Are You a Relationship Wrecker?

Seven signs that you’re alienating prospective donors.

There is a lot of talk these days about the importance of relationship building for successful fundraising, marketing and communications — especially in the online world.

But what if you're a terrible relationship builder? What if you're actually better at alienating prospects and supporters than you are at drawing them into your orbit? Here are seven signs that you're a relationship wrecker.

1. You're slow to respond online

We're all overwhelmed by the sheer volume of messages in our Twitter streams, fan pages and inboxes. But that doesn't mean we should ignore online correspondence. Like it or not, responding quickly is part of the culture of online media and ultimately helps build trust. Completely overwhelmed by online messaging? Create an auto-responder to let folks know that you'll e-mail them within 24 hours. Create an editorial calendar to get your content publishing schedule under control. Get more people in your organization blogging, tweeting and updating your Facebook page to share the workload.

2. You take more than you give

Relationships are a quid pro quo. While I'm not suggesting that you keep a scorecard after each event, meeting or phone call with a new partner, be sure to give at least as much as you take. For example, if a colleague offers to retweet an article on your behalf, be sure to reciprocate with a link or comment on her blog next week.

3. You're a 'nonprofit narcissist'

You remember Narcissus from Greek mythology. He fell in love with his own reflection in the water of a spring and wasted away. Far too many nonprofits still communicate as if they are the center of the universe. BORING! I really don't care about your new hire, the fact that you just moved offices and now have a state-of-the-art website. Is this really what you want to highlight on your homepage? I want to know how I can help and why I should.

4. You're out of touch

In her new book, "The Nonprofit Marketing Guide: High-Impact, Low-Cost Ways to Build Support for Your Good Cause," Kivi Leroux Miller describes how many nonprofits take a Grandma-Knows-Best approach. "Grandma-Knows-Best nonprofits write newsletters full of articles about the organization, its activities, and its issues, with little regard for who actually reads the newsletter. In fact, they aren't even sure who's on the news letter list, and it really doesn't matter. Knowing wouldn't change the content."

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