Major Gifts

Today, I want to get positive and practical, and talk about the anatomy of a great major gift job description. You may find these suggestions simple—and that’s fine. One thing for sure, they are not simplistic; a good job description is complex and serious, but that does not mean it needs to be long and detailed...

Do you wish you knew the secrets of building stronger relationships with people who might give large gifts to your organization? Do you feel a bit intimidated by people who have lots of money? Do you feel as though you can’t be the real you with donors, because your relationship with them is based on wanting their money? Chances are good that if you weren’t in the fundraising business, you’d never meet or speak with people like your major donors...

Do you ever come home after a party and realize that no one at the party ever asked you anything about yourself? Do you find that this is a reoccurring situation? I don’t know about you, but I find that most people I come in contact with are just not very curious...

You’re focused on inspiring donors to give today, right?  It’s not surprising. It’s how we’re wired as fundraisers. Our organizations are tackling urgent needs, and we’re held accountable to make those budget numbers!...

Most major gift officer job descriptions have everything in them, but the kitchen sink. And besides being really irritating, it actually hurts the MGO and what the organization is trying to do in major gifts...

At Veritus, we have worked with many major gift officers who, when we ask how it’s going with meeting and deepening their relationships with donors, we get a response like this: “Well, I haven’t been having much donor contact. I’m just not finished with all my planning for my caseload, and I have to get my goals done. And I really need to get more understanding of our programs... then I’ll be able to visit and get to know my donors.”...

We all talk about the need for relationship in major gifts. And we all know that relationship is the key to success—servicing the desires and dreams of the donor in an ethical, sincere and caring way is what will cause a generous financial response...

Welcome back to #NPPTrendingNow, a weekly video series where NonProfit PRO Editor-in-Chief Nhu Te breaks down the top three coveted stories of the week. Here's what we've got going on for you this week: one major donor's experience with two different nonprofits, legal responsibilities of nonprofit board members and event planning tips...

Welcome back to #NPPTrendingNow, a weekly video series where NonProfit PRO Editor-in-Chief Nhu Te breaks down the top three coveted stories of the week. Here's what we've got going on for you this week: two nonprofit data trends, the secret to major gift asks and the importance of Millennials...

There are some fantastic leaders in our nonprofit arena—CEOs, chief development officers and beyond. There are also some leaders who are underperforming and too often get passed from organization to organization...