Getting Telefundraising in Gear

"Figure out how many hours you need to reach your population, how many calls per hour you can make, etc., and then make sure that you are staffing properly, whether that be with paid students or volunteers," Pavelka says.

And like a personal solicitation or direct mail, make sure your telefundraising calls have a clear ask and ask level. Don't get nervous about being clear in your expectations of prospects, Pavelka says. "[Nonprofits] have a tendency to get kind of vague and not be clear on their expectations, and that doesn't end up serving anybody in the end. The clearer they can be in their expectations, I think the better for the institution," she adds.