Innovative Thinking

Nonprofits and organizations often get stuck in the same path with the same programs or services. They often wonder why numbers are decreasing and struggle to find solutions. Innovation seems scary and requires a bid dollar sign. Yet, innovation can start anywhere.

Innovation is new thinking, new ways of doing things. We can have innovation programs, innovative marketing, innovative fundraising, and the list continues. An organization can be innovative by pushing limits, destroying previous boundaries, and creating ideas anew.

Innovation is not just for nonprofits with money- that is a self-limiting proposition. Innovation is about what is next.

So what are some simple ways to start being innovative?

1) Give yourself and your staff time to THINK.

Innovation thinking requires muscles and working out. You won't be able to be innovative on a switch. You need to stretch and use those muscles, building them up. You need to be able to think without burden of today's expectations, knowledge, and restrictions. To start, give yourself time to simply think. You may need to leave the office, turn off your mobile, and let your mind wander. On a regular basis, instead of reaching for you mobile in downtime to check Instagram or Facebook, stretch your innovative mind and dream. Surrounding yourself with inspiring ideas and people may also help your innovative muscles flex.

2) Be Curious.

Ask WHY? Ask How?

Know your customers/clients. Don't just look at the quantitative data and extract meaning. While focus groups are a step up, its still not a natural environment. Spend time getting to know them, ask them why and drill down to real meaning. Leaders need to do this, too. Another method is to bring people that work with the clients every day into idea meetings (or even the clients, themselves!), they will be the ones asking questions and bringing up ideas that aren’t constrained by current thought on strategy or budget.

3) Ask "What if" we didn't have to follow the current industry rules?

What if we didn't have to wait for a taxi? (Uber!) What if we didn't have to go to the store, but the store came to me? (Netflix or Amazon!) What if movies could be 3-D experiences in real life? (Disneyworld!)

Instead of answering "No, because ....", to brainstorming and innovative thinking, respond with, "Yes, and...."

"Yes, and..." creates bigger, more creative ideas. "No, because" belittles ideas, subsequently creating an environment or response that lessons each time. Be bold, say "YES" now and whittle the bid ideas down later.

4) Think Experiences. The next generation won’t care about the products or brands you offer. They care about how they feel. You need to provide what they want… Good Memories, which are often built from experiences!

Remember to think without budget and constraints! What if? Yes!

Meal Planning for a Nonprofit

I think I may be hungry, but bare with me.

Executive Directors, Boards, and Managers seemly never have enough time to do everything that needs to be done, within in budget and well. It is absolutely true that the to-list never ends.

In that sense then, when does a mother’s (or father's) to-do list ever end? If you don't try, you and the kids will be eating pizza all week long. I know I have!

What is the most common answer to finding time for feeding her little army in a healthy way? Meal Plan! Duh! The dinner maker looks at their schedule, when they will be home and

away at ball games, thinks about what meals she wants to make, what she needs to buy (bulk, anyone?), buys online, and preps ahead! Ok sure, but when? You have to take few minutes of time before you are in the midst and steam-line! While you are at it, think ahead and freeze those meals! I have a freezer full of those, "oh crud! whats for dinner moments!"

In the same manner, nonprofit leaders, even those super busy leaders, need to understand that taking time to plan saves the organization in the long run.

~PLAN THE MENU Planning sets priorities, what the organization will do or not do? What does the organization need to prioritize to be healthy?

~SET THE BUDGET The priorities should be attached with budgets to really streamline the future year’s spending.

~GO SHOPPING! BUY IN BULK! What do you need to succeed? Nonprofits can use their planning process to understand which programs best align with goal progression. Those programs well aligned should be your top priority.

~PREP and STREAMLINE. Nonprofits should also find ways to streamline their processes (buy online, anyone?). What technological tools, such as CRM systems or credit card processing, can streamline your work, such as eliminating double entry or automatically sending emails, etc. Organizations pressed for resources, often have a hard time thinking about prepping ahead, but this might be key. What ingredients do you need to succeed?(Chop all the onion today versus a quarter a night!) Start working on accumulating the resources early. What staff? What knowledge? What technology? What capabilities do you need to succeed in your goals?

~Eat and Enjoy!

Thank your donors!

You worked hard to get each donation. Now use that donation to build a relationship bringing the donors close to the cause and the organization, starting with thanking your donors.

It is incredibly important to build a connection with donors as nonprofits tend to lose about half of their annual donors. Moreover, current and lapsed donors are much more likely to donate again. You actually have very slim chances of securing a donor from a prospective even though it takes considerably more time to attract new donors!

There are many ways to say “THANK YOU.” But to make the thank you meaningful, there are a couple of things to consider. Thinking of your donor and their desires will make your thank you more considerate and appreciated. Remember those audience personas? This is another example of messaging that matches those personas. Some donors may wish to remain anonymous, others may want public recognition, some may want a special token, others may lean toward the digital. Major donors do not tend to appreciate gifts, but big contributors tend to like special access. If you don’t know why your donors donate or what their passions are, this is an opportunity to learn more about them! Create donor events and talk to them! Be creative!

Remember that donors donate because of their passion and goals. Your thank you should remind them what your organization is doing with the funds, with specific mention of a particular program that might interest them specifically. Don’t be overly focused on the organization though, or they might not feel their contribution is part of the process. Thank you notes could also apprise them of milestones or steps on the process. Thank you notes should inspire them and make them feel like part of the journey. Most importantly, the thank you should appreciate the donor and your relationship, as well as express how much the organization values them as part of the team or community.

Don’t delay your thank you, either! While a donor management system can immediately send a thank you, a personalized thank you note should be sent within a week (software can help you with reminders as well as sending personalized notes based on personas), but definitely within 90 days. Delayed communication suggests that you don’t value them as much as you say you do. Make thank you notes a priority. After the original thank you, you should also keep donors apprised of the programming and process throughout the year, but at least once more, such as the anniversary of the gift or at the end of the project.

Thank you notes can be creative and remember that they help the organization retain donors! You could send them a welcome packet that includes stories, photos, etc; actual paper or digital cards for birthdays, anniversary of gifts, and cards could be designed by staff or recipients or handwritten cards (this can be purchased online); videos of work being done; party invites, including donor only events; social media shout outs, newsletters with donor lists or profiles, or digital photo books. There are so many ideas!

Thank you notes need to be personal and thoughtful, but they don’t need to take considerable time. Using the proper software and managing content properly, can make the process easier through automation. The process is about stewardship, and will be rewarding in the long run!