April 9, 2010 | Nick Fellers
Exploring Eagle Creek – Googleplex of the 3rd Sector
We have quite a collection of Eagle Creek pics – we’ll be starting to share on the website with a new tab: Eagle Creek.
EC is our headquarters. More completely, it’s 50 acres minutes north of Columbus in the country that includes: Tom’s home (a castle), a farm, ropes courses (we don’t use these for the funding boot camp), two meeting centers, an outdoor office + pool and our offices.
We don’t host many gatherings and guests in the winter but throughout the rest of the year this makes for a really inspiring environment to host clients and our annual Funding Boot Camp. The rest of the time, it’s a great place for brainstorming and thinking. I think the pics will give greater context for things we post at forimpact.org.
Join us anytime – April through October. Eagle Creek is back in season.
A special hat tip to one of our newer team members Mark Weber. I asked him why he decided to work with us. His response: “Are you kidding me? Look at this place, it’s like the Googleplex of the Third Sector! Different amazing people each day drumming up innovation in an awesome environment.” Mark got me thinking… we probably need to tell that story more 
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April 8, 2010 | Nick Fellers
Inc Mag: On the Road With a Super Salesman
I have a love affair with Inc. Magazine – (and, for perspective, I think Tom has a love affair with Fast Company). More than any other mag Inc gives me great stuff time and time again.
If you follow the thoughts we put out on fundraising using a sales process please pick up this months’ issue of Inc (April 2010). It’s all about sales. I just read the feature article: On the Road With a Supersalesman. It’s one of those articles I wish I wrote. It mixes real sales stories with pithy advice from the article’s sales guru ‘Grizz Deal’.
- “My role in the beginning of the meeting is to say just enough to get them talking, and once they start talking, I shut up.”
- “The key is, you have to make people believe you believe. Like a sermon, you have to let it flow out. And then let it come back to you from the audience.”
- “Never worry about how you’re doing in a meeting. Forcus on the other guy. Otherwise, it’s like watching your feet while you’re running. “
Ummm… it’s all great stuff.
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April 7, 2010 | Nick Fellers
Selling as a team – 3 important tips.
Some things to think about among team members before you go on a visit.
- Clarify the goal.
- To get the prospect’s permission to discuss the funding plan
- To ask for a gift to fund the vision.
- Identify the leader to manage flow
There can be one and only one person managing the flow of the visit. Identify that person within your team then trust in that person.
No sales call or presentation ever goes as planned. Someone is going to have to make adjustments and control tempo, altitude and flow. Trust in the leader, follow the leader.
When I’m leading I will say to the other person (executive director, board member, etc), “No matter how chaotic the visit might seem at any point I will always be in control of the flow and navigating toward the goal.”
If I’m leading I’ll cue the other person along the way:
“Bill, could you talk about your experience in starting summer camps at other organizations? I would like to share with [prospect] some of your experience and the approach we’ll incorporate to start new programs.”
Note: I think it’s fine to change the leader in the middle of the visit – but the point is to know who is navigating.
I will also review the PRESENTATION FLOW before each visit as a reminder of the general flow.
- Identify key questions
- “I know you’ve often spoke of the need to increase impact in your giving. Could you talk a little bit about what that means to you now?” — Clearly the prospect was thinking strategically – asking this question not only gets the prospect sharing information, it’s also incredibly relevant. Probably some hot buttons and land mines to avoid.
- And, if we’re not sure what to ask for, “NAME, I would love to share the funding plan if that’s okay. Before I do, could I ask you to speak to how this might fit with some of your current funding priorities?”
It’s paramount that you clearly articulate the goal of the visit for everyone on your sales team. Remember, the goal determines what you say. I did a coaching call yesterday in which we established two objectives:
About the strategy above: The prospect visit was not set-up to be an ask so we needed to get permission to talk numbers. That could be permission to come back and talk about the funding plan on a next visit or, if the prospect were to say, “How can I help?” we need to be prepared to move on to objective 2 on this visit.
I hope the example seems simple. The key is that we didn’t just send in a team to do ’stewardship’. Nothing worse that a visit with no goal alignment and tons of opportunity.
Actually, number three should read: REMEMBER TO LISTEN
We typically outline some key questions with the team as a way of forced listening. Tendency will always be to talk too much. We review some key questions as a way of coaching everyone about the importance of listening… of letting the prospect talk.
For a visit we strategized on Monday.
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March 26, 2010 | Nick Fellers
Incongruent that you’re not with top funders to your cause.
Just caught myself using the word ‘incongruent’ for about the 15th time in two days.
It’s kind of a long geeky word but I’m stuck on some sort of soap box with it.
As in, if you really have a plan to transform education it’s completely incongruent that you would not be in conversation with Eli Broad, Gill & Melinda Gates and the Ford Foundation.
As in, if you believe you can do it, it just doesn’t register on my radar that you would not be working together.
As in, forget about the money for a second. Seriously. These three names (examples) are putting TONS of resources into transforming education (example purpose) – the idea that you would not be at the table together… I don’t know how you will make this impact happen without having that conversation.
Our For Impact refrain: Impact Drives Income
In strategies, we too often worry about how to ‘make the pitch’ or ‘get the angle to get in the door’. We need to go up a few levels – think about the impact. At the IMPACT level we need to be talking to with the top funding stakeholders – also means we need to be prepared to talk (and listen) re: IMPACT first.
This is what we mean when we say working ‘shoulder-to-shoulder’ with others. For me, it’s often the REASON for the introduction or meeting.
Substitute example above for you.
If you’re about promoting entrepreneurship – would be incongruent that you NOT have top entrepreneurs in your city or sector at the table.
If you’re about technology to change nonprofits – incongruent that you would NOT be a major face at SxSW interactive – where some 13,000 tech leaders just gathered to talk about new ideas and changing the world.
If you truly are a top innovator – incongruent that we would not be having conversations with other top innovators (amazon, google, apple).
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March 23, 2010 | Tom Suddes
Want to change your FUNDING/SALES RESULTS?
“Spend more time… with better prospects.”
Full attribution to Brian Tracy, one the world’s best sales trainers. These 3 + 3 simple words could have a huge impact on your results… IF you ACT on them.
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March 22, 2010 | Tom Suddes
“Sales are contingent upon the attitude of the salesperson… not the attitude of the prospect.” — W. Clement Stone
I just read this in some of my notes today. Truly reinforces ATTITUDE IS EVERYTHING!
Here’s another way to look at this:
10,000 Pair of Shoes:
Two shoe salesmen were sent to an island to sell shoes.
Salesman #1 Telegram: “10,000 natives. Stop. No one wears shoes. Stop. Coming home. Stop.”
Salesman #2 Telegram: “10,000 natives. Stop. No one wears shoes. Stop. SEND MORE SHOES! Stop.”
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March 22, 2010 | Nick Fellers
Tom’s interview with Unreasonable Institute at SoCap
The guys at the Unreasonable Institute dialed up for a skype chat last week about social entrepreneurship, raising a lot of money and the key For Impact insight: Impact drives Income.
I think they did a great job of parsing this down to 10 minutes of great stuff
- About For Impact
- About Starting 19 businesses
- About Making an Ask
Here’s an excerpt: “I’ve made over 6,000 visits and nobody’s ever shot me.”
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March 22, 2010 | Tom Suddes
Don’t normally do this, but a special CONGRATS and SHOUT OUT to the Seattle YMCA. They just surpassed their $40 Million Goal on the partners with Youth Campaign.
In these challenging times, they deserve some serious CONGRATULATIONS!
P.S. They have taken the whole FOR IMPACT thing to heart. They’re doing a terrific job of communicating their IMPACT. In fact, it’s the title of their quarterly communication piece!
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March 19, 2010 | Tom Suddes
Today Is My Birthday
TODAY IS MY BIRTHDAY… nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah. As many of you know, I make a pretty big deal of BIRTHDATES and BIRTHDAYS. When my own 5 kids were growing up, we would do special Birthday Breakfasts… where we would write down goals, best friends, favorite stuff, etc. I still have all of that in the ‘Green Book’. It’s always great to look back at ‘goals‘ from a 5 or 10 or 17 years old.
Savannah, my oldest grandchild, was born on St. Patrick’s Day. We all celebrated her birthday the night before last. I’m taking her with me this May to Ireland to really ‘celebrate’ her birthday!
This year is not necessarily a ‘big one’ for me (61) in terms of the number… but at my age they’re all BIG!
Today I will ride my Harley to my favorite coffee shop. Review the last year and look forward to the next year. Write up all my notes from an amazing 3 hours with Nick and Christopher Celeste (my friend and life coach). Get a workout in at Sullivan’s Boxing Gym and then have a fun dinner with the family.
Special Note: I just got a great email from Meghan, a bright young superstar at the YMCA of Greater Seattle. She was thanking me for introducing her to the idea CELEBRATING your BIRTHDATE. (She and I were both born on the 19th.) She said she’s been “celebrating her birthdate for the last six months”, and thanked me for the great idea. She said it allowed her to “collect, rejuvenate and rejoice”.
I’ve been trying to encourage everyone I’ve been around the last 10 years to CELEBRATE their own BIRTHDATE. I’ve challenged thousands of individuals at speaking engagements and training to do the same.
I encourage you to make your BIRTHDATE a special day for YOU!!! Do something solo. (Visit a coffee shop with a journal or book. Motorcycle or bike ride. A yoga class. Whatever.) Do something special with those you love.
I also take that BIRTHDATE once a month to review goals, do some serious journal writing, etc.
Many people laugh (really hard) when I tell them to take their birthdate off!
My response is pretty simple. If we can’t set aside even one day a month for ourselves… then things are pretty screwed up! (It’s the whole EQUINOX/BALANCE thing.)
Final Thought: Since we are all literally terminally ill… we should try to CELEBRATE EVERY DAY… and be GRATEFUL for everything that we have.
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March 18, 2010 | Tom Suddes
Seek Balance… Like the Equinox
March 21st or there abouts is the SPRING EQUINOX… one of two days during the year when day and night are in PERFECT BALANCE!!! (In Columbus, Ohio, that day was actually yesterday, March 17th, St. Patrick’s Day. The sun rose at 7:40 a.m. and set at 7:40 p.m.)
This whole EQUINOX/BALANCE thing seems like a great opportunity to ask ourselves about this whole idea of BALANCE in our LIVES.
I’m trying to finish up a ‘book’/collection of thoughts around 25 WISHES. It’s kind of my REFLECTIONS ON LIFE… many of which apply to Business, Entrepreneurism and the For Impact World.
I’d encourage you to take a moment during these days of BALANCE/EQUINOX to MAKE A LIFE, NOT A LIVING. (READ MORE.)
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About For Impact
We help "nonprofits" fund their visions through training, coaching and consulting based on 25+ years of experience and $1Billion+ raised directly and $1Billion via coaching/training. For Impact is also our message, our commitment and a movement.
