The Nonprofit Complexity Conundrum

We see the nonprofit tug of war between simple and complex everywhere:

• Feed a hungry family versus advocacy to end poverty
• Emergency survival pack versus empowerment and education
• Disaster response versus preparedness and prevention
• Rescuing animals versus lobbying to prevent global warming

Direct-response donors care about both sides of the issue, but they generally don't respond as well to the complex offers. Their behavior tells us they want a simple problem and a simple solution. And whether our program people or boards of directors agree or not, if we want to maximize revenue to make a positive impact on the world, we need to meet the donors where they are with simple, urgent, emotional offers.