Reboot the Suit

Reboot the Suit

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  Reboot the Suit:Using Stories for Effective Fundraising Client advisory for release 9/2 One small step for fundraising, one giant step for fundraising-kind. On August 19th, the Smithsonian’s Air and Space Museum closed a month-long campaign that raised over $700,000 to repair the spacesuit Neil Armstrong wore on the Apollo 11 moon mission and Alan Shepard’s Mercury 7 suit. The Kickstarter campaign launched July 20 and met its fundraising goal of $500,000 in just five days. The Smithsonian soon added an additional goal of $200,000 to conserve the suit worn by Alan Shepard, the first American in space during the Mercury flight in 1961. According to Yoonhyung Lee, the Smithsonian’s Director of Digital Media Philanthropy, only about 64 percent of Smithsonian’s resources comes from federal appropriations. These funds must be spent on research, maintenance of buildings, and collections, and don’t cover additional projects like “Reboot the Suit.” Through specialized incentives and creating a compelling story for the importance of this fundraising project, the Smithsonian was able to excite potential donors and get them to feel like they are part of the project and a part of history. A large part of what made this campaign successful was that the Smithsonian shaped its message to fit a unique audience: space and American history enthusiasts. The campaign’s tiered giving options included incentives such as a digital poster and sticker ($20 donation), 3D scan data of Neil’s Spacesuit Glove ($35 donation), and a behind-the-scenes experience at the museum’s conservation center for a $10,000 donation. They also tapped in to donors’ memories of the Apollo 11 mission,, asking them to write in with their personal Apollo 11 stories. These memories - and the funds - came pouring in. By using knowledge of their audiences to effectively tell the story of the space suit - remind donors of their own stories - the Smithsonian was able to inspire and engage donors to reach the $700,000 goal. Not all organizations have a rallying point as famous or beloved as Neil Armstrong’s spacesuit, but they do have a loyal member base or affinity groups wanting to be a part of something greater.
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  When thinking aboutyour upcoming fundraising project, consider the following questions to create a compelling story that will attract and motivate donors. What is your goal or mission? How do you get people excited about it and feel like they are helping to accomplish something and make a difference? Who is your audience? Is there an interest market that you can tap into? The Smithsonian geared their initiative towards space and American history enthusiasts alike. What influencers and big names can you involve? The Smithsonian joined forces with “Bad Astronomy” blogger Phil Plait to tell its story. Phil brought his knowledge of the subject and 420,000 social media followers, dramatically increasing the audience for this project. Adding a mascot, symbol, or celebrity to your campaign can increase its visibility. What’s in it for donors? In this case, donors were motivated by being part of history, but also by well thought out incentives. For example, the Smithsonian had Star Trek and NASA designer Mike Okuda design an exclusive mission patch for donors at the $55 level. Incentives, when used well, can play an important role in your engagement strategy. BWF helps organizations use effective storytelling and fundraising techniques to increase philanthropic support. Contact us today – we’d love to know how we can help you.