"What We Have Here Is a Failure to Communicate"

“What We Have Here Is a Failure to Communicate”

FS Advisor: July 19, 2005

By Margaret Battistelli, editor, FundRaising Success

With apologies to Paul Newman’s character in “Cool Hand Luke,” that famous line could underscore the major deficiency that plagues many major-gifts appeals. In their AFP Fund Raising Day New York session, “Social Styles: Increasing Effective Personal Communications for Fundraising,” presenters Andrea Kihlstedt and Michael Page Miller stressed the importance of understanding the personality type of a potential major-gift donor before even attempting an ask.