A face to face ask is 34 times more effective than sending an email -
Harvard Business Review 2017.
If there is just one thing I have learned over the last 30 years of fundraising it is to always ask in person. Indeed, not just for fundraising purposes but for anything you truly want in life.
After many years of running and directing capital campaigns, I have always extolled the benefit of talking to people and making that crucial ask in person. It is often what someone is not saying that is as important as what they are saying and you must always take heed of the ‘in between the lines’ narrative.
Nowadays it is all too easy to hide behind technology. We endeavour to take shortcuts and simplify the process using a tool we have come to rely on too often – the dreaded email! For sure emails have their place in communication but they will never be an effective part of asking for large donations, apart from confirming the date and time of that important face to face meeting.
It is only when you are seated opposite someone that you can convey with clarity your own passion for the project in question and, hopefully, inspire your prospective giver to demonstrate the said level of commitment that you have shown. How often have all of us misread the intentions in an email or misunderstood its message?
Therefore, I was delighted to read in a Business Review that I truly respect that they also believe in the power of the face to face.
https://hbr.org/2017/04/a-face-to-face-request-is-34-times-more-successful-than-an-email