Face-to-face Fundraising

Have a fundraising challenge you want to crack? Weary of doing the same old, same old yet hoping for different outcomes? Do you want the over-the-top results that come from superior strategy? Email me with your particular problem, and I’ll arrange a quick consultation offering you a practical solution you can implement. I may even…

The purpose of this post is to discuss how to close a gift in a golf outing. People pay to play in the outing and are typically asked to contribute additionally through raffles, auctions, etc., at the outing site. Another way to gain financial favor is to simply ask a prospect for a gift on the golf course. If I want to ask for a larger gift, I use the golf outing as cultivation time to match the prospect and organizational representatives who are responsible for priorities...

I love reviewing Indiana University’s major gift process of metrics and accountability. Each major gift officer must have a portfolio and be accountable for moving that portfolio. When I meet someone with Indiana University experience, I assume they are properly trained to close gifts and move prospects. In my experience over time, I unfortunately have hired several “experienced” major gift officers that just couldn’t pull the trigger...

One of the greatest thrills I have in my profession is to meet true community leaders and philanthropists. When I pulled up to the MacAllister Machinery Company recently and saw P. E. MacAllister at his desk, I knew I was in for something special. I had known about P. E. for many years. He has been very involved as a television journalist with shows on PBS and educational television for a number of years in my community...

USC President C. L. Max Nikias was 1,400 miles from the Los Angeles campus, but he knew just how to appeal to his audience. In a swanky hotel ballroom, he told the crowd of alumni and donors that Texas had become the largest feeder of students to USC after California, and that students from their…

Do you ever think about how much the community knows about your organization? The truth is the community may know your name, but is not aware of the depths of what your organization has done or will do.

Relationships with amazing donors are so rewarding. They benefit your mission and they enrich our lives as fundraising professionals. I have learned and grown from each interaction and donor relationship. Nurturing those relationships is fun—but can't be left to chance. It is an ongoing cycle of genuine activities to deepen a dialogue and express thanks. Here are 20 ideas of how to show your best friends just how important they are.

Never forget the ground game. At the end of the day, our biggest success lies in the personal connection — targeting people specifically, reaching out to them individually (by email, phone, in person and, yes, even social media).

So you've identified your big kahuna potential prospect, your mega-capacity donor. What next? How do you get in the door? Here are five quick tips to help you get that very first visit.

These five insights will help you approach your next ask from a more comfortable, authentic and successful standpoint as a fundraiser!