Find out how your telemarketing agents can be the fundraising superstars you need them to be.
Telemarketing agents are a vital part of fundraising drives. So many nonprofits run with minimal staff and a limited budget. They simply don’t have the people to make call after call asking for support. And yet, these calls and requests for donations are an essential source of financial well-being for these organizations.
As a result, many nonprofits look to professional fundraising groups to help. Beneficial though they may be, not all telemarketing agents and services are equal. It’s no surprise that organizations counting on donor support want the best help they can get.
How do you become that “best help?” How does your organization support and fundraise for the nonprofits that contract with you for your expertise and capabilities? In short, how can your people become the superstars these nonprofits want and need?
Call Logic’s auto-dialer and call management software offers dozens of helpful tools to increase your success and simplify your daily tasks. Call for your free consultation today to learn more!
3 Tips to turn your telemarketing agents into fundraising heroes
As a telemarketing business, you already know many of the best practices for phone sales and fundraising. They’re incorporated into your strategy. You’ve gone over them with your telemarketing agents in training sessions, memos, critiques, and so on.
- Use a winning script
- Sit up straight (or stand if you can)
- Smile during conversations
- Listen attentively
- Take excellent notes
We could go on, but you get the idea. These all work well, whether you’re setting up appointments, closing a sale, or soliciting donations. But there are a few other ideas that can help you and your team be some of the best fundraisers around for any nonprofit organization.
1. Understand the organization’s mission. It’s one thing to fundraise for a well-known charity like the Make-a-Wish Foundation or the World Wildlife Fund. People generally know these organizations, and they know what they do. But for the thousands of lesser-known nonprofits, your telemarketing agents may have some explaining to do.
For example, Give an Hour provides no-cost mental health services for active duty and military veterans and their families, but they may not be well-known outside of these specific communities. Therefore, it’s essential to understand the mission well enough to accurately share that mission with donors, including specifics like where they operate, how many people they serve, and how successful they are in their mission.
2. Know where the money goes. Donors want to know that their money is going to be put to good use. Most also understand that these nonprofits need to pay for things like office space, employee salaries, and so on. There are very few nonprofits out there that can put 100% of their donations back into their mission.
However, there are still some vast differences in how organizations use that money. And there’s a good chance donors will want to know whether their contributions are helping pay a salary or funding the mission. Of course, the people running nonprofits still need to make a living. This isn’t an issue of good or bad, it’s just a matter of how transparent and efficient the organization is. When your telemarketing agents know this information, they can share and put it in context for potential donors.
3. Call back to say thank you. This is where your telemarketing agents really become superstars. There’s no downside to expressing thanks. Of course, you’ll say thank you on the original call. That’s expected. But what donors may not expect, and may be very pleasantly surprised by, is a thank you call several weeks or a month down the road. This happens so infrequently that it stands out in the donor’s minds and makes them more inclined to donate in the future. Handwritten thank-you notes are great, too, but there’s something about a phone call that’s especially meaningful.
Bonus tip: Use the right dialing software. Obviously, we have a bias toward dialing software like Call Logic. But even if you don’t use our dialing software, we highly recommend avoiding predictive dialing software. Predictive dialers often result in call recipients answering the phone with no telemarketing agents there to talk with them. It’s a terrible look for a nonprofit agency, and it does nothing to help your team connect and engage with potential donors and supporters.
Make more calls in less time with Call Logic. From donor profile management to automated voicemails to built-in compliance, we’ve got you covered in every aspect of your business. Schedule a free demo today to learn more!