Date post: | 06-Dec-2014 |
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Building Blocks for a
Successful Major Donor
Strategy
Fiona Duncan
4 November 2008
• Major donor fundraising is just as much about the donor as it is the project
• You don’t need bricks and mortar
• People make this more complicated than it needs to be!
• Knowing what to do; deciding what to do; being disciplined = success!
• 7 Steps & Moves management are all you need.
• More professionals and fewer volunteers
• Increasingly volunteers cultivate & professionals ‘close’
• Higher expectations
• Doing more with less
• Involved in higher solicitations
• Involvement
• Impact – making a difference
• Global and home country
• Added value
• Social enterprise
• Head and heart
Considerations
suspects prospects donors
100 15 5
Research requests
– levels
Portfolio management
Data control
Reporting
How many donors do I need??
Gift Size Number Value
Donors
£5m 1 £5m
£3m 2 £6m
£2m 4 £8m
£1m 6 £6m £100k-£1m 20 £5m
Total 33 £33m
How many donors do I need??
Assumptions
Prospect Conversion 8 to 1
External Conversion 25 to 1
Prospect Research
Wealth Band Matches Conversion Gift Level Total
£50m+ 2 0 500,000 125,000
£25-50m 6 1 250,000 187,500
£10-25m 10 1 100,000 125,000
£5-10m 112 14 50,000 700,000
£1-5m 768 96 10,000 960,000
Influential 355 44 10,000 443,750
Total 1253 157 2,541,250
Critical success factors
• Powerful Case for Support – just what do you want the money for?
• Excellent research
• Excellent cultivation
• Making the ask
• Loving your donors
• Asking again
What is leadership?
• Wealthy donors influencing other wealthy people to give
• Wealthy donors who will use their networks
• People will follow leaders – lead gifts are critical
• Big donors will push average gifts up – small donors will push average gifts down
Secrets of a Leadership Forum
• Excellent Chair who has made a big gift
• Clarity of purpose
• Clarity of targets
• Time limited
• High-powered
• Exclusive
Eight Step Cycle
1. Discover 2. Research
Eight Step Cycle
Stewardship
1. Discover 2. Research
Discover
database
competitors press
stakeholder mapping
service users
circulate lists
geography
history
ask
Finding your prospects
Developing a Prospect Hypothesis
• Describe the sorts of people who:
• Have the right levels of wealth
• Have evidence of philanthropy
• Have some connection to the cause
• Are active in fields other than their work
• Have business interests whose brands fit with you
Research database
in-house / commission?
pipeline
maintenance criteria
propensity
&
capacity
volume
management
Researching your prospects
• Start with your database – they already love you!
• Use research companies or employ a researcher
• Use all published information
• As names come up, ask your trustees and existing supporters if they know them
influence
affinity wealth
fit
Quantify
ability
matrix
social
benefit
philanthropy
age
family
Decide the:
• criteria
• importance
• and multiplier
Introduce
why
what
when
who
where
Cultivate
build loyalty
activities
relationships
interest
planned
stages
involve
Cultivation
• How to meet them?
• Go where they go
• Hold an event they would like
• Use celebrities
• Ask for a meeting
• Events
• Staff well
• Brief and debrief fully
Cultivation
• Assign a staff member to each MD
• Provide them with the information they ask for
• Invite them to a project visit
• If they come, you’ve got them!
Ask
how? who?
how much?
for what?
The ask
• Many volunteers hate this
• Best done by a professional
• Know the right level of ask
• If in doubt, ask them
Thank and deliver
recognition
project management
signing ceremony
tax
reports
documentation
gift agreement
who
Follow up
• Thank
• Inform
• Involve
• Report
• Surprise
• Celebrate