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Stewardship and Board Talk with Jocelyn Kwok, Ep #47

Ben Johnson
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Episode 47

With Benjamin Johnson and Jocelyn Kwok

It’s one thing to acquire a donor, it’s another thing entirely to keep them. On this episode, Ben sits down with stewardship and donor engagement expert Jocelyn Kwok to discuss the art of cultivating long-term relationships with donors. Join them for an engaging look into what effective stewardship looks like, the qualities of a good stewardship coordinator, and how to connect with donors on a deeper level.

You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in...

  • Defining small charities and why Jocelyn loves working with them [1:44]

  • Diving into Jocelyn’s Enneagram number [4:10]

  • Exploring stewardship and getting to know your donors [7:45]

  • What makes a good stewardship coordinator? [15:09]

  • Creativity and logistics in stewardship [20:55]

  • Helpful resources for stewardship [25:37]

  • Ben’s perspective on quality stewardship and using data effectively [31:42]

  • Planning stewardship into a fundraising strategy [37:24]

  • How community-centered fundraising impacts stewardship [41:30]

  • Common challenges in stewardship and the role of a charity board member [44:19]

The anatomy of stewardship

Strategy and acquisition are often the main focus of the fundraising conversation. However, stewardship plays just as big of a role in any successful charity. Jocelyn highlights three key areas of successful stewardship, the first being acknowledgment. Donors need and deserve to be thanked because the organization can't run without them! The next piece is recognition. Exceptional giving deserves an exceptional response from the charity. This could be anything from putting a donor's name on a building to shouting them out in the monthly newsletter. There are so many ways to make donors feel valued. Finally, donors need engagement. This is all about allowing donors to see themselves as a part of the story. Charities should be helping donors deepen their knowledge of what they are doing as an organization so that they can be more invested in the work.

Get personal

It’s impossible to know how all of your donors want to be communicated with. As Ben said, donors are not monoliths, and taking a one-size-fits-all approach is often ineffective. That’s why a huge part of stewardship is learning about the people your charity partners with. One way to do that is by looking at your data! How are they giving? How often? How much? Using this information to identify patterns in your donors can help identify different communication needs. For instance, someone who gives primarily at events and auctions may want a little more recognition for their contributions as opposed to someone quietly leaving a legacy gift. On a personal level, getting to know your donors can be as simple as asking good questions. Equip your fundraisers and programming staff to have direct conversations with your donors. By getting to know them as people, you get to know their preferences and help cultivate a long-term donor relationship.

The right stuff

Understanding stewardship is more than developing a strategy. It also requires the right person leading the charge. It’s helpful for stewardship coordinators to have a fundraising background because stewardship is NOT separate from fundraising. However, being people-centric is a must. There has to be an innate desire to go deeper with donors and ask them those connection questions. They also need to have a holistic awareness of what's happening in the organization. Because stewardship should be a multi-pronged approach, it’s common for coordinators to work closely with all departments, especially fundraising. Jocelyn believes stewardship success relies on the quality of internal relationships and an organization's ability to work together to achieve its goals. Listen to this episode for more information on stewardship and how to use it to create long-term donors!

Resources & People Mentioned

  • Email Frontier FM YOUR fundraising questions at junkmail@frontier.io!

  • Check out Cameo!

Connect with Jocelyn Kwok

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