Nonprofit Fundraising: Why Not Pay Fundraisers on Commission?
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- čas přidán 12. 06. 2024
- Let’s talk about nonprofit fundraising. Here are 7 reasons NOT to pay fundraisers on commission.
#nonprofits #fundraising #nonprofitorganization
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More about the Association of Fundraising Professional's code of ethics:
afpglobal.org/ethicsmain/code...
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// CHAPTERS
00:00 Welcome!
02:34 Conflict of Interest
03:51 Donor Relationships
04:30 Equity and Fairness
07:37 Professional Standards
08:30 Mission Distraction
10:32 Public Perception
10:58 Regulations
12:27 What to do instead (low budget)
14:21 What to do instead (moderate budget)
// MORE ABOUT ME
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As a career DD, this is absolutely correct!
:)
Awesome content!!
Thanks for watching!
I would say one last reason not to pay commission is for the benefit of the person doing the fundraising. If they work all month - and have a bad month … then they won’t make any money for their time. The “eat what you kill” structure can be negative/not fair for the fundraising person too.
Right. Exactly.
Love you Amber.!
☺
If an ED/BoD creates a performance bonus, there is an increased motivation to surpass goals without all the ethical questions- and can be quite motivational. 😺👍
That's been done before yeah. As long as it's done fairly and all staff have an opportunity to earn one.
Fundraising is just another kind of selling. The donor is being sold that what the organization does has a significant positive impact on something the donor cares about and that it is worth their attention and gifts. Saying that a staff fundraiser shouldn't be paid commissions based on the gifts they bring in unless the entire rest of the staff is paid something, too, is akin to saying that a salesman at a for-profit company shouldn't be paid commissions unless the rest of the staff get commissions, too. To me, neither makes sense.
What you and most others that are in this field do not understand, I think, is that a staff fundraiser (that is experienced, well-versed on the organization, and knows how to handle donors well) being paid commission makes perfect sense. That commissioned staff fundraiser is going to bring in funds that the organization wouldn't've otherwise received because he/she is going to work harder at it because his/her check depends upon it, not only because they believe in the organization. And, that person is going to handle the donors correctly and well because they'll likely be calling them back again next year either for a subscription, membership, program, and/or another (hopefully increased) gift. This person is paid according to results, not just for trying. Also, if various donor benefits are offered at varying levels of giving, there will be many potential donors that are truly more interested in those incentives than many of the things that the organization does (some of them may be solely interested in the donor benefits). This is where a salesman/fundraiser is going to bring gifts that someone else working in development probably wouldn't...because it's more transactional than emotional. A fundraiser that can read this type of donor and knows when to shift gears has a much better chance of convincing this type of donor to give. Development isn't generally into this kind of thing, in my experience. Most of this money would most likely otherwise be left on the table--money that the organization could've had to further its programs/goals. Paying a commission to a staff fundraiser that knows how to bring this additional money not only makes sense, but is what all organizations should do.
The development department's total salaries (and benefits and all other payroll-related expenses) are a percentage of the total funds they raise. What percentage is too high there? What about a contracted professional fundraiser that is charging a flat rate? That flat rate is a percentage of the total funds they raise, too--what percentage is too high?
Point is that you're paying for fundraising no matter how you want to look at it. And, the amount you pay is a percentage of the funds raised. I say that the salaried folks are getting the easy/guaranteed big money and the emotionally motivated donors' money, while the commission paid staff fundraiser is getting the harder money that most likely wouldn't've been gotten at all otherwise. And, donors are not oblivious to the fact that it takes money to raise money--they know the person contacting them is paid. I would say that any that would have a problem with the fundraiser being paid a commission needs to consider the fact that they had to be pursued to make their donation. If there were enough donors calling the organization asking how much is needed and where to send a check, then someone like that would not be needed.
Something else I just thought of...an established development department that is cultivating and maintaining larger donors generally isn't going to be able to handle a lot of lower level donors--the return just isn't worth the time/effort. Pay someone a commission to call them and increase their gifts and see what happens. You'd be surprised. And, there is absolutely nothing ethically wrong with any of it.
I agree. I think it's time to rethink our approach to fundraising and compensation, particularly with charitable nonprofits. It's exceedingly difficult to find an effective fundraiser who will work for the salary that most smaller charities can afford to pay. So, we outsource fundraising to a direct mail solicitation company and pay them a boatload of money. We then give our employee who runs point with the direct mail company the title of "Development Director." Which is better? Having a well-intentioned staff member who lacks the skill sets to raise serious money oversee a modest fundraising program, or having an experienced fundraiser with the skill sets to raise major gifts oversee a much larger budget that allows the nonprofit to serve more people and do it better? Just because we might pay them commission does not mean they don't have passion for the work and it doesn't make them unethical. For the record, I'm not a sales rep. I'm just a guy running a homeless shelter trying to pay the bills. Also, I don't pay my development director by commission. I'm just thinking out loud about the pros/cons of this prohibition on fundraisers being paid a commission.
Outrageous! Expect people to Work for free???!!! REALLY?
Sorry, have to disagree with your entire thesis on this one. Virtually every point you made was off. If i'm good at what I do, I need to be paid. A professional fund raiser works for the donor, not the nonprofit.
I am saying they DO need to get paid. Just equitably, for the work they do up front. :)
Frank this is nonprofit fundraising, not advertising sales. There are ethics involved here.
If you’re contracted by the nonprofit, you work FOR the nonprofit as understood in the contract. Don’t expect any calls soon from this group.
@@BobSeger1981 What is unethical about a nonprofit paying a fundraiser via commission? We don't apply that logic to any other segment except the nonprofit sector.