problem, we generate more money.  I’ve seen it in results time after time.

Phillips has distilled years of fundraising experience and research into four key categories of donor needs.  I encourage you to check them out—you may just see yourself in them.