There is a fantastic article in the December 2009 issue of Athletic Business titled “The Gift Box” that discusses the importance of the development profession to athletic departments, especially in today’s tough economic climate. The article highlights both successes and setbacks that schools and athletic development professionals are experiencing today.

The article focuses on how Tim McMurray from Northern Illinois uses a comprehensive donor communication plan to tell the story donors need to hear in order to loosen up their purse strings a little bit. Northern Illinois has experienced three straight years of growth in both number of donors and total donations under Tim’s watch.

The article notes that it’s not just about the donation you need from them. It’s about what that money buys, including extra recruiting trips to land a top prospect, or summer school books for a student-athlete trying to graduate on time.

There is no effective way to communicate that story with one or two touch points with donors throughout the year. It has to be an on-going, structured communication process that does not end until a donation, or a firm “no” is achieved. Tim said it best in the article:

“until we have 213,000 people who have said no, we have work to do.”

There is, of course, an investment that needs to be made in creating and executing a comprehensive communication plan such as this. That investment involves both time and resources (money and staff). But there’s no reason to go at it alone either. My company can help you plot that on-going communication strategy just as we have for other schools. There is a roadmap available for this, all you have to do is ask for it.

Executing this type of plan does not have to be expensive. Many of the communication points we advocate can be done internally by email or on the phone to keep costs low, and supported by other strategically planned direct marketing efforts.

Think through a couple of these questions. What is an average donor worth to you in their first year of giving? How many of them continue to give in years following? What if you could pick up another 500 or 1,000 donors just like that this year? What would you be willing to invest to make that happen?

My team and I are available to discuss this further with anyone who is open to having a conversation and exploring these questions. Contact me here. We’ll even come to you if that’s what it takes. In 2010 we are going to have several success stories to tell in the world of athletic development. Will your success story be one of them?