Jessica Alba has made a donation to the United Way in Oklahoma City, where she ran into trouble for attaching a poster to one of the charity's billboards.

She currently favors putting the word out about the declining great white shark population around the world. My take is that raising awareness for a good cause is always a good thing. Two organizations benefited from her efforts.

One of my favorite cartoons shows a lady stretched out on the couch at her shrink’s office. The caption reads, “Maybe I’m depressed because I have to pay someone to listen to me.”

The cartoon says it clearly. People want to be heard. We want to think our feelings, thoughts, and opinions matter to the people in our lives – and very importantly to the people behind the causes we choose to support.

Too many nonprofits drop the ball when it comes to listening to donors. A survey once a year just doesn’t cut it. You might think, “Well since most nonprofits aren’t doing a good job of listening, I’m safe, right?  There’s no competition.”

But there is expectation – and believe me it is increasing with each new generation.

Enter in the opportunity! You have a chance to set the bar – to distinguish yourselves from other organizations with their head in the sand. You, on the other hand, will have your finger on the pulse.

So what should you do? This list is by no means comprehensive, but it will get you started thinking about simple and creative ways you can listen to your donors.

The Basics

• Answer your general email. If a donor or activist responds to your general mailbox – they should receive a timely and thoughtful (no form letter) response.
• Surveys – surveys are great tools for soliciting feedback – but do so with a purpose. Use the survey to inform a donor reactivation campaign strategy, benchmark your organizations net promoter score, or find out how the economy might affect your donors’ giving plans this year. A survey just for a survey’s sake is a waste of or your time (and your donors).
• Report back what you learned – this is critical – donors want to know that you’ve heard them.
• Charity Navigator and Guidestar both allow donor user reviews - think Yelp for the non profit set. Your donors may be talking about you there. Read those reviews and respond as appropriate.

Brad Pitt donated One Million Dollars to a hospital. It is great to see that even in an economic downturn people stepping up to help.

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