{"id":84815,"date":"2023-02-21T05:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-02-21T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bloomerang2dev.wpengine.com\/?p=84815"},"modified":"2025-08-29T16:20:34","modified_gmt":"2025-08-29T20:20:34","slug":"people-want-to-belong-to-your-nonprofits-community","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bloomerang.com\/blog\/people-want-to-belong-to-your-nonprofits-community\/","title":{"rendered":"People Want To Belong To Your Nonprofit’s Community"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Essence of Community in Philanthropy<\/h2>\n

A wise boss once told me: “A community is defined by caring for its members. Otherwise, it\u2019s just a zip code.<\/i>”<\/p>\n

I never forgot this.<\/p>\n

One of the things you are responsible for as a development professional is building and nurturing community.<\/b><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s Define Your Community<\/h3>\n

Since your mission is to facilitate philanthropy<\/a> in order to move your mission forward, let\u2019s talk about your philanthropic community<\/em> \u2013 the donors, volunteers, advocates and ambassadors who fuel your work, making your impact the greatest it can be.<\/p>\n

Cultivating Value Through Donor Engagement<\/h2>\n

The opportunity to make the world a better place is the promise all social benefit organizations offer to deliver. People have different values (some want to help children; others animals; others education, the environment, the arts\u2026 and so on). Within the values universe, it\u2019s your job to convey where you sit\/what you do\/why what you do is necessary\/and that you\u2019re effective doing it. Your next job is to uncover folks who share the values your organization enacts. This is what is commonly called \u201cdevelopment.\u201d Finally, once a good common ground is found, you make the match! You ask for the investment that will assure the values are enacted and the donor\u2019s passions are fulfilled.<\/p>\n

An Under-Appreciated Part of the Philanthropic Value Exchange is the Relational One<\/h3>\n

It\u2019s the friend-raising and ongoing nurturing part of the fundraising equation.<\/a> Friend-raising is about crafting a donor-centered journey that predisposes<\/i> folks to want to give, and keep on giving. But it\u2019s more than individual \u201ccultivation\u201d or \u201cstewardship.\u201d Where else might this predisposition to give come from?<\/p>\n

Enhancing Donor Relationships through Community Building<\/h2>\n

Value is Enhanced Through Community-Building. People join a religious congregation, PTA, sorority, book group, political or social movement, any number of meet-ups and, yes, your philanthropic community, because it brings them something they seek. On an individual level, this can be any number of different things, which is why it pays to get to know your donors<\/a> as much as you can. The more you know people, the more you can help facilitate the journey that gives them the most meaning.<\/p>\n

Fundraisers are in the \u201cHappiness Delivery Business\u201d<\/h3>\n

Let\u2019s begin on the individual donor level. I write a lot about the \u201cwarm glow<\/a>\u201d people experience when they contemplate giving. And how you should never feel bad about asking<\/a> someone for a philanthropic gift, because it delivers a shot of dopamine that lights up the pleasure center of their brains. Alas, this feeling is short-lived. So, you need to do more. Which is where building donor love and loyalty plans<\/a> comes in. Again, so far so good. Maybe you can \u201cnurture\u201d people into continuing to give.<\/p>\n

Belonging, and Giving, are Bonding, Joyful Experiences<\/h3>\n

Part of what makes people feel they belong to your community<\/a> is the joining with others to pursue common values. The\u00a0THNK School of Creative Leadership<\/a> states: “The magic of the community is in the shared act.\u00a0Community members find each other, work together, support each other, and achieve success together. This is the joy of doing meaningful work together with like-minded people, with your friends.<\/em>” When values are shared, they gain power and traction, leading to: Sharing with others \u2013 extending your network, Influencing others \u2013 extending your fundraising, Collective engagement \u2013 extending the scope of your impact.<\/p>\n

Strategies for Effective Donor-Centric Community Engagement<\/h2>\n

This is where you must put on both your donor-centered and community building hats. Perhaps survey your supporters<\/a> to find out what types of communal events they might enjoy. What might feed their souls, build social capital, enable people to connect and help them stay in contact?<\/p>\n

Know that \u201cout of sight is out of mind,\u201d so your job is to develop strategies to bring people together. This will solidify and amplify the knowledge, beliefs, values and traditions you all share. [Note: All of these community-builders can be hosted on-site or online.]<\/p>\n