Future Fundraising Now

The Lady Gaga lesson

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by

Jeff Brooks
in

Just off hand, I’d say there’s nobody and nothing farther off my personal radar than Lady Gaga. But I’ll take a fundraising lessen where I can get it, like this one from Oneicity: What Lady Gaga can teach you about fundraising.

How should direct mail fundraising be like Ms. Gaga?

Lady Gaga stands out in a crowd. You have to as well. If you are sending boring, look-like-everyone-else direct mail you are violating the Lady Gaga Rule and not raising the funds you could.

Sorry, but it’s true. The one with the best taste never wins. It’s the one who gets the most attention.

So swallow your pride and make over-the-top, loud, weird fundraising. You may not be proud of how it looks — but I think you’ll be proud of the good deeds you make possible.

    Comments

    6 responses to “The Lady Gaga lesson”

    1. Diane Avatar
      Diane

      perhaps it’s even more than just being over the top. perhaps, it’s also about being truly creative and delivering a message truly targeted for your audience.

    2. Diane Avatar
      Diane

      perhaps it’s even more than just being over the top. perhaps, it’s also about being truly creative and delivering a message truly targeted for your audience.

    3. Victoria Avatar
      Victoria

      The other thing that strikes me about Lady Gaga (or just “Gaga”, as Larry King was calling her), is that she is very fan-focused when she talks about her work. She’s always thanking fans and acknowledging the importance of their support. And she does it in a way that creates a real and sincere connection with people.
      Sound like a lesson we’ve heard on this blog before?

    4. Victoria Avatar
      Victoria

      The other thing that strikes me about Lady Gaga (or just “Gaga”, as Larry King was calling her), is that she is very fan-focused when she talks about her work. She’s always thanking fans and acknowledging the importance of their support. And she does it in a way that creates a real and sincere connection with people.
      Sound like a lesson we’ve heard on this blog before?

    5. Mazarine Avatar
      Mazarine

      Good point victoria!
      And I agree. I got a solicitation last week from Amnesty international in a big envelope with a PEN on it. It was to write a note of hope to someone wrongfully imprisioned. Did I write that note? You bet I did! They gave me the envelope too, all the tools I needed were right there. Would I have done it otherwise? Probably not.
      Go Amnesty International for being like Lady Gaga!
      Mazarine

    6. Mazarine Avatar
      Mazarine

      Good point victoria!
      And I agree. I got a solicitation last week from Amnesty international in a big envelope with a PEN on it. It was to write a note of hope to someone wrongfully imprisioned. Did I write that note? You bet I did! They gave me the envelope too, all the tools I needed were right there. Would I have done it otherwise? Probably not.
      Go Amnesty International for being like Lady Gaga!
      Mazarine

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    The future of fundraising is not about social media, online video, or SEM. It’s not about any technology, medium, or technique. It’s about donors. If you need to raise funds from donors, you need to study them, respect them, and build everything you do around them. And the future? It’s already here. More.

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    Jeff BrooksJeff Brooks has been serving the nonprofit community for more than 35 years and blogging about it since 2005. He considers fundraising the most noble of pursuits and hopes you’ll join him in that opinion. You can reach him at jeff [at] jeff-brooks [dot] com. More.

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    The future of fundraising is not about social media, online video, or SEM. It’s not about any technology, medium, or technique. It’s about donors. If you need to raise funds from donors, you need to study them, respect them, and build everything you do around them. And the future? It’s already here. More.

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    About the blogger

    Jeff Brooks has been serving the nonprofit community for more than 30 years and blogging about it since 2005. He considers fundraising the most noble of pursuits and hopes you’ll join him in that opinion. You can reach him at jeff [at] jeff-brooks [dot] com.