Major Gifts

While many nonprofits value small donations from givers, the data shows that up to 75 percent of an organization’s revenue comes from major donors, or individuals who give $1 million or more. But acquiring these types of donations can be challenging. It takes considerable time and effort, and many nonprofits still find it difficult to execute correctly. The Silicon Valley Community Foundation (SVCF) received a $500 million donation from Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg last year.

Here are five top strategies gleaned from SVCF that fundraisers can use to land major donations and keep their nonprofit afloat.

A lot of fundraisers hand-pick the donors who are most responsive to their fundraising programs — and put them in a radically different program. And it’s probably costing them significant revenue.

To get donors to ask the magic question, "How can I help?" you need to be asking questions of them.

Andy Robinson, author of "How to Raise $500 to $5000 From Almost Anyone," recently spoke with his publisher about major-gifts fundraising. GuideStar has published an excerpt from the book, and we're pleased to be able to share Robinson's additional thoughts with you.

All of us in major gifts know that there are different stages in the major-gift process. Many brilliant major-gift people have written about it. Words like identification, cultivation, solicitation and stewardship come to mind as descriptors of some major stages or phases of major gifts.

But we often encounter some confusion in major-gift officer communication to donors around the use of “ask” language vs. “results or reporting back” language.

In some regards, the very nature of these two languages are polar opposites.

Like it or not, the majority of our major-gifts prospects simply are not impressed with our technical knowledge. Instead, they want a birthday card, a phone call or a heartfelt thank-you.

The first international Million Dollar Donors Report (MDDR) was released by Coutts and the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. It analyses $1 million-plus giving by donors in 2012 in six regions around the world: the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, the Middle East (Gulf Cooperation Council nations), China and Hong Kong.

The data in the new international report was collected by institutional partners in each country from a combination of publicly available sources and, in certain contexts, from surveys of prominent donors and charities.

Ted Hart speaks with John Greenhoe, major-gift officer at Western Michigan University and author of "Opening the Door to Major Gifts: Mastering the Discovery Call," on his Nonprofit Coach radio show.

In fundraising, you can't count on one big Hail Mary play to change the campaign's momentum. In fundraising, you need to plan on momentum.

I’ve seen lots of people strike out when they finally get that coveted appointment with their major donor. Why? Because they bore their donor. Make sure you engage your donor while you are in her office! Here are my top ways to get the most out of a major-donor visit: 1. Always set objectives before you walk in the door. 2. Ask for advice. 3. Listen, listen, listen. 4. Show up as an interesting person and conversationalist. 5. Probe the interest in your cause. 6. Listen for the donor to say "we."