Building Advancement Communications Bridges
Many people don’t understand how advancement communications fits into the big picture of a fundraising shop.
How to use the tools its team members create? Sure. But how to collaborate successfully with writers or do more than request a proposal or one-sheet? Not so much.
When there’s a lack of understanding or poor alignment around the work of advancement communications, there are a number of consequences, including:
Less imaginative cultivation and stewardship of priority donors
Fewer opportunities to reinforce an organization’s culture of philanthropy
Frustration for gift officers, writers, and their managers
Whether you're a team leader looking to maximize your staff’s productivity or an advancement communicator leading from where you are, these recommendations will elevate perceptions of the work, and your organization, in the process.
INFORMATIONAL
Create a one-sheet guide to working with advancement communications. Specify the projects that you or your team can assist with, and set expectations for both the timeline required and the resources needed for successful completion. Beyond clarifying basics, such as how to request a new project, this is an opportunity to expand the variety of requests that come in.
Develop an easy-to-scan calendar of all the communications you plan to develop over the course of the year. This will help donor-facing staff plan future touchpoints and hopefully prevent a litany of one-off questions or last-minute requests.
Supplement the calendar with a monthly email that includes anticipated drop dates for active projects over the next four or so weeks.
STRUCTURAL
Convene a regular meeting with key staff who can inform creative advancement communications, whether by providing ideas or by sharing up-to-date information about donor needs. Make this an in-person event when possible.
Ensure advancement communications has a place at the department’s senior leadership table. Having someone present leading this essential work will generate more creative solutions than someone speaking on their behalf.
CULTURAL
Lift up the entire team that supported positive results when celebrating gifts internally, not only the gift officer. Emphasizing all contributors shifts perceptions of advancement communicators and others from “helpers” to “partners.”
