In an article, I found on nonprofit Hub, the author talks about Daniel Pink’s book and how those in nonprofits are in sales. We have talked a lot about the importance of non-sales selling in class but nonprofit sales are a little bit different from non-sales selling. Nonprofit sales are all about selling to people’s emotions and morals. It is different than non-sales selling because the donor is still parting with money but it is different from traditional sales because the donor is not receiving anything of monetary value in return for their money. There are two aspects that I think are very important to nonprofit sales, allowing people to see from another’s perspective and being buoyant in all situations.
The story that we talked about in class and that Pink talks about in his book is the epitome of nonprofit sales. In the story, a man sees a homeless man holding a sign that says I am blind. A man passing by adds the words “It is spring and.” This causes more and more people to give money. In nonprofit sales, it is very important for those trying to raise funds to allow people to see the hardships that others are facing without exploiting them. This story shows how a few words can cause people to give a lot more money. The man was pulling on people’s emotions because he knew that once people thought about how hard it is to be blind, they would give more money. Those in nonprofit sales have to make sure that they are helping people to understand the problems that others are facing. One of my favorite quotes from David Platt is, “Orphans are easier to ignore before you know their names. They are easier to ignore before you see their faces. It is easier to pretend they’re not real before you hold them in your arms, but once you do, everything changes.” Sharing statistics and information is important but allowing people to understand the real pain and hear real stories from those in need, helps people to want to give money and time to help others.
In the article I read the other point that they made, which I believe was helpful, was that buoyancy is important even in nonprofits. I think that those of us that want to go into nonprofit work understand the judgment that a nonprofit undergoes. People tend to be very harsh when it comes to mission work if they do not believe in the mission of the nonprofit. The article was very good and emphasized the importance of continuing to believe in your dream and to continue to sell your idea.
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