Events

Making big gifts is most often a function of age. The older you are, the more capable you tend to be of making a major gift. It’s perhaps one of the few areas where it’s more beneficial to be older rather than younger.

The FAQ (frequently asked questions) document can be a lifesaver for volunteers and staff. When it’s their turn to present the case for support and they don’t have the intimate knowledge of an insider, the FAQ helps answer those anticipated questions that might otherwise bring an objection that cannot be overcome.

Overcoming the objections of a prospective donor before, during, and after an ask is a common occurrence for the best fundraisers. An objection is nothing more than a signal or marker for something else. In response, instead of going inward and getting defensive, the best response is to get curious.

Avoid the standard rubber chicken dinner at all costs. Think creatively in terms of location, entertainment, food, schedule flow, honorees, media, integration of social media, and more.

Great fundraisers know it’s easier to steer a moving ship. Instead of overanalyzing and getting paralyzed, the best development professionals just start moving. Things rarely go as planned anyway. Moving forward will allow you to pivot more easily if necessary.

Dale Carnegie said, “A person’s name is to that person, the sweetest, most important sound in any language.” As Dale Carnegie points out, remembering names of prospective donors and donors is critical to the fundraisers ongoing professional success.

Great fundraisers have some of the very best expressions they use to influence people. Some of my favorites include, “I want to get on your calendar”, “this might amuse you”, “he’s a prosperous individual”, “here’s an opportunity if this is of interest to you”, and “we’re making a goal-line assault”. What’s your favorite fundraising expression?

Does your organization check all the boxes connected to the philanthropic priorities for a prospective donor? Do you know? Through a recent conversation with a donor, I heard an effective expression of how a particular organization checked all the boxes that were important to the couple. He listed the following attributes – Christian, helping kids survive and thrive, working on the homelessness issue, effective programs, impactful personal stories, community engagement and involvement of friends, and an active Board of Directors. Don’t forget to try to check all of the boxes of the prospective donor.

Fundraising is a catalyst and multiplication tool that allows even the smallest gift to ripple outward (think the pebble dropped in the pond), creating lasting positive change and improved lives today and for many future generations.

Fundraising is not a zero-sum game. There is not an absolute limit to the amount a person can or will give to a particular institution and you don’t absolutely see one organization’s contributions go down when a person decides to give more to another organization. The magic of philanthropy is that it can spring up like a well and occasionally like Old Faithful explode with extreme generosity.

There are just an incredible number of people with extraordinary wealth. Finding the ones with philanthropic hearts isn’t as difficult as some might suggest, but you do have to work hard and smart for it.

The five-tool fundraiser is capable of raising money, managing up, managing down, managing volunteers, and approaching all things with incredible strategy.

The trifecta in fundraising is to ask for and receive substantial annual support, a special major gift over and above annual, and a legacy commitment. Blended gifts like these – the combination of current and future gifts – are increasingly common and absolutely transformational to nonprofit organizations.

Fundraising is a delicate dance. Sometimes you lead and sometimes you follow.

Video (think Youtube not DVD) is quickly replacing the brochure or one-pager as the preferred communication tool for prospective donors. At the very least, every organization needs to contemplate having hard copy, digital, and video versions of their materials to communicate effectively with prospective donors.

Fundraising campaigns provide an opportunity to involve dozens of new volunteers into the organization and often the best volunteers prove themselves to be incredible prospects for the organization’s Board of Directors.