I don't know about you, but my experience as a customer in many stores lately has been truly deplorable. It seems that customer service, and sometimes even simple human decency, is not common sense anymore, let alone part of the training package for employees. When did businesses forget that good service is the key to loyal customers?
It got me thinking, have we gotten lax with donor service as well? With our hectic work schedules and increasingly gigantic goals and responsibilities, are we remembering to be truly donor centered? Sometimes, especially for front-line fundraisers, it can get buried behind the need to do everything possible to secure donations in time for the performance review. Yet we know that just like customer loyalty, donor loyalty is dependent upon great product and service.
So I thought I would review some of the lessons I learned back when I was a student and working part-time in the retail industry:
1. Listen, don't sell. I asked questions to understand my customers' need and gave them the product that fit. Similarly, I need to ask questions to understand my donors' values, desires and passions to be able to suggest an option or project to invest in that will make them feel proud.
2. Put myself in their shoes. By anticipating their needs, I could quickly accommodate customers and give them a pleasant shopping experience. If I understand my donors, I can anticipate the things that will make them feel very comfortable with me and the organization.
3. Be competent. I needed to know my stuff so I didn't recommend a product that turned a customer's hair blue and lose her business. If I don't know my organization and project inside and out and feel passionate about it, I can't expect donors to be moved to action.
4. Be helpful. I would never have said to a customer looking for something in the store "I don't know." I made it my business to know my store and guide the customer to the aisle they needed. Therefore I must never stare blankly at a donor who asks me about details on their tax receipt or about a planned gift simply because that is not my field of expertise.
5. Be modest. I didn't sell a lipstick by telling a customer that it won the most awards for pigment innovation. I sold it by telling her it would make her look and feel ten years younger. In the same way, I can't make donors part with their dollars because the school has the highest rankings. Of course product credibility is important, but the donor will only ultimately give because they understand that supporting this project will make them feel great because they are improving the world.
6. Enjoy helping people. I was happiest when the store was incredibly busy and I was helping people and making them smile in the midst of chaos. So why should I feel irritated by an interruption phone call from an alumnus that was put through to me by the reception desk? That may be my chance to make someone's day by answering a question and getting them involved with the school. Hmm...must remember that the next time the phone rings.
7. Say thank you. I may have thrown a free gift in the customer's bag, but if I didn't say thank you, she still would not have had a great experience. Simply saying thank you in a direct, timely and meaningful way is all a donor needs, and it goes such a long way.
Happy donors = loyal donors. Right? Now if only I could buy a pair of shoes without getting attitude.