The three elements of a successful major gift program are a good program to present to donors, good donors and a good major gift staff. Jeff and I have seen many major gift situations where one of these elements was missing, and it was impossible for a major gift program to really get traction...
Richard Perry
You can tell what a person really thinks by the language they use or the behavior they engage in when the customer or donor is not looking. I was reminded of this truth at a Veritus Group retreat when one of our associates looked me in the eye and said: “Richard, the words you just used prove that you do not respect one of my important values.”...
There is something about social media and online communications that twists many people’s heads around to conclude that the up-and-coming Millennial cohort is where the money is. Couple this conclusion with a “direct mail is dead” view, and you have a deadly combination...
If you have attended a training program with a major-gift guru, you have likely learned many techniques and strategies on how to approach major donors. Much of this material is very good. But some of those trainings, a great deal of effort is made to manipulate the donor into giving. Major gift manipulation never works...
The donor was absolutely giddy about supporting the project. It was something close to his heart—something he wanted to put some of his hard-earned money into. So when the major gift officer told him about it, the decision was easy, but he had a few questions on the scope and cost of the project...
This is where I run a risk of getting in trouble, but I have to write about it because it is a huge problem in many nonprofits that not only hurts the organization but also hurts the people involved. I’m talking about taking your very best major gift officer and making them the manager of the major gift program...
It is always amazing to me to hear managers and leaders who want to start or rebuild a major gift program say, “We will just hire some major gift officers and get going,” or something like that. It’s as if this MGO will arrive on the scene and suddenly, money will be pouring into the organization...
It is important to start right in a major gift program as a new major gift officer. And starting with donors, program and back office familiarization is the key. Everything else, while important, is a distraction, in my opinion...
This week, purpose to keep all your communications donor-centered, avoiding your natural tendency to talk about what you (or others in your organization) want to talk about. And keep it short, simple and to the point...
It is not an uncommon dilemma. A major gift officer worries about being too aggressive in the relationship, so they turn down the contact volume and miss an opportunity. Or they turn it up too high and offend the donor. How do you strike a balance?...
You need to re-orient your thinking and your practice, as it relates to volunteers, so you create a happy place for them. And what makes for a happy volunteer? Some colleagues we have worked with are taking important steps in two areas to make that very thing happen...
You can get the right person in the wrong organization, and it will be a disaster for the person. Or the wrong person can get into the right organization, and that would be a problem for the organization. The hiring criteria series addresses this latter point—getting the right person for the organization...
“I can’t seem to get my donor to relate to what we are trying to do,” explained the frustrated major gift officer. “I tell them over and over again about all the people we are helping and all the people that need help, and it just doesn’t seem to click. It’s like the donor has a glaze over her eyes!”...
I will never forget the discussion I had when I was managing a sales team for a commercial company. I had been meeting with various sales people going over their performance, and now it was time to meet with Brandon...
As a major gift officer, you may be asked to manage the donor portfolio of your manager, CEO or executive director. In order to be effective, you have to have the ability to “manage up.” Managing up means that you are working with your CEO...
