Bowl Season!
It is that time of year! Yes, the holidays, but also College Football BOWL SEASON! Some of my favorites are Utah St. and Toledo who faced off in the Idaho Potato Bowl! West Virginia faces Syracuse in the Pinstripe Bowl, (sounds like the Yankees should be in this one!) A new bowl and one I will enjoy is the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl where TCU takes on Michigan State, (it is because I love wings!).
But of course, my personal favorite and one my son and I WILL be attending is the Heart of Dallas Bowl where Oklahoma State takes on Purdue! My son is a sophomore at Purdue studying aeronautical engineering. I was excited to see the Boilermakers win their final two games to become bowl-eligible and then was ecstatic to learn we will be going to Dallas to take on the OSU Cowboys!
What does any of this have to do with Bloomerang and the nonprofit world you ask? Indulge me, I am working my way to that!
I have been in Indiana most of my life! Grew up in South Bend, so of course, I am a Notre Dame fan! And, most of Indiana loves the Hoosiers (the University and the Movie), and Indiana State has the legend of Larry Bird. But… Purdue did not really come on my radar until my son started expressing an interest in engineering and becoming a Boilermaker. Turns out he loves Purdue, (and surprisingly,) I love it even more! From a parent’s perspective, Purdue has been a wonderful experience for my son and family.
So, here comes the transition to why this is important to fundraising… DONOR ENGAGEMENT! Question: Would it be helpful to your fundraising department to accurately determine a prospective donors’ level of engagement in order to solicit a gift? Better question: Can you accurately report on how ENGAGED your donors are to your organization and mission?
With regard to Purdue, I would be classified as a highly engaged prospective donor – I care about what’s going on, passionate about the mission, willing to help where needed, reading emails that are sent to me, attending events when I can, etc. I find myself WANTING to be asked for a donation! I am very engaged to the institution, even though my only connection is through my son. With Bloomerang, an organization can effectively rank donor engagement, all necessary resources could be used to approach those donors to give the first time or upgrade their gifts from previous years, therefore easily increasing your fundraising year over year!
Bloomerang CAN determine the level of donor engagement for each of your donors! From there, you can easily communicate and solicit more effectively to get first time gifts, upgrade current donors, and keep donors from lapsing! So… Boiler UP! And, I guess… BLOOMERANG UP too!
Comments