Episode 132: How Cliches Hurt Your Bottom Line and What You Should Say Instead
Learn which cliches minimizes your work and what to say instead. Learn how to make powerful calls to action that link your request to your organization's success.
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🔦 NONPROFIT SPOTLIGHT 🙌🏿
Kiasi Tech Solutions Pt. 4
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🚀 RESOURCES TO HELP YOU RUN A SUCCESSFUL NONPROFIT
How To Price Your Programs for Profit
https://fusion.amberwynn.net/product/how-to-price-programs-for-profit/
Questions to Ask a Grant Writer Before You Hire Them
https://fusion.amberwynn.net/product/questions-to-ask-a-grant-writer-before-you-hire-them/
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Podcast Transcript
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to On Air with Amber Wynn, where nonprofit leaders learn to fuse passion and commitment with proven business strategies to create long-term funding impact and sustainability. And now here's your host and resident, Philanthrepreneur, Amber Wynn.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Welcome to On Air with Amber Wynn. Today we're going to have a little fun, but I'm serious. Today we're going to talk about how cliches hurt your bottom line and what you should say. Instead, people who don't know any better, they just repeat things having no idea, but sometimes you can say things that hurt you, and in the nonprofit sector, so many people repeat things, not understanding that it can really hurt your bottom line. And so I just wanted to spend a little time with my family because for those of you who know me, I come to this space from the lens of a fund developer. I believe you should make money because if you have money, you have choices. And so today's conversation about cliches and how they hurt your bottom line is going to come from that lens. So when we come back, we're going to talk about how,
(01:23):
If you're thinking about hosting a golf tournament or any other kind of event, make sure at the end of the event you generate a profit and not come out with a loss. There's a formula for guaranteeing that your event will generate a profit. You'll find it in my Hotter price event. Tickets for Profit Toolkit, learn the insider secrets for how to ensure your event will always make a profit every time. Order your copy today. Welcome back. You're on air with Amber Wynn, and today we're going to talk about how cliches hurt your bottom line. Listen, people jump into the nonprofit sector with all types of misinformation, repeating things and doing things that they see or they think or they just make up, and it comes at a cost. For example, cliches. This is a cliche that needs to go away, and if you are saying it, stop it.
(02:16):
Right? This cliche, every dollar counts. Stop saying every dollar counts. When you're doing your pledges, your requests for support, every dollar counts, and no donation is too small. Stop saying that because it minimizes your work. It takes more than a dollar, and that crumb of a donation doesn't help people think, oh yeah, but if everybody gave a dollar, but everybody's not going to give a dollar. You are not Obama, and you don't have the breadth and depth we know about that campaign. Oh yeah, everybody donated $3 and no, you don't have that type of depth. And what happens is when you say every dollar counts and they donate a dollar, it doesn't help, right? We are dealing with big problems and big problems require big solutions. A dollar is not going to get you there. Those five, $10,000 grants, they're not going to get you there.
(03:17):
And I know for those of you who have been self-funding your organization, you'd be like, I'd be happy to get those five, $10,000. When you start getting those small grants, you will realize that that's not going to get you to sustainability. That's going to get you to that nonprofit poverty cycle because it is not enough to cover your expenses, and so therefore, you're going to start supplementing with your own personal resources and for those of you who are doing it now, you know what I mean, right? Stop saying every dollar counts. Quantify your needs so that people can give you what you need. If you have a fundraising goal of $150,000, let your community know right now we're fundraising for $150,000. If you can donate $150, that will help us get closer to our goal. Do not say every dollar counts because that's what you're going to get, and it confuses your funder.
(04:18):
It makes them think, well, all I need to give is a dollar $5, and that's not the case. They need to give $150 every month for you to reach your goal. You need to be specific because when you give your audience instructions, that's what they're going to follow. When you say no donation is too small, then they're going to make a small donation. And what that means, what that translates into is you staying in this nonprofit poverty circle. So my request for you today is to stop saying these cliches because they undermine what you do. We have big problems and we need big solutions. I had a client once who told me that she was asking people for money. Unbeknownst to her, this really wealthy woman said to her, how much do you need? And she said, $50,000. The lady pulled out her checkbook and wrote her a check for $50,000.
(05:17):
Here's the rub. When I did her funder ready budget in order to run her organization for a year, it really cost $350,000. So she got $50,000 and $50,000 is better than nothing, but that was a really wealthy woman. She asked her a direct question, how much do you need? She needed $350,000. Did she just miss out on $300,000? I'm going to say maybe the woman loved the work that she did in the community and she was willing to support her. So what does this mean? This means you should have a funder ready budget. A ready budget is a budget that breaks down how much it costs to run each one of your programs, and then how much that total is. So how much does it cost to run all of those programs plus your administrative costs for one year? When you have that knowledge, then you have the ability to make sure that you're getting your value right.
(06:19):
When my clients go through my program and we create their funder ready budget, most of them call it their dream budget. I call it your optimal budget, but it is your real budget. How much does it cost to run your organization? Once you have that knowledge, you understand that every dollar counts and no donation too small. Those are cliches that do not belong in your vocabulary because it minimizes your work. If your budget is $350,000 and you say every dollar counts and they give you a dollar, how much longer is it going to take you to get to that amount? My recommendation is that you step out boldly that you value the programs that you are putting into the community, that you help your potential supporters understand your real need. Stop with the cliches. They are detrimental to the work that you do, provide real fundraising goals and tie them to what it is that you're doing.
(07:24):
If that $50,000 that she asked for that lady tied to the work that she was doing, which was working with domestic violence victims, that $50,000 went to pay for the hotel rooms that she paid for to get those women out of the situations, that's fine, but that woman was asking for how much does it cost to run your organization? And oh, anything that you give is better than stop it. Be bold, be direct. But in order for you to be bold and for you to be direct, you need to know how much it costs to run your organization. And I'm going to tell you, 95% of the people that I work with when they come to me have no idea why, because they've been surviving on whatever comes in. If they get a grant for $5,000, they make it work. They make a dollar out of 15 cents.
(08:21):
If they get $10,000 grant, they pay somebody an honorarium here, they're covered. That doesn't work. You need to know what it is that your board should be fundraising for. The IRS says, your board of directors, that is their primary responsibility in the nonprofit sector as a board member of your organization is to fundraise. If you can't tell your board it takes $350,000 to run this organization at optimal level, meaning everybody who is on staff is getting paid a living wage, then you are fundraising below what that is. And if you say, oh, well, we can do it for 50,000, you're going to do it for 50,000 and that's what your board is going to fundraise to 50,000. Now, you may not reach that fundraising goal, but if you set your goal at three 50, there's a higher likelihood that you're going to reach it than if you set it at 50,000.
(09:22):
Does that make sense? If you are saying every dollar counts, then you're going to stay right here with that dollar. If you say, our fundraising goal is $350,000 and we'd love for you to make a monthly contribution of $150, we're looking for 15 supporters to make a monthly contribution, that's going to get you closer to that 350 than that. No donation is too small. I'm telling you, as a fund developer, you got to go big. You got to go bold because if you don't, it undervalues what it is that you do and it makes you achieving your goal that much longer. Right? So that is my goal for you today. That is my call to action for you today. Stop saying these cliches that undermine your business, step boldly into your future because we need to make sure that we're making living wages. We need to make sure that as a community, we're getting paid what we need to get paid.
(10:28):
Diversifying those funding streams. So stop setting your expectations low. Set your expectations where they need to be. We got big problems, so we need big money to solve those big problems. When we come back, we've got a question about the difference between a nonprofit, a not-for-profit, a public charity, and an NGO When we come back, have you been duped by a grant writer promising you the moon and the stars, but after collecting your $2,000, you never win a grant? No. A grant writer can't guarantee you'll get funded, but if you don't know how to vet them, you could walk right into a scam. Check out my guide the questions to ask a grant writer before you hire them to help you determine if a grant writer is a bonafide professional or out to steal your hard earned money with no intentions of yielding results. This guide explains what to look for in a grant writer if they're novice or seasoned, if they're a fit for the type of proposal you need written, what questions they should ask you.
(11:30):
Leverage my 25 years of grant writing experience securing over $10 million in grants for clients to help you find a qualified grant writer and reduce your chances of getting scammed. Order your copy today. Hey, you're back. It's Amber Wynn, Philanthrepreneur, and now it's time in the episode for you to ask me your questions. Question is from Keisha Keisha's from New Jersey, and it's a really good question. I have people interchanging words. It is a problem In the nonprofit sector, we've got people interchanging titles. I'm the president and CEO that belongs to the for-profit sector, but we also have people because they prefer, right? I'm a not-for-profit. No, you're not. You are a nonprofit because there are specific meanings. So today's question is, what's the difference between a nonprofit, a not-for-profit, and an NGO? The key difference between a nonprofit and a not-for-profit is nonprofits are run like a business.
(12:41):
I say it all the time, your nonprofit is a business. It's just a business with a philanthropic purpose. You've got business expenses, you've got taxes, you've got authorized agencies that you have to report to. A nonprofit is a business with a philanthropic purpose. So they function, right? They're run like a business while a not-for-profit is considered a recreational organization, and they do not operate with the business goals of earning revenue. What does that mean, Amber? Well, think of not-for-profits as being run by volunteers. So PTAs, HOAs and fraternal organizations, they have a structure and their purpose is to support their members, but they're not run like businesses. They have a function. They're considered social organizations or recreational organizations or organizations to provide a function that is a not-for-profit, whereas a nonprofit is established and runs like a business. If you're delivering programs, if you have a marketing department, an accounting department, if you have compliance, which you have, those are nonprofits.
(14:00):
So you've got the nonprofit that runs like a business. You've got the not-for-profit that functions like a recreational organization. And then you have an NGO. An NGO is a non-governmental organization. They're also nonprofits, but they play a major role in international development, and they typically do aid and philanthropy. You'll see an NGO that works with women in third world countries, and they provide funding so that these mini grants so that these women can start to support their families. That's an NGO. Now, these NGOs usually have budgets of millions or billions of dollars, and they rely on a variety of funding sources, private donations and memberships to government grants. So nonprofit functions like a business not for profit, operates like a recreational organization, and NGO has to do with international nonprofits with huge budgets. Great question, Keisha. Thank you so much. If you have a question, feel free to reach out to me on any of my socials. You can even email me at amber@amberwynn.net, and I'll be happy to answer your question live some things that I just take for granted because I've been in the sector for 30 years. But if there's something that you're not sure about, hit me up. Now it's time for our last episode, our conversation with Simone Washington of kiasiTech Solutions. If you want to watch the full episode, you can go run over to YouTube, but this is the last part four. So let's go ahead and wrap up with Kiasi Tech Solutions.
Speaker 3 (16:04):
I always love to have a consultation with people who are interested in learning more about my services. So we do have a free one hour consultation with all of your audience members today. And so what that means is we get to talk about what it is that you want to learn and answer some of the questions that you have. And a lot of the times, some of the answers that we get in that one hour period solves a lot of the problems. And so sometimes people just need access to the information with someone that they feel comfortable talking about it with. No judgment looks like this is what I need to know. I don't know how to do this or that. And for a lot of the times, the things are resolved in that one session. And so yes, I look forward to chatting with whoever is interested.
Speaker 2 (17:01):
We will post the link for you to access that free consultation.
(17:32):
And we're back our conversation with Simone Washington of Kiasi Tech Solutions. I just want to say that technology can be scary, but when you have amazing individuals who are patient and who are very comfortable with technology, these are the people you want to be in your space because as nonprofit leaders, you know, wear 17 hats. Bring in individuals who can help you streamline processes, who can make life a whole lot easier, especially if you are that person who's walking around saying is we, when it's only me, technology can help you function a whole lot more efficiently. And even if you have a team bringing in, technology can help you. I'm one of those Gen Xers who's not a big fan of technology, but when I tell you in terms of automation, it has made my life so much easier. I invest in technology. If you're interested in working with Dr.
(18:35):
Simone, hit her up. We're going to put all of the information in the bio, and if you'd like to be featured on Shine on Nonprofits, smart Nonprofits Spotlight, either as a nonprofit leader or as a consultant supporting nonprofits, reach out to me. I'll be happy to feature you on this segment. So that's all we have for today. Our topic was how cliches can hurt your bottom line. I want you to stay away from 'em. That's it. Just stay away from 'em. Yeah. Alright, so if you found any value in today's episode, please be sure to like, subscribe and share with someone in your network. And be sure to check me out next week because I'll be here. Same bad station, same bad time. Take care of yourself like you take care of your community.
Speaker 1 (19:31):
Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe and leave a review on iTunes. Head over to www.amberwynn.net/podcast for the links and resources mentioned in today's podcast. See you next time.
