Archive for Thoughts
Mallabone’s Fundraising Law
I believe it’s a truism in life, that the people give their love, their time, and most importantly, their money … to things in their life that they are closest to.
This is a true throughout the world, in every culture; in every race; in every nationality. In most cases, this translates into people leaving their money to their family, their school, their church and temple, … those things in their life that they are closest to.
If you accept this simple truth, then our job as fundraisers becomes very simple. Bring people close to us.
In every act and deed, in every action and communication, stay focused on that simple rule, and you won’t go wrong. For it is in the act of bringing people close to our organizations that positions prospective donors to make the decision to make a gift to your organization.
By the way … the reverse is equally true. If you don’t keep people close to you … don’t be surprised if they stop giving.
Mmmmmmm … bringing people close to you … dare we call that cultivation. 🙂
Five Moons in Alignment
Success in preparing for solicitation of a major gift prospect is dependent on seeking answers to five key questions.
Five variables which need special focus and attention. Each of these questions can be considered a ‘moon’ that you trying to get into alignment, as you prepare for making your solicitation presentation. As fundraisers, we are trying to seek clarification around each of these questions, seeking as solid as answer as possible so that we can maximize the chances of success when we present our ask.
So, what are these moons …
MOON #1: The Project. We need to be clear about what the desired project is that we are going to present to the donor prospect. Have you identified his/her interests and passions? Have you clearly researched and articulated the ‘case’ which you plan to present?
MOON #2: The Amount. How much are you going to ask for? Presenting a specific number is important for the prospective donor to react to. Have you sufficiently researched the appropriate giving threshold? Is is large enough to be a ‘stretch gift’, yet realistic enough or the prospect to say “yes” to?
MOON #3: The Timing. Just when ‘is’ the best time to present an ask? Has there been a change in the prospects life? Has he/she had a significant life-changing event? A retirement? Sale of a business? Have you given thought to when your ask would be best received?
MOON #4: The Ask Team. So who will be on your ask team? Identifying the best team (or person) to make the solicitation is important to maximizing the potential for success. Who has influence over the prospect? Do you need a ‘subject matter expert’ when making your ask? Who will actually deliver the ask?
MOON #5: Who will be Asked. While the answer to this question may seem obvious … after all, isn’t the prospective donor the person being asked? But maybe you should be asking yourself if others should be in attendance? Should the spouse be in the room? Maybe not. If this is a corporate ask, should the ask be presented locally, regionally, nationally?
Sometimes it is difficult to get complete answers to all five questions. As hard as you might try through effective cultivation and research, you might not be able to get all five ‘moons’ into full alignment before an ask is ready to be made. In this situation, knowing whether you should proceed to the ask with the information you have, or holding off and trying find more complete answers, is truly where ‘fundraising art’ meets ‘fundraising science’. Experience will be your best guide in this situation, but for now, work hard to get solid answers to the five ‘moons’, and maximize your chances for success.
Opportunity Offerer
It might sound odd, but the reality is I have never really considered myself a Fundraiser. That sounds too much like ‘taking something’ from someone, rather than giving. I like the mental picture of being an Opportunity Offerer. It’s a picture I keep in my mind always when I’m presenting someone with an opportunity to invest in the cause I’m raising money for. I like the fact that I’m ‘giving’ something to someone when I come to make the case for a philanthropic investment. I’m giving people a chance to make a significant difference in the lives of those who will be affected by the donation made. Pretty powerful stuff when you stop and think about.
“Opportunity Offerer” …. mmmmm, I like the sound of that, and more importantly, I like how it feels when I wear that philosophy on the outside of life.
Great Quotations on Opportunity:
“You’ll always miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” Wayne Gretzky
“Next to knowing when to seize an opportunity, the most important thing in life is to know when to forego an advantage.” Benjamin Disraeli
“There are always opportunities through which businessmen can profit handsomely if they will only recognize and seize them.” Paul Getty
“Problems are only opportunities in work clothes.” Henry J. Kaiser
“I always tried to turn every disaster into an opportunity.” John D. Rockefeller
“The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and, if they can’t find them, make them.” George Bernard Shaw
“Welcome every problem as an opportunity. Each moment is the great challenge, the best thing that ever happened to you . The more difficult the problem, the greater the challenge in working it out.” Grace Speare
