5 Tips for Making Meaningful Donor Connections on LinkedIn
Moving Forward: 5 Tips for Making Meaningful Donor Connections on LinkedIn

5 Tips for Making Meaningful Donor Connections on LinkedIn

Welcome to the latest edition of Moving Forward, a newsletter designed to help nonprofits exchange ideas and learn from one another to unlock the full potential of the sector. This week, we’re sharing five tips to help you elevate your donor outreach efforts, inspired by the session led by LinkedIn’s Joey Zumaya at AFP ICON 2022.

Using LinkedIn as part of your donor cultivation and outreach process can help you reach more of the right people and get to a “yes” faster. There are 830 million members on LinkedIn today, which means there's no shortage of opportunities to connect with people who can make a big difference for your cause. But with so many professionals on the platform, how can you identify the right people to reach out to — and make your message stand out from the crowd?

Whether you already use LinkedIn to find donors or are wondering how to get started, here are five tips for making meaningful connections on the platform:

1. Look for people with a connection to your cause

When people already have a connection to your cause, they’ll be more likely to respond favorably to your outreach. That affinity can show up on their LinkedIn profiles in lots of different ways, like mentions of issues they care about under the “Causes” section or prior volunteering experience at a nonprofit with a similar focus to your own. 

To find these professionals, create a list of keywords relevant to your mission and search for one or more using the search bar on LinkedIn. You can then filter your results based on criteria like location or industry.

2. See who you already know

Your existing network is one of your most valuable assets when it comes to making new connections. When you find a prospect you’re interested in, check if you have any mutual connections that might be able to make an introduction, boosting your credibility and helping you get your foot in the door. 

LinkedIn lets you know if you have mutual connections with someone by putting “2nd” beside their name, meaning they’re a second-degree connection. You can then find a list of any mutual connections you share just above the “Connect” or “Follow” button at the top of their profile.

3. Perfect your digital presence 

LinkedIn is a highly trusted platform, which makes it the ideal place to initiate conversations with prospects. But that trust can be eroded by factors like outdated information on your nonprofit’s LinkedIn Page or a half-finished personal profile. 

To increase your chances of receiving a positive response, spend a few minutes before you reach out auditing your own LinkedIn profile and your nonprofit’s LinkedIn Page. Are they complete and up to date? Do they convey credibility?

4. Ensure the timing is right

The timing of your ask can be just as important as the message itself. If a prospect is celebrating a professional milestone, for instance, saying congratulations is a great way to start a conversation. But if they’re taking some time off work for personal reasons and haven’t posted or commented in weeks, your message may go unread.

Dedicate some time each week to checking prospects’ activity on LinkedIn. Look for both conversation starters and red flags and time your outreach accordingly. 

5. Make an effective introduction

When it’s time to reach out, keep your first message short and sweet, highlighting any connection the prospect has to your cause. Include clear next steps, and don’t be afraid to send a polite follow-up if you don’t hear back. 

If you’re sending a connection request instead of an InMail, use LinkedIn’s “Add a note” feature to provide some context. But don’t make an ask until the prospect has accepted your request — establish the connection first. 

Do you have a top tip for connecting with prospects on LinkedIn? Share what’s worked for your organization in the comments!

3 nonprofit thought leaders to follow

Daniel V. Fernandez writes on LinkedIn "Apart of my mission with Sustainable Ocean Alliance is to break down barriers with investors and show them that #SustainableSolutions not only regenerate our ocean, but they are also profitable investments that will indeed generate a lot of capital.  We must recognize that profit and impact are not competing entities, but the two can work together in unison to revitalize economies AND mitigate the impacts of climate change.  Recently, I sat down with Rebecca Deczynski at Inc. Magazine to discuss SOA, strategic partnerships, #ImpactInvesting, the Blue New Deal, and more. Thank you Inc. for this wonderful feature!"​

  • Sonal Kapoor, Founder Director of Protsahan India Foundation, writes about the urge to dive into problem solving as a nonprofit leader and proposes two questions leaders should ask themselves first.

Sonal Kapoor writes on LinkedIn "Education or the arrogance of experience often biases us towards immediately trying to solve well-framed problems. An algebra test poses solvable algebra problems, and a physics test poses solvable physics problems. Real world problems are much more ambiguous — it may not even be clear that there is a problem to be solved. Even if it is, it may not be clear what sort of problem it is, it may not come with sufficient information to be solvable, or in some cases it may not be solvable as given.  For this reason, it is important that #leaders postpone the urge to immediately start analyzing and deciding and instead begin by asking two basic questions: Is there a problem to solve and what sort of problem is it? It takes active work to break the mirage of sticky mental models and see evolving reality as it is in context of a galore of intersectionalities.  Of course, there is a tradeoff between investing time in problem framing vs. problem solving. Attempting to solve an unsolvable problem or deftly solving the wrong problem will only result in frustration and wasted effort. After over a decade in leading Protsahan India Foundation’s work on the ground with policy, advocacy and program strategy thrown in different mixes, I am beginning to deeply understand how systems change happens. No more the excitement of a 23-year-old holds me, but an uncomfortable sense of deep understanding of how things happen, now at 36. Phew.. and this is only a beginning."​

  • Dawn Stone, Director of Community Impact & Equity Initiatives at the Center for Nonprofit Management, highlights the importance of hiring great people and giving them the freedom to do their best work. 

On LinkedIn, Dawn Stone shares a post featuring the Steve Jobs quote "It doesn't make sense to hire smart people and then tell them what to do. We hire smart people so they can tell us what to do."​ Dawn adds "This is a true statement. Hire great people and let them craft and do the work. Job crafting allows leaders in organizations to combine their jobs with skills, gifts, and individual interests which impacts job performance and employee happiness. If you have a recruitment and retention issue, try this."​
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Meet the 2022 Top Voices in Social Impact. Discover top creators driving impactful conversations on LinkedIn and championing change around the world.
Jideofor Lordstadt

LinkedIn Influencer|HOBA Affiliate|Realtor Consultant|JV Mind Movies Affiliate|Digital Marketer|Affiliate MarketerIV/A

2y

very good info

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Reply
Yola Bastos

I empower young women financially and boost medium business profits with effective social media strategies.

2y

Absolutely. I can't agree more.

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Priyaranjani Puttaswamy

Exploring Solutions for a Better Tomorrow | Enthusiastic about Partnerships that Promote Sustainable Change.

2y

Sumedha P. Samridhi Kapoor

SUDHIR SHETTY

Founder of Global Crisis Response -a Think & do tank focusing on existential risk (collapse) and transition to alternative sustainable futures

2y

I appreciate these use tips and thoughtful suggestions. We at GCR (www.globalcrisisresponse.org) would appreciate on Volunteer inputs on strategy, execution & capacity building ideas to meaningfully respond to Global Crisis (GC) manifesting as Societal & Biospheric Collapse.

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