Carolyn’s Agenda

◦ Preparing for a major gift campaign: mental framework, assumptions, feasibility studies, volunteer involvement, focus and establishing credibility

◦ The giving context

◦ Individuals

◦ Foundations and corporations

◦ Planned giving

Updated: April 4, 2023

Assumptions

◦ The thought of six and seven-figure major gift campaigns can give rise to thoughts of expensive consulting firms, hiring more staff, and managing a multitude of details on top of busy day-to-day work loads.

◦ But a small focused, well-armed staff making use of appropriate technologies can successfully develop, implement, and succeed handily with major gift fundraising.

Feasibility Studies

◦ Mandates set many professional support organizations: you must conduct one.

◦ Results can be mixed, leading to fundraising goals set too high or too low. Feasibility studies can also be expensive.

◦ Interview a consulting firm and hire the people you like there, not just the firm.

◦ Can you conduct an objective feasibility study without hiring an expensive outside firm: yes.

Focus

◦ Research and experience show major gifts are often made by a relatively small number of people, some of whom will contribute more than once.

◦ Turn to a broad-based “community” fundraising effort toward the end of your campaign. There are lots of crowdfunding tools that can help.

◦ In the meantime, focus on major gift prospects as the majority of your campaign’s donations will most likely come from them.

Volunteers

◦ Campaign volunteer committees and ongoing meetings can become unproductive. #OneOnOneWorks

◦ You can fundraise successfully with one or two active and engaged volunteers. #DoNotWorry

◦ Old rules still apply. Do not go “public” officially until approximately 60% of your campaign goal has been pledged/attained to avoid donor (and public) burnout.

◦ Capital campaign manager’s role: keep going and be a “driver.” Be quietly “relentless.”

Establishing Credibility Before Launching

◦ Polish your website and make it easy to navigate with donors and professional advisors in mind.

◦ Houseclean and update social media regularly. No activity on your social platforms can be mistakenly read as, “they are doing nothing.”

◦ Donors and professional advisors are more “online” than ever before: the impression you make online can “make or break” your credibility.

◦ Flesh out your GuideStar profile to the Gold or Platinum level (if applicable).

◦ Enable electronic giving (EFT, DAF Direct, cryptocurrencies), and prepare an internal pathway for donations of stocks and other non-cash assets.

Context

✓ Inform every member of the staff about your work and be sure they feel part of the organization’s fundraising success.

✓ I have seen a groundskeeper inspire a $1 million endowment gift.

✓ I have seen a secretary (almost) sabotage a donor relationship. You may need to do the work yourself, by hand.

✓ I have seen angry donors swear they won’t give, but then once proper stewardship has been conducted, they do.

✓ I have watched six- and seven-figure donors work in the trenches as volunteers alongside staff and gladly. Foster your volunteer programs.

Carolyn’s Nonprofit Blog (December 2022)

“The problem in a nutshell is that nonprofits are receiving less money from donors at lower- and middle-income levels, making them increasingly dependent on major gifts from far smaller numbers of wealthy donors.”

“Reining in Philanthropic Megadonors: What the Data Tell Us Is Needed”

Chuck Collins and Helen Flannery

NQ: Nonprofit Quarterly (July 2022)