We all have our unique passions and interests where we focus our time and energy to make the world a better place. Your donors are no different. Their passions and interests drive their giving. But what is the driver behind your donor’s passions and interests?

When you develop the kind of trust required to get to know your donor on a deeper level, you may learn that they have a personal connection to your cause. Maybe your donor gives to drug rehabilitation programs because she’s a mother who lost a child to drug addiction. Or maybe they’re drawn to veterans’ mental health issues because they themselves are a veteran living with PTSD. Understanding this driver will allow you to bring offers that really speak to the donor’s heart, so they can make an impact where it matters most to them.

If you’re not sure how to ask your donors about what motivates them to give, the first step is to simply be curious. You know your donor has a passion for the program – maybe they’ve been giving for X years, but maybe you’ve never really dug into why this issue matters to them. Get to know your donor on a deeper level. You could say something like, “David, you’ve given so generously to this program over the past X years. Would you mind if I ask, what got you interested in our mission to [provide housing for the homeless]?” (Of course, insert your own mission statement. This is important, as it’s a reminder to your donor about the problem they care about.) Then pause and listen to what they tell you.

When you know the story behind your donor’s interest in your program, you’ll be able to create offers that speak to your donor’s specific experience and passion for the mission. That’s where the magic happens.

In this Question of the Month video, Richard and Jeff will share why it’s so important to understand the driver behind your donor’s giving so that you can build a more meaningful relationship.

Want to learn more? Check out our course: Discovering Your Donor’s Passions and Interests.

Read the full transcript here:

SPEAKERS

Jeff Schreifels, Richard Perry

Jeff Schreifels 

Welcome to the Question of the Month. This month’s question is, do you really have to know the driver behind your donor’s passion and interests? And Richard, this month, you get to answer this question.

Richard Perry 

This whole topic of passions and interest is really a fascinating one, because it is what makes giving happen. I mean, you and I know. Okay, so here’s the thing about passions and interests, okay. There’s passions and interests. And then there’s the driver behind passions and interests. Now, the reason we are so like, just obsessed with passions and interests is because the passions and interests, plus the driver behind the passions and interests, is what makes giving actually happen. Yeah. So we’re basically saying to folks, look, you need to identify the passions and interests.

Richard Perry 

So like, for instance, there’s a donor that’s interested in helping abandoned kids. Yeah, that’s the passion and interest. What’s the driver behind it? The driver is well, “I, myself,” says the donor, “was abandoned.” That’s the driver. The father that’s interested in veterans programs. So why is he interested in it? Well, he’s interested in it because he’s got a son that has PTSD, right? It’s just, you know, it drives what do you think, right? So this is why we focus on drivers, as well as passions and interests. It’s very important.

Jeff Schreifels 

So we focus on it, because it allows us to know more about the donor. And then when we bring an offer into it, making it more meaningful for the donor, right?

Richard Perry 

It makes it way more meaningful. I mean, if you think about it, it’s like, it’s something really close to your heart.

Jeff Schreifels 

So you could say to that donor, hey, I know that your son has PTSD, and what you’ve had to go through in all these years. And that’s why I think you would be really interested in this.

Richard Perry 

Right. Exactly, exactly. So that’s just how it works. Or if someone’s interested in supporting scholarships. And you discover well, they were the first one of the family for generations to go to college. It means a lot to them. And so when you actually talk to the donor and arrange the narrative, as well as the offer to fit that donor, that’s what that’s where something really magical and mystical happens.

Jeff Schreifels 

Well, thank you for joining us on the Question of the Month. Hey, do you want to find out more about passion and interests? We’ve got a great course for you called Discovering Your Donor’s Passions and Interests. Just go to veritusgroup.com/trainings and you’ll see it there. Thank you again for joining us this month, and we’ll see you next month.