06 Jul Campfires and Warmth and Donor Communication
7 July 2026
By David Allen, Development for Conservation
Two weeks ago, I ended with a crowdsource request:
If you have examples of standardized project data sheets, or prospecti, that I can publish on my Resources page as examples, please forward them to me, and I’ll post them as I get them.
Special thanks to Columbia Land Conservancy who sent me three examples last week (adding to the three sent by Grand Traverse Regional Land Conservancy the week before). They are available for download near the top of my resources page.
Rebecca says:
Here are a couple of project briefs we’ve been using! Hope that’s helpful as you continue to compile and share these resources, I love seeing what the other land trusts are up to.
I’ll keep this going for another week. Anyone else with examples you might be willing to share?
* * * * * * * * * *
I have this image I like a lot. It’s an image of a campfire somewhere on a moonless night.
The fire creates light which illuminates everything that is relatively close. It also warms everything relatively close to it.
But if you get far enough away, you are neither lit nor warmed.
This implies that there is a line somewhere between that which is lit and warm and that which is not. That line is not sharp. It grades outward fairly quickly, but it still grades out. And it flickers with the fire.
To those inside the circle of light/warmth, most things outside look indistinct and murky. Faceless. Anonymous. And those farther out are just noises in the dark.
To those outside the circle, everything inside looks attractive. Inside is where the warmth is. And the laughter. The camaraderie. The music. And the S’mores.
Your land trust is like this campfire. The fire itself is the mission, fed by the energy your program and project logs bring to it. The people involved – Board, volunteers, staff – are both well-lit and warmed by it, at least for the time they are “inside.”
Donors who feel like they are inside – that the fire is their fire as much as anyone else’s – will give more and over a longer period of time. Donors who feel like they are faceless and indistinct may leave quietly in the dark and find another fire.
This is how I see “donor-centric.” (See also What is a Donor? And What is “Donor-Centric”?) First that the word “donors” includes ALL donors and not just major gift donors, and second that donors need to be regularly invited and welcomed into the light and warmth – part of the “center” of the organization.
How we talk to donors on websites, in newsletters, at events, and even in appeal letters matters. Does your writing invite donors into the light and warmth? Does it help them feel like the fire is their fire as much as anyone else’s?
Or does it leave them out in the cold?
Cheers, and have a great week.
-da
The majority of this post was originally posted in April of 2019.
PS: Your comments on these posts are welcomed and warmly requested. If you have not posted a comment before, or if you are using a new email address, please know that there may be a delay in seeing your posted comment. That’s my SPAM defense at work. I approve all comments as soon as I am able during the day.
Photo by Pexels courtesy of Pixabay.
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