Wouldn’t it be nice to tell donors what to say when they talk about your nonprofit? the rule of three It won’t let you control what people say, but it will give you an advantage. Use it and you’ll be giving them “mini-scripts” that will come to mind when they talk to their friends, colleagues and associates about you and what you do.

I first learned about the Rule of Three from professional trainer Molly Gordon and author Kim Krisco. I like the rule of three because it is very simple:

1. Identify three authentic qualities of your organization;
2. Identify three natural channels of communication; Y
3. Introduce the three qualities into those three channels three times over the next three months.

Follow the rule of threeand by the fourth month you will hear people talking about you and saying exactly what you expected them to say.

THREE QUALITIES

The next time you’re at a conference, or even just browsing the web, take a look at how people describe your nonprofit. You hear the same words over and over again: “catalyst, change agent, accountable, wholehearted, mission driven, values ​​driven, grassroots” etc.

But if every nonprofit, including yours, is a change agent, what makes it unique? How will someone remember you? Start by limiting what you say about yourself to three qualities. That in itself will be noteworthy!

Then make sure they have all three of the right qualities. Start by visualizing your ideal donor. What does she do for a living? Where she works? What does she do in her free time? Is she married or single? What pressing needs does she have? What is her income? What results does she value?

Now that you have a picture of your perfect donor, start listing all the things your current donors already say about you. How are you helping them? What needs are you covering? What services are you providing? What attracts them to you? What surprised them happily when working with you? How do they talk about you?

Pick three of those qualities that your perfect donor will listen to best. It is crucial that they are already true. Focusing on what you are already doing well will free you up to serve more donors. You won’t have to waste time trying to add new services when they sign in with you. It will also make it very natural for your current donors to use these words when describing your school to their friends. By using language that others are already using about you, you are building word of mouth!

THREE CHANNELS OF COMMUNICATION

Now that you have identified three descriptive phrases about yourself, choose three ways in which you will convey this message to others. Communication channels can be almost anything:

• website
• electronic publications
• print newsletters
• Interviews with former students
• networking events
• Conversations with donors
• Conversations with the faculty
• And more…

Anything. The variety of channels is practically inexhaustible. Use your imagination. Be creative. But then, narrow the list down to three. You can’t work too many at once. So stick with just three.

THREE TIMES EACH DURING THE NEXT THREE MONTHS

Now, you are ready to put the Rule of Three into practice. You have identified your “perfect donor” and the things about yourself that would attract that donor. You’ve also chosen three different ways you’ll communicate those things to current and future donors.

Now you just need to do it. Put a quality in each communication channel at least once a month for the next three months.

Sounds simple, right? This. During these three months, you will be repeating the same thing in different places. You may get tired of listening to yourself. But you’ll find that it focuses much more on describing the benefits of your organization. You will speak with integrity because you are not making unsubstantiated claims, you are using words that others already use when describing working with you.

Be patient. Submit to the process. Gordon and Krisco caution against expecting results in the first three months. But, as the fourth month progresses, you will find that people will be much more interested in giving you.

In fact, the people calling you will usually not be the people you contacted directly at your local chamber meeting or last donor reception. They will be your friends, and the friends of your friends. Using her three qualities over and over again, she gave them mini scripts to use later when describing their nonprofits to their friends and colleagues.

So while it may be true that you can’t control what people say about you, you can help them out a bit. Why not give them the words to use?