You Need 1:1 Visits with Your Donors

How many of us over time develop likes and dislikes about the things we do in our jobs? Some of us love the thrill of managing the needs of others. Some love the political battles of pushing a program forward. Many enjoy the pursuit of a boss's favor. The likes and dislikes are like a rainbow of colors. I enjoy certain colors but not all colors. If you are lucky, you have a large enough staff to delegate the least enjoyable tasks to them. For most of us, we must endure the four-hour finance meeting and similar meetings that take away precious time from the field of prospect and donor engagement. Since I do not have a large engagement staff and only limited time, I must pick and choose which prospect and donor visits to engage. When I have a 1:1 donor visit, I also must be very strategic with the donor's time based upon the scenario of engagement I employ.

One example of a 1:1 donor engagement is in a recent lunch I had with the donor. It took about three months to schedule this lunch, due to his heavy travel plans. One year earlier, we had lunch at a certain location near his home. I suggested the same location due to his busy schedule. By the way, that lunch, while not focused on a direct solicitation, led to an increased gift last year by the donor. We decided to meet at noon. I knew we had only one hour to meet. In my mind, I broke down the hour by quarters. As a former football player, you'll have to excuse me for thinking in athletic terms. The breakdown of my strategy was as follows:

The first quarter of the lunch, which consisted of 15 minutes, was to reacquaint ourselves on a personal scale. I wanted to know about his work, travel plans, social engagements and his children's school activities. His wife also works and could not attend the lunch. That said, we talked about her work. He told me about his alma mater involvement and how that brings him joy. We talked about how he travels and where he travels. The point was just to get to know him better. He also talked about his father and how his father's work almost lead him down a different professional path. When you ask questions and listen, you gain so much credibility, as the donor senses you truly care about him as a person.