Major Gifts
February 25, 2015
There is one important thing you can do to ruin your chances with a major donor. It's when you are guilty of being boring.
February 23, 2015
As a major gifts fundraising professional, you need people in your life to help guide you personally and professionally. I'm saddened when I see good fundraisers think they can do it on their own, that they don't need advice or they can't listen to good criticism of their work.
February 16, 2015
How should we deal with arrogance in the major gifts fundraising workplace? Here are my suggestions.
February 9, 2015
If you are the head of a nonprofit, we urge you to move away from using events to raise money. If you're an MGO who continually gets "asked" to help with an event, do everything you can to convince your boss it's a bad idea. And if you are a development director of a small nonprofit, you have to realize the best way to raise major gifts is to build relationships with donors and ask them directly to support your mission.
February 4, 2015
If your answer is no to any of the following questions, it is too soon to ask for a major gift.
January 28, 2015
A campaign to encourage board giving had too many foundational principles that were violated. Here are the seven deadly sins of fundraising committed, sins you can avoid by following fundraising best practices.
January 26, 2015
One of the greatest struggles as a major-gifts officer, and for colleagues who work with major donors, is to be authentic. By being authentic, I mean being true to yourself and your motives when working with your donors.
January 21, 2015
Major-gifts fundraising isn't about "the pitch." It's not about a presentation. It is about having a meaningful conversation with prospective donors to see if they share your values, mission and vision — aspirations to make a difference.
January 19, 2015
Please be very diligent to write good job descriptions for each major-gifts officer. It is so important that these good people know what they are supposed to do and know how they will be evaluated.
January 14, 2015
Good habits are developed over time. By practice. By repetition. Build the strength of your fundraising program through good fundraising habits.
