Want to connect with donors? Be real.

In my first position as a Director of Communications, every item that went out out in print, email, or online (Social Media would come later.) had to go through a tortuous line of proofers and editors. Every comma, every hyphen was debated. Every image was perfect.

We were a prestigious girl's school. We had standards. The outcome was predictable - and bland.

So I tried an experiement.

I watched what was happeing at our school, and I thought about who would be interested. What would parents want to hear about? What about grandparents, alumnae, and board members. What would move their hearts?

I started to send emails when I saw something I thought would interest an audience. No set schedule. No committee proofing, editing, draining the life out of a conversation starter. Just emails from the heart that matched the audience - that felt spontaneous, authentic - real. I hit send and held my breath.

The feedback was instantaneous" "Thank you!" "I love this!" "Keep these coming!" And my favorite, "Can I send a check now!"

Converstations started. I was a real person to each audience. They became real to me. We had something in common. We cared about their kids, the students, the culture of the school, and the traditions. I wasn't "selling " them anything. I was just sharing what I saw that moved my heart. I was delighted when it moved theirs, too.

An interesting footnote:

Years later, I was looking back at copies of the emails. I couldn't find a single one that didn't have a typo or a punctuation error. I was struck by the fact that the very same people who were on the phone immediately to report a misplaced comma in a formal piece, loved these messages. I think the difference was that these felt real, matched their personal interest, and had an intimate quality - characteristics as valued as precision.