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Room to add one nonprofit staff member? Which One?

by Greg Ritter on July 13th, 2010
Posted in: Uncategorized - No Comments »

As the recession eases it will be time to consider rehiring staff members. Which one will make the most difference to the bottom line? I suggest you make room for a major gift officer. Here’s what s/he can do for you:

1. Keeps up to date. Stays abreast of legal and technical developments in the
different vehicles of major giving through workshops, seminars, conferences
and publications; remains conversant with the organization and the field of
service in  general.

2. Provides general information on major giving. Initiates informational mailings
to friends; responds to inquiries; speaks to interested groups.

3. Identifies prospective donors. Determines where to spend time to the best
advantage; researches respondents to mailings or those who come to the major
gift officer’s attention through referrals or direct inquiry. Maintains an effective
record system and an efficient follow-up procedure to ensure that all contacts
receive appropriate attention.

4. Develops the prospect’s interest and commitment. Patiently but persistently
cultivates the prospect through correspondence, phone calls and personal
visits, both by the major gift officer and other officers and volunteers.
Answers the prospect’s questions, keeping the prospect mindful of the organization
and its programs; gains the prospect’s friendship and trust.

5. Determines the feasibility of various contribution options. Elicits information
about the prospect’s assets and needs and chooses the most appropriate option
available; considers the major gift program as a part of the total development
picture and remains open to the possibility of deferred as well as current gifts.

6. Prepares the ask. Commits the plan to paper in a manner that is both convincing and understandable to the prospect, and the prospect’s agents if
necessary.

7. Closes. Discusses, clarifies, and possibly modifies the plan to meet the
prospect’s approval; gains the prospect’s endorsement.

8. Ensures that arrangements are properly executed. Oversees and initiates
arrangements through the proper business office channels and communicates with the prospect about them.

9. Maintains the commitment of the donor. Ensures that the donor retains
confidence in the college and in the wisdom of the decision to make a
major gift; keeps the donor informed of developments at the organization
keeps the donor open to the possibility of another gift or referrals to
other prospective donors.

A pretty good return on investment! When searching for a gift officer it may help to use a seasoned fundraising professional to help you find one or interview your prospects. From my personal experience it is very helpful to hire a consultant to mentor a new major gift officer.

Pause or Pounce? Timing your nonprofit capital campaign.

by Greg Ritter on July 6th, 2010
Tags: , , - Posted in: Capital Campaign, Fundraising - 1 Comment »

I have found that when a campaign goes on too long, year after year, its spirit begins to sag, leaders get tired and donors wonder if it will ever end.

You can sustain a great, upbeat campaign experience for 18-24 months, in my experience. This is the period of active asking for leadership and major gifts, and the broader, more public campaign events.

But there are special situations that call for a revised time schedule. My most recent new church building campaign was one of these.

The feasibility study was positive, and the first six months of campaigning was right on schedule. The present church building was 80 years old, and an early gift of land put the project within reach, or so it seemed.

But a group opposing the project was forming. This was of great concern to the pastor, who saw her role as pastor to all the members. How could she put aside her excitement for the project to listen attentively to some members’ objections?

Early in the planning process, the finance committee had asked the opinion of a local construction company about remodeling the present building, rather than building a new structure. An elevator would need to be added for those unable to handle the steps – up for worship and down for fellowship and the rest rooms.

The construction company’s verdict was clear. It would surely cost more to remodel, and at the end you would still be in an 80 year-old building.

So the campaign proceeded on the strength of their assessment. Then it became clear that not all members were in favor, especially those whose homes were older than 80 years, and were just fine, thank you.

In order not to lose these members, we decided to take a year off to hold a series of listening groups and to spend some money on a thoroughgoing remodeling analysis.

The land donor was kind enough to extend his offer to allow for this extended period. At the end of the year, the verdict was the same. It just wouldn’t be worth it to remodel.

So the campaign resumed and was successful. No members were lost in the process.

In this case, it was better to pause than to pounce.

A Golf Tournament Alone is NOT Enough to Advance Your Mission

by Greg Ritter on July 4th, 2010
Posted in: Capital Campaign, Fundraising, Special Events - 1 Comment »

We are certainly well into the nonprofit special event season. Our incoming mail gets more colorful this time of year with all those four-color brochures enticing us to golf, fish, run, shoot clay pigeons, taste wine, drink scotch and eat chocolate, all in the name of our favorite nonprofit cause.

In my first few nonprofit benefit golf tournaments, I was amazed at the wad of big bills players would pull out for green fees, Mulligans, merchandise, the banquet, the silent auction. “We’ll make a bundle tonight,” I thought to myself, “and look at all those new faces.”

What I realize now is that big wad of bills was not the golfer’s own money, happily given in support of our nonprofit mission. In many cases it was their company’s or their employer’s money provided to the golfer for a day of fun and networking.

It was great to collect the money (“take the money and run, Greg!” I remember my old mentor saying). It was fun to strategize about how to increase the number of foursomes each year and increase the proceeds.

But when golf season was over and our nonprofit capital campaign began I found many of the golfers and sponsoring companies did not participate. “We support you through the golf tournament,” they would say.

Even the new faces I remembered from the course, who listened to our program at our banquet that night and saw our client stories posted at each tee, did not feel close enough to us to support the nonprofit capital campaign.

There is no substitute for good old-fashioned one-on-one cultivation of prospects, especially before a capital campaign. They need to see the mission in action, meet Board members, and maybe serve on a committee to feel part of things.

Then let the special event be a celebration of progress. It is also a great cultivation of the volunteers who worked on the event, and a great first introduction of friends who are new to the mission. But keep cultivating, especially when there is a capital campaign in the future. In the meantime, take the money and run!

Does Your Nonprofit Have a Donor Communications Calendar?

by Greg Ritter on July 1st, 2010
Tags: , , - Posted in: Communications, Fundraising - 2 Comments »

A successful communications plan should include a year-long calendar to easily track when different messages need to be delivered and how to deliver them. For nonprofits it is essential to have a structured communications calendar to ensure you are reaching your donors on a regular basis.

I was thrilled to see nonprofit consultant Lori Jacobwith (@LJacobwith) sharing a sample communications calendar (it’s an Excel document that can be used as a template) in her recent post: Keep Track of Donor Communications With this Awesome Tool! Lori also shares some great tips for connecting with donors in this article. I highly recommend you read the post and download this tool to use with your communications planning.

Thank you Lori for sharing this amazing tool!