The Influential Fundraiser

Bernard Ross is as inevitable a fixture at charity fundraising conferences as flips charts, bad coffee and ‘going round the room to introduce ourselves’. I find myself both impressed and concerned by ‘The Influential Fundraiser’, grinning at Ross’s almost naive gall whilst admiring his ability to persuade people. Any book that seeks to demystify the ugly business of fundraising should be welcomed. For the arts, fundraising is the slapper mistress you can’t acknowledge, desperately need and wish you didn’t. Marketing can on occasion be invited to family parties and weddings, provided she sits quietly in the corner and doesn’t disgrace herself. We’re still quite ashamed of both, and this book seeks to lend tone to the pursuit of funding by grounding it in a more sophisticated understanding of human behaviour and ‘emotional intelligence’. It tries to approach individual fundraising from a technical perspective, adding rigour through system. The book’s rationale for the process of fundraising draws on a wide range of psychological and behavioural studies to add a credible methodology to the approach.
It is unclear at whom the book is aimed. The bleedin’ obvious and the rather advanced are all presented as a seamless whole. It pitches its management approach at director level, speaking regularly of the need to motivate a team. Yet no director should expect a lesson on why a case for support is important. It really only applies to face-to-face fundraising, although this is probably relevant to a large number of arts organisations. I suspect bets were hedged when deciding whom to write for. The net has been cast too widely, not quite satisfying either the expert or the beginner.
Ross is the key selling point, and it is interesting to examine what he and Segal are attempting. They have packed the book with inspirational examples that illuminate without quite isolating the essence of success. Like many exponents of a rare art, I suspect that they are trying to rationalise and systematise an intuitive process based on natural gifts.
 

Bernard Ross and Clare Segal
Jossey-Bass
ISBN-10: 0787994049 
I seriously doubt that either Ross or Segal ever drew upon academic sources when they actually raised money themselves. Half-digested, over-simplified accounts of Maslow, Herzberg and Gladwell are presented to lend intellectual credibility to a personalised and emotional approach to individual fundraising. The somewhat glib and superficial forced-march through Neuro-Linguistic Programming, modality and body language forms the least satisfactory element of the book. It comes across as tricksy, half-absorbed and inauthentic. Less confident and less experienced fundraisers should think carefully before plunging into this complex territory after skimming this somewhat simplistic view.
The book adds enormous value by placing donors and their motivations at the heart of the process of fundraising. Ross and Segal know how people tick, and they have tried to explain it as best they can through lists, matrices and processes. It’s a helpful way of trying to replicate their approach, but I don’t for a minute think that’s how really good fundraisers go about things.
To complement the 7 Ps of Marketing, Fundraising has been given 5 Ps of her own: Passion, Proposal, Preparation, Persuasion and Persistence. This gives an excellent structure to the fundraising process which can be leaned on by the less-experienced and the non-specialist. There’s a lot of sensible advice on tailoring the message to the audience and on keeping things simple in clear, compelling language.
The book stresses the need for the personal passion and belief of the fundraiser, and this is vital to the success of face to face fundraising. To suggest, sensibly, the need for authentic passion, and then hold up examples of wildly manipulative practice is unwise. So listen to Ross and Segal and nurture your passion and insight into your donors’ motivations. Prepare properly, use metaphors and think carefully about the way your message will be received. Emphasise the need to raise money for your organisation, as it’s too important not to. For your own sanity and dignity, leave the dark arts of psychological manipulation to those who may not know or care that that is what they are doing.