Doing It Right! United Way of Westchester and Putnam (White Plains, NY)
Once again, it is campaign season and United Ways are providing donors with all sorts of information to encourage them to support United Way. Providing donors with the information they need to know can be a challenge when you have limited space in a campaign brochure or handouts. One United Way that is providing donors the information they need to know efficiently and effectively is United Way of Westchester and Putnam (White Plains, NY). As part of their online campaign toolkit, United Way of Westchester and Putnam has developed a simple overview of their impact, which they call “Your United Way at a Glance.”
This overview shows the work they are doing to build success for at-risk children in elementary school, provide individuals with skills training and financial education, and reduce obesity and improve the physical and mental health of children and families.
In addition to the “Your United Way at a Glance” overview, United Way of Westchester and Putnam has developed four individual brochures for each of their impact areas. For example, this is the brochure they have developed for their Teach Me To Fish area:
What are they doing right?
First, they are providing a simple overview of their work that a donor can look at and quickly see the impact of their contribution. The overview covers all four of their impact areas, with a couple of quick and simple outcomes or results in each area. If a donor is interested in more in-depth information about a particular impact area, such as Teach Me To Fish, then they can get more detailed information in a separate brochure. By using an overview and four separate brochures, instead of trying fit all the details about each impact area into one brochure, United Way of Westchester and Putnam has made it easier for a donor to understand the work of United Way of Westchester and Putnam without being overwhelmed.
Second, the brochures for each of the impact areas, such as the Teach Me To Fish brochure, include the information donors want to know. Donors want to know the issues United Way is addressing, and the Teach Me To Fish brochure makes it clear to donors that United Way of Westchester and Putnam is working to reduce poverty in their community. Donors also want to know what actions United Way is taking to address the issue, and United Way of Westchester and Putnam has listed the actions they are taking to address poverty, such as financial workshops or job skills training. Finally, donors what to know the results of their contribution, and United Way of Westchester and Putnam has listed some outcomes and results, such as 1,556 people received professional skills training so they could get better jobs.
Third, United Way of Westchester and Putnam has included statistics and stories in their Teach Me To Fish brochure. There are statistics about poverty, such as 1 in 5 people received food assistance in Westchester, which lets donors know the prevalence and significance of poverty right in their local community. There is a story about Silvia who got her first full-time career job after successfully completing Teach Me To Fish training, which makes the issue of poverty more personal for donors. The Teach Me To Fish brochure also has links for people to get involved by donating, teaching, joining, or advocating, and contact information if someone is interested in learning more about corporate and community partnerships.
Providing information to donors is essential to the success of every United Way. There is a lot of information that could be provided to donors, and many methods of providing that information. For the workplace campaign, United Way of Westchester and Putnam has developed a simple overview and a series of four brochures that communicate to donors what they want and need to know about United Way of Westchester and Putnam in an effective and efficient manner. If your United Way is looking for a way to communicate with donors during campaign, take a look at their overview and brochures for some great ideas. United Way of Westchester and Putnam, you are Doing It Right!
