Donor Relationship Management

The Best Way to Cultivate Donors? Give Them a Great Giving Experience
March 8, 2017 at 11:09 am

We are working with a client with several high net-worth board members who have been donors, but not at a level commensurate with their giving capacity. This organization is moving from a focus on special events—where their annual giving was a program of event sponsorships—to a relationship-based culture of philanthropy. The reality is that while…

In P2P, It’s All About the Benjamins
March 8, 2017 at 9:44 am

Wall Street investors famously coined the phrase, “It’s all about the Benjamins,” referring to the hundred dollar bill that bears Benjamin Franklin’s likeness. As it turns out, Franklin can give us a few tips about how to maximize fundraising dollars...

Are You Making Assumptions About Your Donors?
March 7, 2017 at 10:49 am

When your focus is on a donor’s potential capacity rather than their passion, you’re making assumptions. When your focus is on their job title or the neighborhood they live in rather than their commitment, you’re making assumptions. When your focus is on the color of their skin or their age or gender, you’re making assumptions...

How You Can Cause Deep Gladness in Your Donor
March 6, 2017 at 10:05 am

I suppose all of us are trying to make deep gladness happen in our lives in some way or another. I know I am. I have discovered there is direct correlation between my happiness and serving others. It goes up when I am giving myself away. It goes down when I am focused on me. It’s counterintuitive, I know. But it’s true...

3 Tips for Creating Monthly Donor Promises
March 6, 2017 at 10:00 am

Whatever you do, keep it manageable and affordable for yourself. And make sure that the donor is okay with you recognizing them in the ways you promise them you will. Once you create these promises, you can start listing it whenever and wherever you promote the program...

3 Nonprofit Challenges You Should Anticipate This Year
March 6, 2017 at 8:31 am

Trends change every year, bringing new opportunities that are tied to new challenges. Many of them impact donor and volunteer perceptions. Based on my time working in the nonprofit environment, I'm noting specific trends in anticipation for the remainder of 2017. Here are some of the challenges I foresee and some thoughts on how to…

Seek to Better Understand Your Fundraising Traits and Personality
March 3, 2017 at 11:03 am

You must understand you have a unique personality and traits. Like dating, everyone is different and all of us relate differently to the staff, volunteers, prospects, donors and others we meet. Some will connect to us and some will not connect to us. In all cases, you need to be professional, honest, ethical, institutionally driven, have high expectations and persevere...

Do Your Donor-Cultivation Events Effectively Support Your Fundraising Goals?
March 3, 2017 at 10:17 am

When is a donor-cultivation event more about building your organization’s profile than it is about fundraising? How can you be sure that your “friendraiser” is actually moving you towards the achievement of your fundraising goals? Events can be great fun, excellent for networking and for catching up with people in the community, but sometimes I…

Study: Direct Payment Via ACH Improves Donor Retention
March 1, 2017 at 12:05 pm

One of the toughest challenges in our sector is getting donors to give time and time again—to get one-time donors to become repeat donors. Perhaps it’s showing donors the impact that the organization is making or having a mission powerful enough for donors to want to be a part of the organization. Perhaps simplifying the…

Use of 'Ask' Versus 'Results' Language in Major Gifts
February 20, 2017 at 9:58 am

All of us in major gifts know that there are different stages in the major-gift process. Many brilliant major-gift people have written about it. Words like identification, cultivation, solicitation and stewardship come to mind as descriptors of some big stages or phases of major gifts...