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Is your nonprofit raising major gifts?

September 2, 2010 By Sandy 1 Comment

Many nonprofit staff  and volunteers dream of the day when a donor will walk into their office and hand them a large check.  But it’s only a dream because they don’t know how to find those donors, much less encourage them to give big money.

So here’s the thing:  it’s not rocket science.

Identifying and cultivating major donors is actually fairly easy, once you  know what to do.  I think that many people have built it up in their minds to be hard and uncomfortable, and they’ve talked themselves out of trying.  That’s too bad, because working with major donors can be a LOT of fun and very rewarding.  And it’s the one fundraising technique that is working well this year.

If you’d like to learn more about raising money from your major donors, join me for a 3-part webinar series called “Secrets to Getting Big Gifts.”  It starts September 7 and you can read all about it at http://getfullyfunded.com/secrets-of-major-gifts. I’ll tell you everything you need to know to find your major donor prospects and ask them for a gift.

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Who is a nonprofit major gift prospect?

June 30, 2010 By Sandy 1 Comment

Thanks to my guest Hank Lewis for today’s post. I think you’ll like it.

Who Is A Major Gift Prospect ??
By Hank Lewis, MA CFRM

When the question of major gift fundraising first arises, many unsophisticated board members, volunteers and staff immediately begin talking about the “rich and famous” — with Bill Gates being the name at the top of almost everyone’s list.

The wrong assumption that many people make — and one that can become a major time waster — is that an organization’s prospect list should contain the names of every conceivable wealthy person.

Indeed, yes, the first steps of a major gifts effort should include the generation of a list of wealthy individuals. But the distinction is whether they are likely to become “prospects.”

Major Gift Prospects are people who:

  1. Have wealth, and may derive satisfaction from using that wealth to advance the causes in which they believe;
  2. Are accessible to you and/or (even better) to current major donors to your organization;
  3. Have a need that will be satisfied by making a significant gift to your organization;

Ideally, but not necessarily, Major Gift Prospects are also:

  1. Aware of the effectiveness of your programs and the business-like manner in which you operate;
  2. Passionate about wanting to see your mission achieved; and,
  3. Involved with your organization and/or its programs, and demonstrate a commitment to the success of your mission.

You can have a long list of wealthy people, but unless they meet the criteria, they’re not “Prospects.” They’re people you’d like to think of as likely donors, but you have no evidence to support that wishful thinking.

Bottom line is, for people to be Major Donor Prospects; you must have enough of a relationship with them to satisfy the above qualifiers, and to know them well enough to recognize/identify their needs.

Major gift fundraising is more about the needs of the donor, than about the needs of the organization.

Have a question about starting or expanding your fundraising program?
Email Hank at AskHank@Major-Capital-Giving.com. With over 30 years of counseling in major gifts, capital campaigns, bequest programs and the planning studies to precede these three, I’ll do my best to answer your question.

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Can you hear what's not being said?

June 1, 2010 By Sandy 15 Comments

One of the greatest skills a professional Fundraiser can develop is listening.  I find that I listen with not only my ears, but with my eyes and my intuition.   Sometimes a donor says what they really think and sometimes they leave things unsaid so it’s good to be able to pick up on all the subtleties.

Listening also will help you get along better with Board members, volunteers, and co-workers.  We all just want to be heard, and when you give someone your full attention, it is powerful. Let me give you a simple example.

My Mom, sister, and I took advantage of the long weekend to enjoy one of our favorite pastimes – quilting.  We set up shop in my Mom’s dining room and sewed for hours on end (I thought my eyes were going to drop out of my head at one point!).  It was tons of fun!

My Mom heads up the quilt ministry at our church and she has fabric EVERYWHERE in her house!  She sort of mentioned in passing that it was overwhelming to have so much going on. My keen ears perked up and what I heard that was going unsaid was “help me get this organized so I won’t be so overwhelmed.”  I asked her if she wanted some help organizing and I gave her a couple of suggestions, including getting an inexpensive shelf to go in her sewing room closet.  Well, she jumped on that and within the hour, we were on a shopping excursion for a shelf and bins to sort fabric into.  It didn’t take long and it wasn’t hard.  And boy is she happy now!

When you find yourself with a major donor prospect, listening is your best tool.  Pay attention to the words and the emotion behind them, body language, gestures, and so forth and you’ll find yourself learning at a deeper level about your donor.

Got a story you can share about a time when listening really paid off for you?  We want to hear it! Click on the comment link and share.

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Are you planning to get major gifts?

February 8, 2010 By Sandy 3 Comments

Are you planning to get major gifts?  Or are you waiting for a major donor to just pop up with a large gift?

If you really want to get the most ‘bang for the buck’, plan to spend some time cultivating your top 10 donors this year. It can be intimidating to get major gifts when you’re just starting out in fundraising. But here’s the scoop: it’s all about building relationships. Think about your best friend and how your relationship started. You probably weren’t best friends from the first moment you met. It took time for it to develop. It’s a lot like that with donors.

Here are four simple steps to major gift success.

1. Look for LIA (Linkage, Interest, Ability). A donor must have all three or you just won’t be able to get a major gift from them. Linkage to your organization can come in lots of forms from past volunteer experience to knowing someone on your Board to simply caring about your cause. Your donor must be interested in the work you’re doing, and they must have some ability to give (think disposable income). The combination of these three things is what brings about a gift.

2. Do your homework. Find out all you can about your prospective donor. Learn about their family, their hobbies and what other charities they support. And, find out why they support YOU!

3. Match the donor’s interests with a program/need you have. A “hand-in-glove” fit will help ensure you get the gift and that the donor has a satisfying experience making the gift. If the donor is interested in your after school program, then don’t ask them to support your food pantry.

4. Make the ask. Ask for a specific amount – not a range. If the donor whips out the checkbook, you asked too low and left money on the table. The ideal answer is “I’ll need to check with my _____(spouse, accountant, financial planner, etc.)”.

The best thing you can do is practice. The more you work on cultivating major donors, the better you’ll get and the more major gifts you’ll get.

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