CFRE R
eview
Course
May 13, 2 014
PROSPECT RESEARCH Ann-Laura Parks, CFRE w www.BeMonsterful.com U @BeMonsterful
Identify and Qualify Information that supports cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship.
TEST CONTENT
Develop a list of prospective donors by identifying individuals and groups who have the capacity and propensity to give in order to qualify prospective donors for further research and cultivation efforts.
TEST CONTENT
Implement and utilise a secure data management system that stores information about current and prospective donors to enable retrieval and analysis.
TEST CONTENT
Analyse the list of current and prospective donors using characteristics such as demographics, interest, values, giving history, relationships, and linkages to the organisation in order to select potential donors for particular projects and fundraising programmes.
TEST CONTENT
Rate current and prospective donors in categories of giving potential in order to prioritise and plan cultivation and solicitation.
TEST CONTENT
Present the list of current and prospective donors and relevant information to organisational leaders in order to establish consensus for action.
KEY KNOWLEDGE AREA Trends and characteristics (such as socioeconomic, historical, and cultural) of a constituency
SOME INFORMATION SOURCES
BEYOND GOOGLE...
United States Census Atlanta Regional Commission Lilly Family School of Philanthropy National Center for Education Statistics The Independent Sector The Urban Institute Corporation for National and Community Service National Center for Health Statistics U.S. Department of Justice U.S. Department of Agriculture
KEY KNOWLEDGE AREA Sources and of financial support, (such as individuals, corporations, grant-making bodies, foundations, government) and their motivations, practices, and policies
Sources of Support
CORPORATIONS 5% of all giving Narrow range of interest Connects to business strategy In areas of operation, local community Employee volunteer involvement Reinforce brand; visibility Sponsorships, corporate philanthropy, matching gifts, in-kind
Sources of Support
FOUNDATIONS 14%
of all giving Private family foundations, community foundations & donor advised funds, trusts controlled by banks & law firms, etc. May fund only for specific issues & geographic areas Lengthy process Can sometimes be difficult to access
INDIVIDUALS* Sources of Support
73% of all giving + 8% in bequests Smaller gifts from more people Care about your cause Want to give back to the community Want recognition Costly to develop
* I include Federated Funds (United Way, Combined Federal Campaign, etc.) in this category.
Sources of Support
GOVERNMENT Often
considered a contract for services Least flexible – must be exact match for RFP Tedious filing and reporting requirements More restrictions on how money can be used Capacity for detailed record-keeping
KEY KNOWLEDGE AREA Relationships between and among annual, capital/major, and planned giving programmes
COMPONENT Annual Giving A Major Gifts M Capital Campaign C Planned Giving P
SOURCE Individuals Foundations Corporations Government
COMPONENT Annual Giving A Major Gifts M Capital Campaign C Planned Giving P
SOURCE Individuals Foundations Corporations Government
COMPONENT Annual Giving A Major Gifts M Capital Campaign C Planned Giving P
SOURCE Individuals Foundations Corporations Government
COMPONENT Annual Giving A Major Gifts M Capital Campaign C Planned Giving P
SOURCE Individuals Foundations Corporations Government
KEY KNOWLEDGE AREA Prospect information sources, including people and written/published materials and electronic
WHAT SHOULD BE IN A PROFILE? Contact Age,
info
family, education, hobbies, birthday
Community
involvement/Philanthropy
Occupation Assets
(securities, real estate, etc.)
Giving
history
Giving
Cycle (foundations, government)
Appointments
& interactions
SOME INFORMATION SOURCES Google* Tips
Use search operators or advanced search to narrow down results
You can also do an image search so you can attach a photo to their record
* or your favorite search engine
SOME INFORMATION SOURCES
BEYOND GOOGLE...
Corporate Hoovers Edgar LexisNexis Factiva U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission State agencies that handle corporate registrations
SOME INFORMATION SOURCES
BEYOND GOOGLE...
Foundations Foundation Center Guidestar National Center for Charitable Statistics
SOME INFORMATION SOURCES
BEYOND GOOGLE...
Individuals LinkedIn opensecrets.org, followthemoney.org, FEC.gov Wealth screening WealthEngine, NOZAsearch, Blackbaud ResearchPoint ZoomInfo Salary.com, Government Salaries (OPM) Zillow, eppraisal.com, county assessors BirthDatabase.com
SOME INFORMATION SOURCES Government Grants.gov CFDA.gov Local government websites
BEYOND GOOGLE...
ETHICS
Stakeholder Assets All
trust and confidence
are managed and accounted for
data are collected/used properly
Donor
privacy and rights are maintained
Secure
& confidential; access to files is
limited Discussions
internally
about donors occur only
KEY KNOWLEDGE AREA Benefits and uses of various market and donor surveys, and donor giving patterns
ANALYSIS
Data Mining
Look for patterns & trends that inform planning Determine donor/prospect segments Find links between donor/prospect & organization
Wealth Screening
Are there potential major donors hiding in your database? Prioritize where you should put your effort
DONOR SURVEYS
Methods include questionnaires, focus groups, interviews
Decide what you want to know
Find out donor perceptions
Measure donor satisfaction
What motivates giving? (or made them stop?)
Evaluate development initiatives
Collect donor stories
Build donor trust and loyalty
MARKET STUDY May be called a Feasibility Study – often done prior to a capital campaign or new program development to: Determine need Discover stakeholder opinions Reduce risk of failure Determine total investment needed to reach goal Inform strategy based on reliable data Identify potential problems Identify potential sources of revenue & funders
KEY KNOWLEDGE AREA Techniques for gathering, segmenting and analysing prospective donor research, indicators of gift potential
PROSPECT ATTRIBUTES The Linkage, Ability, and Interest (LAI) principle is one way to rate prospects. For a potential donor to become a qualified prospect, three criteria must apply.
Linkage - a connection through a peer to the potential donor
Ability - the perception that the prospect has a gift capability at a certain level.
Interest - Interest in and an understanding of the mission and accomplishments.
WHERE TO START? Cold
– Prospects you've identified as qualified but have little or no awareness of your organization.
Warm
- Prospects with whom you've previously spoken or met and have some awareness of your organization.
Hot
– Prospects you've successfully cultivated to the point of being ready for an ask.
KEY KNOWLEDGE AREA Prospect screening, qualifying, and rating methods
RFM ANALYSIS
R = Recency F = Frequency M = Monetary Value
Score prospects in each category, add them up across and sort.
Et Voilà! A prioritized list.
Example Work Sheet Name
Last Gift Date
Total # Past Gifts
Total Giving Amt
Recency Frequency Monetary RFM Score Score Score Score
Donor A 1/1/2013
1
$50
4
1
1
6
Donor B 2/2/2013
1
$75
4
1
1
6
Donor C 2/17/2008
22
$2,200
3
5
2
10
Donor D 5/19/2009
6
$230,988 4
3
5
12
Donor E 12/12/1987
3
$9,000
2
4
7
1
Source: “10 Ways to Improve Your Fundraising Strategy with Prospect Research” by Helen E. Brown, Jennifer Filla, Debbie Sokolov
AFP CODE OF ETHICS 
#10: Members shall protect the confidentiality of all privileged information relating to the provider/client relationships

#17: Members shall not disclose privileged or confidential information to unauthorized parties.

#18: Members shall adhere to the principle that all donor and prospect information created by, or on behalf of, an organization or a client is the property of that organization or client and shall not be transferred or utilized except on behalf of that organization or client.
ABOUT THE CFRE EXAM
Test is written for international audience. You may see unfamiliar spellings and terminology.
200 multiple choice questions + 25 pretest questions that don’t count.
Current and prospective donor research: 32 questions on the exam = 16% of your score
Scaled scoring of 200-800. Passing grade is 500.
SAMPLE EXAM QUESTION The rationale that will most likely motivate major gifts is: A.
B. C. D.
sense of loyalty, gratitude, and affection for the organization belief in the institution tax consideration belief that current needs are important
SAMPLE EXAM QUESTION Which one of the following questions expresses a key element in winning corporate grants? A. B.
C. D.
What can the corporation do for us? Will our proposal have appeal to the consumers of the company's products? What can we do for the corporation? Will our proposal have appeal to the company's stockholders?
TIPS Read
very carefully for clues about what the question is really asking.
Answer
questions based only on information in the question. Don’t assume info not given.
Skip
questions you are not sure of and go back to them later.