Better To Dress Poorly When Meeting Prospects and Supporters

"Don't Put on Your Suit to Give the Wrong Impression that Our Organization is a Well-Off One!" This is a myth I keep hearing very often ever since I have entered the charity sector and fundraising profession some 15 years ago. The rationale of people saying so is that they're afraid prospect would get the wrong impression and hence refusing to fund. My short answer to it is always ‘We are not begging.' Rather than pretending to be poor to attract donations, the opposite is indeed the reality. The more you have financially the more money you can raise consequently. As my prior blog post Annual Report is Not Memoir, I'm Not Interested in You pointed out, donors are fanatical in seeing the positive social change that was brought about by their supports through our organizations. It is therefore that they will assess each organization and the potential supporting project like an investment opportunity. If an organization is too poor, with too limited a budget and resources, and operational scale, prospects will no doubt speculate how much they could do and thus how much positive change and impact they could bring to beneficiaries and the society. One of the unmistakable examples is universities. If pretending to be less well-off is a key in raising fund, why people keep giving to higher education institutes when it is of no secret that universities have an extremely deep pocket of reserve where the most well-off ones, for example, keep getting the largest chunk of funds that are in the range of tens or hundreds of millions of US dollars upwards? Unlike street fundraising or begging which is purely an emotional and empathetic business, sophisticated donors will for sure study thoroughly the proposal being tabled, check through the numbers being presented, evaluate the intended impact it stated, the contingency plan it has put in place and alike, but not the appearance of the fundraiser. But even for street fundraisers, it is not difficult in seeing them dressed smartly, not poorly.

So, what's the point of fundraisers have to dress down purposely? Instead, it is also about professionalism. It is a widely accepted notion nowadays that charities have to run and managed professionally on top of having a big heart to serve while it is too true that putting on a suit is still being considered as able to project a professional look and feel. If so, fundraisers putting on their suits when meeting prospects and supporters shouldn't be an obstacle in their ability in fundraising. Agree? This is the reason why I'm still wearing my suit and bowtie when having an appointment with my prospects and supporters.