If you’re engaged with a direct response fundraising agency, you’ll benefit from their best ideas and will surely have an easy relationship the more they know about you, how you like to work, and what lies ahead for your organization.

Below are the 5 Key Things You Should Always Share with Your Agency Partner:

1. What is your goal for the relationship?
   Beyond specific fundraising goals, what is it that you hope to gain from the relationship?  Are you looking for someone to educate and coach your Development team?  Do you prefer a partner with a collaborative approach?  Or do you want someone to execute on your behalf?
   
   Is this your first agency relationship?  If so, this is important information to share.  Without it, your agency partner may make some wrong assumptions about your working relationship and your expectations of them.  On the other hand, if you’ve worked with an agency before, share that too — along with what worked well in that relationship and what you found to be challenging.  While every relationship is different, knowing past “sore spots” can help ensure a smoother road ahead and tee you both up for success.
   
2. What’s going on in your organization beyond the confines of the Development Team / Agency relationship?
   Has your organization been in the news lately (either positively or negatively)?  Are there new initiatives or a capital campaign coming down the pike?  Is a re-org in the offing?
   

   An early heads-up may spark new ideas or recommendations from your agency. At the very least, there will be a shared understanding of what’s happening inside the greater organization.

3. Does anyone else – beyond the team you work with directly – influence the projects you’re involved with?
   Perhaps once the Development team approves an appeal, it must go to Marketing for a final review. Knowing this early on will allow your agency to build a project schedule that accommodates your processes.
   
   Does a vocal Board member particularly favor (or oppose) the project?  While this likely won’t have an impact on the campaign itself, being aware of these sensitivities can only be helpful in the long run.
   
4. What are your organization’s sacred cows?
   Are there programs – or processes – that will remain as is despite even the most strongly made case for change?  If so, let your agency partner know at the outset.  With this information, they can focus their efforts on areas where real change is possible rather than barking up the wrong tree.
   A strong agency partner should be able to pivot and provide alternative solutions while always being honest with you about where the biggest gains are possible.
   
5. Is there a place where processes/schedules will likely hit a bump in the road or break down?
   Maybe you know right from the get-go that the contract approval process will be protracted.  Have an honest conversation with your agency right up front.  You’ll both benefit from your first project together being a successful one.  Nothing gets in the way of success, like a rushed project and corner-cutting in the hopes of hitting an impossible deadline.
   Or perhaps your Executive Director wants to review copy only at the final art stage but is notorious for requesting multiple rounds of edits. Are you short-staffed, or do you have a new member on your database team, increasing the likelihood that files may be late or that a little extra intervention may be necessary between the agency and data teams?
   
   Knowing all this allows your agency to build some extra time into the schedule.

Like any relationship, your relationship with your agency partner should be based on trust and open, honest, and frequent communication.