Newsletter: CVS Accused of Fundraising Fraud at Checkout 🫢 ; KFC Hits the Road in Charitable Food Truck 🚐 ; 3 Things to Do Now to Crush It in 1st Quarter 📆
2023 is right around the corner. Here are three things you can do RIGHT NOW to be better at partnership sales in the new year.
☑️ Strive for more consistency. If you want more consistent success in your partnership program, you need more consistency in your actions. This means dedicating time every day to prospecting, cultivating, and closing partners. No excuses.
✅ Start creating checklists. Checklists reminds you of what works and keeps you from making silly mistakes. Start with my Partnership Solicitation Map (PSA) and break the sales process down further with an actionable checklist.
For example, what works when you are following up with a prospect (Step 3 on the PSA)? Create a checklist of things that succeed in getting a prospect to answer her phone or reply to an email. Create this checklist in Google Docs so everyone on your team can access and add to it.
🆘 Line up some coaching. I've learned something over the past couple of years. Your partnership team doesn't need to sit through another presentation on how to sell corporate partnerships. What they need is coaching - someone who will show them what they are doing wrong and how to sell better more effectively in real time.
It's like losing weight. You don't need another diet program. What you really need is someone leaning over your shoulder saying, "Don't eat that. Eat this instead." You need a coach!
Interested in coaching with me? Just hit reply to this email. 👊👊
✍️ Partnership Notes
1. In a law suit, CVS has been accused of fundraising fraud at checkout. This is serious accusation of which CVS will be vindicated, I believe. However, it's bad press for charity checkout programs and highlights the need for radical transparency from both partners on dollars raised and monies received.
Because of the paywall at the Boston Globe, I've taken the rare step of copying and pasting this article to Google Docs so you can read it. Please forgive me, Boston Globe!
2. KFC hits the road with Blessings in a Backpack in a charitable food truck .
3. A slide for your pitch deck. Consumers expect CEO's to take a stand on issues. These are the issues consumers think are most important .
4. A good post on the NFL's 2022 My Cause My Cleats program. Be sure to check out this list of which causes players are supporting. Of course, health causes are leading the pack, followed by youth and education causes.
🤑 Marketing Your Cause
1. Unsure of what you should be posting on your social channels? Social Media Today makes the case for posting more memes .
2. A good thing to know. Talking to reporters: on the record VS. off the record VS. on background VS. on deep background. Sheez. I'm sticking with "NO COMMENT".
😎 Cool Jobs in Cause
1. Director of Development and Strategic Partnerships, Associated Black Charities, Baltimore ($79.5k)
2. Business Partnerships Assistant, City Harvest , NYC
3. Corporate Relations Manager, United Way of the Midlands , Omaha, NE ($55k - $65k)
4. Corporate Relations Officer, Austin Pets Alive! , Austin, TX ($70k)
5. Business Development Senior Partner, American Red Cross ($83k - $110k)
🧠🍌 Brain Food
1. What a fun idea. Rocket Social Impact 🚀 launched its first annual Brand Crush List to promote companies driving incredible impact who don’t always get the love and recognition they deserve.
2. How to stop stewing about something you've taken (a little too) personally. In my case I have "Irish Amnesia" - I've forgotten everything but the grudge!
3. Executives from a porn site, a cannabis company, and an oil conglomerate walk into a nonprofit with a bag of money...
