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1 R Special Advertising Section | Sunday, April 25, 2021 19 GIVING GUIDE dent of the Leadership Story Lab and author of the report, said gift of- ficers didn’t always know the potential donor’s story and, instead of asking spe- cific questions, led with a pitch about the greatness of their organization. “Sometimes everything feels too polished,” Choy said. “If they can make their solicitation as hu- man as possible, it would work better. It shouldn’t be about putting some- one on a pedestal.” As donors themselves, she and her husband, Bernhard Krieg, have experienced some of the same issues. Several of their problems had to do with the organization’s follow-up. At times, Choy said, the couple have not been thanked for their gift or have been thanked too much. In one in- stance, her husband had to call multiple times to get a tax document for a donation. And they have been subject to the same overly broad questions her report identified as a problem. “People are really look- ing for something more than a transaction,” said Michael Wagner, co- founder of Omnia Family Wealth, which manages $2 billion for 60 families. “It’s about building a partnership based on a relationship. People used to be OK with just giving the money and being done with it, but that isn’t the case anymore.” One factor is that donors have increasingly turned to what are known as impact investments — investments that seek to do good while earning a return. And donors are looking for similar ways to measure the effective- ness of their gifts. Tyson Voelkel, the president and chief ex- ecutive of the $2.2 billion Texas A&M Foundation, said he had approached a large donor and his wife in the spring, when a significant number of the university’s students were having trouble staying in school because their parents had lost their jobs during the pandemic. Voelkel explained to the donor, who runs a large company, that it might take only $1,000 to keep a student in school. On the condition of anonymity, the donor eventually gave $500,000. “In the year leading up to that phone conversa- tion, I had been listening and asking what they were really interested in funding,” Voelkel said. “Traditional programs weren’t motivating to them, but this was. In that same conversation, I found out they’d be in- terested in doing more of this high-impact, quick- need funding.” Voelkel’s approach led not with a dollar amount but with a specific need and stories to back it up. He wasn’t asking for a certain size donation in exchange for something like an endowed chair for a professor or a building. And in this case, as long as the need persisted, the donor continued to give. He himself had chosen to attend A&M over other universities because it offered $500 more in scholarship aid. The approach was more educational than market- ing, and that appeals to certain donors, the report found. “Many nonprofits have a kind of salesmanship that needs to go away,” said Pulizzi, who in ad- dition to his foundation gives to his alma mater, Bowling Green State Uni- versity. “If the nonprofit is calling on someone with means, I think they need to form a better communication strategy so it’s not a commercial. They need to get to know that person and invest some time.” Like galas, Pulizzi believes that the an- nual reports sent to large donors are a waste of money. “It doesn’t make me want to give money knowing what they spent on that,” he said of the fancy publications. Pulizzi said that if not for his foundation, he would keep a lower pro- file. He’s part of a group that Choy describes as having “stealth wealth.” These donors don’t want the attention that naming something would bring since that recognition would probably attract other organizations ask- ing for money. Voelkel said some people wanted to name buildings to recognize their gift, while oth- ers had no interest in buildings or any other infrastructure project. It’s his job, he said, to listen more than speak. One small change from listening: The Texas A&M Foundation now publishes two magazines — a fancy one for older donors and a stripped- down, action-oriented one printed on recycled paper for younger donors. “The more trust we can earn, the more money donors will give and the more we can help Texas A&M,” Voelkel said. “We have to convince them that we’re the best place to put their philanthropic dollars.” Donations Continued from page 17 2021 CLINIC SERVICES THIS PAST YEAR HAS HAD A DEVASTATING EFFECT ON OUR COMMUNITY, AND IT SHOWS. Evergreen Treatment Services meets people where they are with effective homeless outreach services and substance use treatment. GiveBIG to amplify our life-changing work of recovery. TOGETHER, WE CAN MAKE OUR COMMUNITY STRONGER. EVERGREENTREATMENT.ORG