Jargon
An alum, friend or parent of the university.
A prospect
Pledges/Total Contacts
Participation
Number of call outs I'm allowed to use each month
2
How long should rapport last?
5 minutes
True/False
I should ask the prospect if it is a good time to talk.
False.
If it is not a good time to talk, they will let you know. When we offer to call someone back because of our own assumptions, the chances of them answering the phone again are not great.
A statement that we are required to disclose before making any fundraising asks in a call
State Disclosure
It is a Thursday night shift, and participation is great, but average gift is low. How can callers impact average gift the easiest?
By ensuring that we are using the correct ask ladder, and doing an upgrade ask on every single pledge.
The only three reasons we can skip asks in a call
1. The prospect is unemployed, not by choice.
2. The prospect is a current student at Mizzou. (Going to graduate school elsewhere does not count)
3. Extreme financial distress brought on by crippling medical bills.
True/False:
I spoke with a prospect who said that they weren't interested in supporting Mizzou. I asked them if they'd like to be taken off of the calling list. This was the correct thing to do.
False.
The only time that I should be taking anyone off of the calling list is if they are so old that they can't hear anything we're saying or if they request to be taken off of the calling list.
A pledge, no pledge or unspecified pledge is known as
A contact
CPH = Completes per Hour
If it is low that means we're not being very efficient on the phones. So coding things quicker, and staying in your seat for the majority of shift except short trips to the restroom.
What is the third strike rule for attendance violations?
Your position will be terminated upon your third attendance violation. Attendance violations can be given for being late, not sending a call out in the appropriate amount of time, and for no call no shows.
The close of a pledge
(the sheet in the binder)
Scenario: We are on the phone with Judy who has agreed give to commit to a minimum amount of $75 on a pledge card. Do I need to do any of the following closing steps: Confirm the designation, use the word commitment three times, upgrade ask, matching, and credit cards?
YES. You need to do ALL of those steps. Pledge cards are just like credit card gifts. We still need to complete the ENTIRE close of a pledge. The only thing that you can skip out on is doing a 2ND CC ask.
We use the lasc cycle to get through objections on the phone. Define each letter in the acronym.
L = Listen
A = Acknowledge
S = Support
C = Continue
Credit card pledges/total pledges =
Credit card count rate.
How much notice do I need to give Anna if I am leaving the call center?
At least 2 weeks
Why must I use the ask ladder?
Because it works!! We know that the first ask is too much! We only expect 3% of our contacts to agree to give our first ask amount. We KNOW that 70% of prospects say yes on the 3rd and 4th ask.
Scenario: I am on the phone with John, and we've gotten through rapport, and I am in the middle of my first ask. John tells me he is not interested in giving but appreciates the phone call and leaves a long pause as if he is going to hang up but doesn't. I say thanks John, have a great rest of your night. Is there anything I could've/should've done differently?
YES! It is my responsibility as a caller to do my best to keep every prospect on the phone. Instead of telling John thanks, and to have a great rest of his night I should've used my lasc cycle to get through his objection and gone onto the next ask.
A pledge that was an upgrade, with matching and was given on credit card.
A Perfect Pledge
Formula for Average total gift
Total dollars/specified pledges
How much are my bonuses and what are they based on?
$.25 is based on attendance. Working the minimum amount of required shifts without any attendance violations.
$.25 is based on your individual credit card performance for each month. The goal is 50% credit cards.
Making an open ask is a bad idea because
That gives the prospect control. They could say that no they aren't interested, OR they could offer you $5 when they really may have said yes to something much greater.
Scenario: You're on the phone with Judy, and have made your first ask for $150. Judy says that she'd love to give, but would really prefer if you could send her something in the mail. In her saying this, she has not agreed to give $150. You then explain to her that we can send pledge cards in the mail, and proceed to ask her how much she'd like for us to put on that pledge card because we need a minimum amont. What is wrong with this?
You essentially made an open ask. Instead of asking Judy what she'd like us to put on the pledge card, drop down to your next ask amount and say something like "When we send those pledge cards out we do need a minimum amount on there, would it be okay to put you down for XX?" If Judy isn't comfortable with whatever amount you just said, she will offer what she wants to give.