Focus On: Major Gifts: Take A Lesson from the Old School
Take a fresh look at your current pool of major donors. Ask yourself honestly what each donor has received from you over the past year — reports, letters, thank-you notes, your time, your president’s time, etc.
Go down the list again and ask yourself whether you’ve asked enough of your donors. Have they been invited to take leadership positions? Do they sit on boards of prospective foundations? Have they been asked about planned giving? Can their companies become involved? Leave no stone unturned.
Michael Hoffman is the vice president of customer experience at The GLD Shop, the leading online retailer of hip-hop jewelry worldwide. Previously, he was director of e-commerce and customer service at Rainbow Shops with over 17 years of experience in the retail world at top brands such as Paragon Sports, GAP Inc., and Eon Booksellers. His expertise includes strategizing and implementing omnichannel growth, new market expansion, divisional growth/reconstruction, as well as technology integration and implementation. In both his current and former roles he has overseen multiple divisions of multimillion/billion-dollar e-commerce and brick-and-mortar businesses.
