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Common Responses to Face-to-Face Requests
“Whether you are asking someone for $50 or $50,000, there are basically four ways a person will respond,” says Bill Dillon, Executive Director of Inner City Impact and author of People Raising: A Practical Guide to Raising Support (www.PeopleRaising.com). Bill shares those responses with you, and offers advice gathered from over 30 years of experience to help you know what to do next.
These are the four most common responses to face-to-face requests. Following each response is a directive for you, so you know exactly what to do next:
- “Yes.” If a donor agrees to fund your request, Bill says the key is to set up the next step immediately before you leave the meeting. The ideal, of course, is to take a check back with you to the office, but that’s not always possible. Suggest a date, such as “How about by next Wednesday?” You will save a lot of agony and time, Bill suggests, by agreeing on a specific next step with the donor right away.
- “That’s too much.” If a donor feels that your request is more than they can handle right now, affirm their feeling and say “What you’re telling me is the amount is too high.” At this point, Bill says, most people just leave it, believing that the donor must not be interested at all. Instead, Bill advises that you offer donors a lower dollar range, so they can choose an amount they are more comfortable with. For example, if a prospective donor says $5,000 is too much, you might come back with $2,500 as an alternative.
- “I want to pray about it.” Bill notes that most people interpret this response as a polite “no.” Instead, Bill suggests using what he calls the "48 hour rule.” Honor the person’s desire to pray and think about it, and then ask for permission to get back with him (within 48 hours). For example, if you are meeting the person on a Wednesday, ask if you can check back on Friday. Getting permission from the prospective donor takes the pressure off of you, Bill reports. When you call back, simply mention your earlier conversation and remind the person that you had both agreed that you would call back.
- “No.” There are actually two kinds of “no,” Bill says. The first “no” is someone telling you that they like you, and they love what you’re doing, but just can’t provide a gift right now. When that happens, Bill suggests that you affirm that the person’s heart is with you, and ask if perhaps you could call back later in the year. The second type of “no” is when people just have no interest or are feeling overwhelmed with requests. Bill says you might consider putting these folks on your mailing list—to keep in touch—but it usually is not worth spending much time pursuing.
Bill Dillon is the president of People Raising.Com, www.PeopleRaising.com, e-mail PeopleRaising@Yahoo.com
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