Caleb was brought on to help reach younger donors, but leadership wasn't all in on his approach. He explains how he convinced a skeptical board to stick with it for 2 years... until he saw six-figure success.
0:07
Hi everyone. Welcome back to The Nonprofit Diaries, where we share the stories that don't make the newsletter.
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I'm your host, Kimberly Bottom, and this week's guest is going to leave you inspired to trust your gut and fight for what you believe. He's an award-winning photographer and digital media expert turned nonprofit marketer, and he's currently sharing his talents with the Christian Relief Fund as their Director of Marketing.
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Caleb and I actually met a few years ago when we co-presented an educational session at a conference walking through his strategy for using paid ads to find and nurture donors. That strategy has led to some impressive fundraising results for CRF, but the road to get there wasn't without resistance, as he will expand upon today.
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Outside of nonprofit marketing, Caleb is a husband, a father, a man of faith, and a generous, kind spirit whose passion for serving others is apparent in everything he does. Welcome, my friend, Caleb Dansby! Caleb, thank you for coming on.
1:05
Yeah, thanks, Kimberly.
1:05
Like I mentioned, we met because your strategy for bringing CRF to a new generation of donors is considered pretty forward-thinking in the nonprofit space—paid advertising is not something that everybody is doing. Let's set the stage for your diary entry and let everybody know: you joined CRF about four and a half years ago, at the beginning of 2022. Is that right?
1:29
Yeah, it was the beginning of 2022.
1:33
You came pretty much straight out of college, and you were charged with helping to bring the CRF story to a younger generation of donors, being from that younger generation yourself. Tell us a bit about that experience coming in.
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I went to a small college in West Texas, getting a degree in digital media arts and business marketing, with the dream of going into a corporate marketing career. When I graduated in 2020, not a lot of places were hiring, so it was really tough to get into that field.
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I went to work at a small outdoor store in West Texas for a little over a year, and then I got a call from the president here at CRF to join the team. I was looking for a marketing job and was passionate about serving people around the world, but I didn't know anything about nonprofit marketing. It was a huge shift from what I learned at the university level to applying those marketing tactics to the nonprofit sector, so that first year was a steep learning curve.
2:56
They hired you for a fresh perspective, right? That was the point. But when we chatted before recording, you mentioned that even though they brought you in for that fresh perspective, there was still some resistance. People were saying, "I don't know, we've always done it this way."
3:15
Absolutely. What I was learning about nonprofit marketing involved things we weren't doing—like Google Ads, or advertising outside of our immediate network of connections. What made CRF work for so long—over 50 years—was personal one-on-one connections. Our president or founder would travel to churches or groups to fundraise.
3:57
In the present age, that's hard to do with current attention spans, and it's hard to reach enough people at one time. Bringing in the idea that we needed to run digital ads was initially met with, "Oh, we've tried that and it didn't work." I asked how we did it, and found out we had just run some Facebook ads ourselves.
4:23
The person ahead of me—who is now the Director of Water and Strategic Growth—and I worked with an ad platform called Feathr. The first two years were a little rocky: not a lot of conversions or high conversion value, but enough to make our money back.
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Some of the board and our leadership asked, "Is this really worth putting money into?" We said, "Let's trust it. Let's do another year and see where it goes."
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In our third year, we brought in $135,000 to $140,000 in ad revenue, which was 30 times our ad spend. In year four, we reached almost $200,000. By being patient and sticking with it, we proved that this is where we need to be, reaching people we wouldn't be able to connect with in person.
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For those listening who aren't aware, Feathr is a platform specifically made for nonprofits to help them use paid advertising to reach new donors—much like retargeting or cart abandonment reminders online. That's how the younger generation consumes content: through these constant taps on the shoulder.
6:04
Even if you were able to travel to every university and neighborhood to go canvassing, people might not be ready the first time you approach them. Retargeting reminds them of the impact they can have—whether they are funding a water program or sponsoring a child. You still need to give it time because people are busy. So you stood your ground and fought the good fight! What was the board's reaction when you brought back those recent fundraising numbers?
7:07
The last two reports were a shock to the board. Something that started as an experiment blew up—not just from a conversion perspective, but in how many people we were reaching. It was an eye-opening experience for them to realize we don't have to rely solely on print media or in-person visits. It encouraged us to try new digital media efforts and build on that momentum.
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A lot of people listening are probably thinking, "I love this idea, but my board wouldn't give me two years—they'd pull the plug after six months." During that in-between time when large donations weren't rolling in yet, how did you keep them on board? What were the leading indicators showing that it was working?
8:29
Constant communication with the board was key. Giving them monthly reports showing what was looking good, where things were rough, and highlighting live progress helped immensely. Being open in communication and allowing them to ask questions removed the hesitation that comes with the unknown.
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As marketers, we deal with the unknown every day—testing whether an ad or print piece will work. If I can help alleviate that uncertainty for leadership and the board, that's key to success.
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What I loved about our conference presentation was how simply you laid out the process. Boards might not understand what getting a thousand impressions means until you explain, "That's a thousand more eyeballs on our website and a thousand more people who know what we do."
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Phrasing it so they understand the value—and setting expectations upfront that it won't be instant magic—takes you a really long way. For someone listening who wants to try this, but whose board might be less collaborative, what is your main piece of advice?
10:28
Start off small. You can begin with native efforts, like being consistent with an email campaign. If you already send regular emails, make them creative and purposeful toward a specific goal—like a canned food drive—so people know exactly what their support achieves.
11:02
Stick to it consistently for several months. You take small bites of the donut to get where you want to go. Ensure the board understands that small actions add up over time, and frame early metrics around reach rather than strictly monetary returns.
11:37
Outside of those first two years before conversions picked up, being able to report that we were reaching 300,000 people made their eyes light up. Brand awareness is the primary goal until donations start flowing in.
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My boss always tells me something I find a lot of comfort in: "There's no losing—you either win or you learn."
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Even if something doesn't go as expected, you can pivot because you've learned what doesn't work. Marketing and advertising require analyzing response data and making continuous adjustments. I'm so proud of you for sticking in there and creating incredible outcomes for CRF.
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The donation revenue is impressive, but what you're doing on the mission side is even more inspiring. Loyal listeners, please go check out the Christian Relief Fund, because their work is beautiful. Caleb, I'm so glad they have someone with the gumption to stand up for what they believe in. Thank you for sharing your story today!
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I know it was quick, but I could talk about this for hours!
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I'll link Caleb's LinkedIn in the description of this episode. If you want to talk about nonprofit marketing or connect with a great human, shoot him a note. Caleb, thank you again for being on the podcast.
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For everybody listening, this is your reminder to hydrate and practice self-care this week. You're doing great! If you'd like to be on the podcast, submit your own diary entry by clicking the link in the description. Have a wonderful week, everyone! We'll see you next time.
