Jeremy Peters 826 Michigan Talking Points for 2014 State of the Huron Conference

Transcription

1 1. Topic: Bringing More People Under the Tent - Lessons on Inclusion from Near Yet Far a. This panel discussion will take local lessons from peer organizations to help identify ways to bring more community members under our organizational tent, and how to make the tent larger. 2. As owner of a small business, having worked at another for over a decade, there are lessons to be learned from how companies attract customers when it comes to recruiting a larger swath of community members. a. Numbers aren t all that important the gross number of volunteers or folks involved is completely meaningless if there s no qualitative aspect to their involvement. b. Unpacking this: What all organizations want, or rather what they should want, from the small businesses I work for in music, to the organizations I m on the Board of Directors for, is quality in the interactions they have with community members. c. I would suggest that any person involved with community outreach or volunteer recruitment purchase Zingerman s Guide to Giving Great Service. i. This isn t a sales pitch but it massively changed how we operate as a company. Why? ii. We now look at every single customer including our artists who make music for us and the companies and individuals we sell music to as a customer. 1. Our goal is nothing less than for them to have an amazingly awesome experience that leaves them more than willing to come back and either spend more money with us or willing to make more and more music for us. d. So, here are my rules regarding this, or the ones I d at least suggest folks consider adopting: i. Treat every volunteer or community member you interact with as your next all-star volunteer or your next $10, donor. 1. Why?

2 a. That sort of treatment creates repeat customers. i. The cliff s notes version is this: Going way past what is just necessary, and getting at, in a deep and honest way, how you can help them interact with the organization is key. 2. You aren t just presenting a menu of options for how they can get involved to them and then sending them on their merry way. a. You want to help lead them and support them however they need it. 3. That may take more time with some folks and less with others. a. Looking at yourself like a customer service professional and the volunteers as your clients and doing whatever you can to make sure your customer s experience is awesome is the key to building a community organization that folks can t wait to tell their friends that they re involved with. ii. Realize that, in plain fact, this is, and will even more so be tiring for your staff. 1. In plain language, it is a lot of work to act like this as an organization - but it is and can be rewarding. 2. As a representative of an organization, you will have to work harder than ever to keep up this level of service, especially as you grow a. Organizations, then, need to have a plan in place to incentivize all that hard work. i. Doesn t have to be money, it could be fun things, team trips to something fun, an extra day off here and there, summer fridays, etc.). 3. Setting goals tied to compensation for folks can t hurt either but it needs to be totally on top of what they re

3 already contracted for, not a replacement. Otherwise, it is punitive. 4. The key is being additive that makes for a positive atmosphere where it is almost a game to grow the organization. a. If it is a game to grow the organization post results. And celebrate them Zingerman s tracks the number of Code Greens or in non-zingerman s language, the number of positive feedback comments that individuals get. iii. Communicate simply and easily. i. Translated to the HRWC, for instance, a code green could be a repeat attendee, a repeat donor, a new donor signup, a new volunteer signup who attends multiple events. 1. Figuring out what the goals are that make sense for your organization are more important than me suggesting them to you. 1. It is amazing to me how many organizations, including nonprofits, seem to get this wrong. 2. The mantra stands: Don t bury the lede! And, don t bury your audience in information that s ultimately not important to them at the moment it might be useful background information it may be the core of your vision of an organization or it may be a block of the best written prose the world has ever seen, but if it is too much, no one will read it. 3. Instead of being frustrated that no one is paying attention, consider that you re not leading your customers in an easy fashion about how they can pay attention. We do a ton of

4 events between Ghostly and 826michigan, and everything else I m involved in, and trust me when I say, tons of background text does nothing more than confuse and turn off people. Design things clearly, give the text space to breathe, and make sure it is highly readable. iv. Pay attention to the The 4 S of communication with stalwart members down to folks you re reaching out to: SIMPLE, STRONG, SHORT, SINCERE. 1. If you want to provide more information, provide a link to it don t force-feed the background you think is important, but instead, catch them with a STRONG hook, and let them find out more on their own, when their schedule allows. v. Have fun events, even if they re only barely relevant to your organization. 1. I think they key to getting folks to pay attention who aren t inside your natural sphere is to do it by being fun. 2. Folks shouldn t feel like they *have* to go to an event, they should want to. 3. Instead of having a band play at a fundraiser, have the band be the fundraiser. a. Examples i. Food Gatherers Benefit ii. Charity Dinners featuring a famous guest iii. Mittenfest b. Goes back to SINCERE: Is your event really the party of the year? Or, is it a wonky fundraiser dinner where folks sit and discuss events and listen to a speech (present company and event excluded but I want to make a point about this). i. Breaking this down: Why would someone who cares about the outside, who cares about our

5 rivers, who uses them and wants them to be clean for ever think, Dang, this event looks awesome: I totally want to go oh wait, *and* it supports HRWC? I didn t even realize that at first. ii. What happens in an interaction like I just explained? 1. You already have them locked in and interested without a sales pitch. The event sells itself. Easier said than done, though. 2. Then, you get the added benefit once folks find out that it is for a good cause of the internal feel good the community member gets. 3. This net positive of good feelings with no guilt is what can lead folks to make purchases (or donations) that they wouldn t have even come close to considering if they felt like they HAD to come.