My husband and I have a bird feeder in our backyard. And the bay window in the breakfast nook has become a household favorite. In fact, I think we spend more of our waking hours here than any other place in the house. We love to sit and watch the birds feed. The squirrels scurry under the bird feeder, picking up the seeds that drop. On occasion, one of the birds will even fly right up to the window and look at us, as if to say hello.
There's just one catch to this picture-perfect scene: You have to remember to fill the bird feeder.
We go through birdseed at an alarming pace. And the last time the bird feeder was emptied, we had no more seed in reserve. We forgot to buy more the next time we ran errands, and the next time, and the next time... until several months had passed. By this time, the birds had disappeared. The squirrels only made a brief appearance. Our busy backyard was dead quiet.
Last week we finally got around to filling the bird feeder again. Each time I would pass the bay window, I would look out eagerly to see if our friends had returned. Nothing. The seeds just sat there.
"They'll be back," my husband said. I wasn't convinced. But he insisted. "The birds want food. And if we leave it there long enough, they'll be back. "
It turns out, he was right. (He usually is.) Today, the bird feeder is in high demand. In fact, I counted 5 different varieties of birds at one time.
The point? Your donors are like my backyard birds. If you stop communicating with them, if you don't give them what they want, they'll just go away. But they're not lost forever. Start talking to your donors. Feed your relationship with them. Give them what they want. Soon, they'll be back. And they'll be happier than ever.
Need help learning how to feed your relationship with your donors? Contact us.
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