A Non-profit Model of Fundraising Success
A Great Cause
I’m sure some of you have had great experiences with capital campaigns . I write today to tell you about one of my favorites. Recently, our company had the privilege of participating in a 5-year, $121 million campaign for 21st Century Parks. The Parklands Project was one of the largest of its kind in America. It included the acquisition of 4,000 acres adjacent to a local tributary in Louisville.
The goal was to create a complete park system along an 11-mile stretch of Floyd’s Fork. Of course, Louisville is one of the few complete Olmsted Park systems in the country, so this project was very much in that tradition.
Participating as capital campaign consultants in a project that size was exciting enough, but the campaign was also for a virtual start up organization. Established in 2004, 21st Century Parks was just getting started. In addition, the campaign kicked off in 2008, one of the worst fundraising periods in modern history. So what was so unique about this effort? Simply stated, everything! However, a few things stand out:
Success Begins with Leadership
First, success started with the founder and CEO, Dan Jones. He took his life in an entirely different direction to achieve this vision. A PhD in history, Dan had been a well-regarded member of the University of Louisville faculty. However, he went back to Yale, his alma mater, and he pursued anther degree in forest science. Shortly after graduation, he founded 21st Century Parks.
While Dan had little experience in fundraising, by the time the campaign concluded he was a fundraising veteran. He was a committed student of fundraising and quite teachable, but he also had great instincts and was willing to go anywhere at any time to share the vision. He literally made hundreds of presentations to just about anyone who would listen.
Success Requires Personal Involvement
Second, the volunteer leadership was superb. The campaign was chaired by David Jones Sr.,the retired founder of the Humana Corporation. Not only did he make a significant financial commitment himself, he also wasn’t the least bit reluctant to make major gift solicitation visits. In addition, he personally recruited 5 co-chairs and was also involved in recruiting the additional 40 volunteers who served on the steering committee.
Success Requires a Great Team
Third, the makeup of volunteers also contributed to campaign success. Certainly we had quite a few CEOs and business owners on the committee, but we also had people who represented diverse neighborhoods in the city. Some volunteers hosted receptions for friends and peers, while others made solicitation calls both to individuals and businesses. In fact, they hosted some 50 separate receptions, and the CEO spoke at every one of them. It was truly a community effort and when it was over nearly 1,000 donors had responded.
Finally, during the early planning phase of the campaign we did a search and found a top-notch development officer, and she kept things moving and on task. In fact, she had to take maternity leave in the middle of the campaign, but by then it was so well organized, that her temporary replacement easily picked up where the development director left off and supported the campaign without missing a beat. The success of the 21st Century Parks campaign shows what can happen when a team of passionate, engaged people commit to a cause and vow to keep working until the goal has been exceeded.
Are Campaign Consultants Really Worth the Price You Pay?
Avoiding the Pitfalls
Do you want success in your church capital campaign? It’s a key question that virtually every pastor wants to answer affirmatively. Yet pastors often relate horror stories about not achieving their goals. In many cases the failed campaign was poorly conceived and that created divisions in the church that were difficult to overcome. So how can a pastor avoid this?
First, it’s important for pastors to realize that they may need help. It never ceases to amaze me how some churches are willing to spend sizeable sums on architectural fees. Yet, they don’t think they need assistance in fundraising. Consider that if your campaign fails to achieve its goal the construction costs and architectural fees don’t change.
We had a church come to us for help, but at the last minute the deacons thought they could save money by implementing the campaign themselves. The project goal was $12 million, but they raised less than $2 million. Architectural fees alone on this project were over $1,000,000. Yet, they were reluctant to pay our fee, which was $70,000 total for the planning (feasibility) study and campaign counsel.
Increase the Likelihood of Success
Of course, using counsel doesn’t guarantee success. However, if you follow the plan and the advice the consultant gives you, the likelihood of success is much higher. It stands to reason that if the person helping you organize and implement your church financial stewardship campaign does this every day, you’ll avoid some common mistakes and increase the likelihood of success.
Even the most competent church member, will not have the time to organize and implement the campaign the way they should. When our church was getting ready to launch a capital campaign, our pastor recruited me to chair the $26 million effort. That made sense, since at the time I was the chief development officer at a well-known university. Also, we had also just completed a successful capital campaign ourselves.
I agreed, but I also realized that ours was a mega-church. I simply lacked the time to set up the systems and do all of the campaign organization and training necessary for success. Besides, the model for a church campaign is entirely different than that of a university campaign. Accordingly, I recommended that we hire a consulting firm to partner with us. We did, and it resulted in raising over $30 million.
Follow Wise Counsel
An equally important principle to consider is that if you hire a campaign consultant, you need to follow his or her advice. In our 20-year history of doing church campaigns, we’ve only had one church fail to achieve its goal. I believe they failed because there were four major strategies we recommended, but the pastor and leadership team decided not to implement them.
Simply stated, if you pay someone who is experienced, it’s important to follow his or her recommendations. It is in the consultant’s best interest to help you achieve success, and he or she will no doubt bring you best practices. You need to trust them. If you do that, you will also realize that the advice you received was well worth the price!
Walking the Talk-Aligning Core Values with Practices
Posted or Practiced?
I have frequently walked into organizations and seen corporate values posted on the walls. In churches, nonprofits and businesses, they are displayed prominently for public viewing. Unfortunately, many of those same organizations are also rife with mistrust, backbiting and ethical breeches, which cause them to operate in a legalistic, contractual manner.
This doesn’t mean that we can or even should eliminate the use of contracts. Our modern world sometimes demands that contracts be used as a standard part of doing business. But this still doesn’t justify operating in a strict contractual manner.
Purpose of the Contract
For a contract to work well it requires an assumption of good faith and trust among the people involved. That good faith is based on some underlying values such as integrity, cooperation, a sense of common purpose and respect; values that are shared and therefore central to relationships. We stress the importance of these virtues in nonprofit and church leadership consulting alike.
Walking the Talk
Of course, it will not do simply for organizations to have stated values. There must be alignment between those values and the daily practices within the organization. That alignment is the responsibility of leaders. In fact, misalignment between values and practices often is where the seeds of an ethical breach take root and the covenant begins to be broken. That’s why leaders must assume responsibility for ensuring that relationships are respected and core values are aligned with practices daily. As strategic planning consultants we frequently counsel clients on the importance of this alignment.
Lessons From Enron
Consider the case of the Enron Corporation. Boldly stated in their company literature were their core values of Respect, Integrity, Communication and Excellence. No doubt, when these values were developed they were intended to guide their company’s operations. However, at some point something caused the company decision makers to operate quite contrary to the stated values.
Even as the company was deteriorating, the founder and corporate chairman, Kenneth Lay, continued to tout those values and encourage people to buy Enron stock. In fact, at the same time he was telling employees that the stock was an “incredible bargain,” he and about two dozen senior executives were cashing in more than $1 billion worth of that same stock. Two days before filing bankruptcy, Enron gave $55 million in retention bonuses to “key managers,” yet they refused to provide severance pay to the 4,500 employees they laid off of work.
The Cost of Values Not Upheld
In total, the company’s indiscretions caused 15,000 employees to lose $1.2 billion, and the CFO alone to be charged with 109 counts of fraud, money laundering, conspiracy and obstruction of justice. Eventually, in May of 2006 the late Ken Lay was convicted on all six counts brought against him including conspiracy to commit securities fraud. Likewise, CEO Jeff Skilling was convicted on 19 counts of conspiracy and fraud.
Clearly, the courts determined that the misalignment of Enron’s values with its practices was a leadership responsibility. They had failed and eventually violated the law and they were held accountable. Had the Enron executives taken their stated values more seriously and aligned their practices with those values, there would not have been an ethical breach of the covenant that was implied in the values they publicly stated.
Leading Through Grace
A Place for Grace
Church should be a place of forgiveness and renewal, but unfortunately some churches are far more judgmental than they are graceful. In fact, in “The Jesus I Never Knew,” Philip Yancey tells of a prostitute who’d been renting out her 2-year old daughter to men. She made more money in an hour than she could earn all night.
Shocking as this was, when a Christian asked her if she’d ever been to church her response was even more shocking. “Church” she said, “Why would I ever go there? I was already feeling terrible about myself. They’d just make me feel worse.”
Leadership and Grace
Grace is the function of leadership, and it’s important for leaders to ensure that behavior in the church is aligned with grace. By definition grace is unmerited favor, and making church a place of grace and not condemnation is critical. When it exists, grace increases trust and good will in the church. It deepens relationships and results in church growth.
Lessons on Grace from our Founding Fathers
A clear example of how this works is found in a story about two of our country’s most esteemed leaders, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. They’d had a lifelong friendship, but they also had differences, so for a period the two were estranged. However, they reconciled and began a series of 158 correspondences between 1812 and 1826.
The strength of their friendship is evidenced in an incident that occurred in 1823. A series of letters that Adams wrote earlier were reprinted in the newspaper. Adams had been critical of Jefferson, calling him a “duplicitous political partisan.” The newspaper obviously tried to stir up trouble, but Jefferson responded with grace and forgiveness by writing the following to Adams:
“Be assured, my dear sir, that I am incapable of receiving the slightest impression from the effort to plant thorns and to sow tares between friends who have been such for nearly half a century. Beseeching you then not to suffer your mind to be disquieted by this wicked attempt to poison its peace, and praying you to throw it by.”
So relieved was Adams that he insisted Jefferson’s letter be read aloud to his entire family. Jefferson extended grace to his friend and that gift demonstrated his love and admiration for Adams. Jefferson’s actions depict what good leaders do; they forgive by disassociating actions from the person’s value. It reminds me of what philosopher Soren Kierkegaard said in Works of Love:
“Through forgiveness love covers a multitude of sins. Silence takes nothing away from the multitude of notorious sins…forgiveness takes away that which still cannot be denied as being sin. So love strives to hide the multitude of sins; but forgiveness is the most outstanding way.”
Growing the Church Through Grace
In our church leadership consulting we encourage pastors to practice forgiveness. When leaders forgive mistakes, they demonstrate value for people beyond their actions. In a very real sense, extending the gift of grace breaks down barriers and deepens relationships. Using Kierkegaard’s description of forgiveness, Jefferson demonstrated not only that he valued Adams, but also that he loved him. Unfortunately, the prostitute needed this, but sensed she wouldn’t experience it in the church. Effective leaders embrace grace through forgiveness. That doesn’t negate accountability, but trusting people and giving them grace does cover a multitude of sins thereby motivating church members towards deeper engagement in the church body.
To Enhance Member Engagement, Acknowledge Member Contributions
Have You Said Thank You?
You’d be surprised at how many pastors want to build church growth through more engagement from their members. Yet, simultaneously they do a poor job of acknowledging their contributions. In fact, in many cases they take those contributions for granted. Whether it’s a regular giver, a staff member, a Sunday School teacher or ministry volunteer, they rarely if ever are thanked. And if they are acknowledged, it is usually in perfunctory ways.
Value Contributions and Build Trust
What may start as a trusting relationship often fails when people take each other for granted. That usually boils down to a failure to acknowledge the value and contributions of another individual. Building trust requires not only giving people meaningful assignments, but also treating them well as they perform them. An important part of that is making an effort to acknowledge their contributions.
Learning From John Wooden
John Wooden is arguably the most successful college basketball coach ever. In the 1960’s and 70’s he guided UCLA to ten national championships in eleven years. When I interviewed Coach Wooden, he explained that it was essential to acknowledge contributions of all players, regardless of how small their role was. He illustrated this point by sharing an analogy,
“I’d say, ‘We’re like a powerful automobile and this player, maybe Jabbar is the powerful engine. You now, are a wheel; and you over here are a nut that holds that wheel on. Now which is most important? What good is that engine if we don’t have wheels? What if you don’t have nuts holding that wheel on? You also need somebody behind that wheel, inside, directing it or you’ll go in circles. You all have an important part.’ And I made a special effort at practice to let those who aren’t playing know how much I appreciated them.”
Finding the Right Way to Say Thank You
Appropriate recognition can be verbal or written, but occasionally it must go beyond that. Sometimes people who make significant contributions, need to benefit in some way from the fruits of their labor. It could be a bonus for staff or a nice dinner or trip for a volunteer. It says simply that we value and thank you for your contribution. At our church, one volunteer gave thousands of hours over several years to help acquire land and then build a new church. The church acknowledged his contributions with a trip for him and his wife.
While trips or bonuses aren’t always possible, acknowledging people in special ways is important. Simply stated, it builds trust and engagement. Assuming leaders endeavor to maximize staff and volunteer potential, they should recognize also that getting more out of a relationship sometimes requires giving more. In our church leadership consulting, we remind pastors that when people begin to trust and give they start to move out of the realm of contractual obligations and into the realm of covenantal ownership and engagement.
The Power of Covenants
True, covenants are far more complicated than contracts. They require willingness on the part of leader and follower alike to respect, trust and give rather than just receive from the relationship. In essence, it means acknowledging the contributions of each other, but it also means sharing talents, resources, work, problems and even revenues. That creates a long-term environment of mutual trust and engagement that promises not only to prosper and strengthen the church but is also a strategy on how to grow church membership.
Track Your Progress for Fundraising Growth
Often our firm is called on to conduct a planning study prior to a capital campaign. This used to be called a feasibility study, but our studies encompass far more than whether or not an organization can raise a certain amount of money. That is part of the study, but our studies also include much more.
The Necessity of Reviewing Key Operations
Just because you are in a capital campaign, doesn’t mean that the rest of your operation shuts down. On the contrary; if the plan is effective it will incorporate strategies for all areas related to fundraising. This includes public relations, donor relations, operations and in particular, annual giving.
In fact, often the most important funds a nonprofit organization raises each year are its annual funds. That’s why we ask organizations for three-year trends. Among those trends we request the following report on source of funds:
- Foundation Giving – We want to know what foundations have given to you over the past three years. Even if it is nothing, that tells us something. We are then better able to help you develop strategies to improve in this area.
- Corporate Giving – What have local and regional corporations given? This includes co-branding, which normally comes from marketing budgets.
- Board giving – Here we review both the participation rate and the average gift.
- Non-board individual giving through direct mail – Direct mail is frequently not tracked. Organizations simply send out mailings without considering how they might be improved. We have our clients track the cost of the mailing (materials, postage, etc.), gross revenue, net revenue, response rate and average gift. We also have them test as much as possible and we encourage clients to send mailings at least 6 times per year. Finally, we recommend that each mailing have a theme. That might sound like a lot, but believe me it’s not.
- Non-board individual giving through solicitation of major gifts – It normally occurs through face-to-face solicitations. This is really where the action is or should be in the development office. Even though it’s labor intensive, it is the most productive and least expensive form of fundraising. We track the number of solicitations made over each of the last three years, the number of “yes” or “I’ll consider” responses and the percentage of those to the total. It should be at least 70% or more, and if it’s not we usually conduct some cultivation/solicitation training.
- Bequest giving– If you have a good program, you should receive bequests. However, if you don’t ever mention bequest and other planned giving opportunities, the likelihood of receiving them is not high. We’ve had several of our clients who had zeroes in that column for years, but with a few key strategies we’ve also helped them begin to fill those columns up. It takes both discipline and patience, but most donors have far greater capacity to give in their death than they did in their lifetime.
- Special events-We review special events to determine cost and net revenue. We try to advise our clients on ways to keep the cost of the event under 50%.
- Giving levels– Starting at $100,000, we work our way downward and analyze giving amounts at various levels including $50,000, $25,000, $10,000 to $100 and below. We’re looking for gaps at each level and strategies to improve.
Measurement Equals Positive Changes
Now we usually look at all of these areas in organizations who are planning for a capital campaign, because they need to be sustained and hopefully improved during the campaign. However, organizations would do well to track these items regularly to help ensure long-term success and sustainability. Remember, very little changes until it’s measured.
Using the Board as Part of your Major Gifts Team
A Study on University Fundraising
I recently conducted an informal study, the findings of which I used to make a point. The board of one of my nonprofit clients kept pushing staff for improved fundraising results. Though the staff was small, they were already producing at a high level, and they were doing so without much help from the board.
Several of the board members cited university examples of fundraising excellence, which led me to my idea for the study in the first place. Accordingly, I picked a university to study from which I received a degree, and I found something quite revealing. That university currently had over 250 professional development staff, and that number was exclusive of any support personnel.
A Contrast in Nonprofit Fundraising
With the development and support staff combined, this nonprofit had less than 2% of the professional staff the university had. We were then able to use this information to help make the case (successfully) that board members needed to be involved.
In a sense, board members and other volunteers become an extension of the nonprofit organization’s development team. They have to do so! Why? Because if the board, those closest to the nonprofit organization, aren’t willing to give and get involved, it’s difficult to expect others in the community to do the same. Actually, board involvement occurs in a variety of ways, and that is happening with increasing frequency. But let’s look at just two of the responsibilities (give and get) that often get neglected:
Two Key Responsibilities of Board Members
Give – According to a recent study by Board Source, 60% of chief executives identified fundraising as the area most in need of board improvement. While 85% of organizations report having board giving policies, only 60% of nonprofits have 100% of their board actually giving. That has increased from just a few years ago, but there is still much room for improvement.
One easy way to kick this off is to start the year with a peer-to-peer board campaign, in which every board member is asked by a fellow board member to make a commitment in a face-to-face solicitation.
Get – The most effective kind of fundraising comes from face-to-face solicitations. In fact, 70% of the time a peer visits a peer in a face-to-face solicitation the answer is “yes.” That far surpasses a good direct mail response rate, which is about 2%-3%. However, to get board members involved there is work to do. Specifically, it will help if you can:
Take away some of the fear of fundraising through orientation and training sessions in which you create a clear case.
- Include subjects like how to schedule the appointment, how to make the case, how to make the ask and how to handle objections
- Develop prospect lists and ask Board members to make selections and add to the list.
- Accompany board members on initial calls to help coach them.
Board Members Must Ask
On average about 42% of board members provided names for letters and calls, but only 22% of board members met in face-to-face meetings with potential donors and only 26% of members accompanied others on a call. This lack of involvement is sometimes associated with not being asked, but often it is associated with anxiety about asking. In our capital campaign consulting we also recommend including board giving and fundraising expectations in the initial board orientation. That way, it is not a surprise when you ask for their help.
Other Ways Board Members Can Help
Another element of getting is getting influence and new friends for the organization. To that end we suggest that board members be asked to help by hosting receptions. True not every board member is gifted in making face-to-face solicitations, but most board members can host home receptions for friends and associates to introduce them to the nonprofit organization.
Increasing Your Fundraising Success by Retaining Your Donors
Donor Retention Rates
When we conduct a fundraising audit/planning study there are at least 27 different reports that we request. One of the most important elements we obtain is a report on donor retention.
More specifically, we review donor retention rates over a three-year period. We are looking to see both how that compares to the national rate of 46% and what the non-profit organization might do to improve donor retention.
Of course, retention rates vary depending upon the kind of institution it is. For example, retention rates in private higher education average closer to 70% while social service agencies tend to have lower retention rates.
Acquiring New Donors is Costly
Why do we analyze this? Well first, according to Giving USA, acquiring a new donor is about 5 times as costly as it is to retain a current donor. Second, the actual return from newly acquired donors is about 1/3 of what it costs to acquire them in the first place.
Simply stated, acquiring new donors is much more costly and time consuming than keeping them. One of our higher education clients had a retention rate of just 34% over a three-year period. That means that each year 66% of their donors had to be recruited. The task was overwhelming for the development staff. They had to raise over $4 million in unrestricted funds annually, and a good portion of that came from new donors.
Tips to Enhance Donor Retention
So what could be done and as fundraising consultants what did we tell them? The following are a few tips that will enhance your donor retention and should also increase your annual giving:
- Be thankful to and for your donors, and acknowledge their gifts promptly. I have found organizations that take one or two weeks or even more time to acknowledge gifts. Right off the bat you are telling donors their gift isn’t very important. We suggest that our clients acknowledge gifts within 48 hours and encourage them to move towards 24 hours.
- Be accountable to your donors as good stewards. Tell them how much you raised and for what purposes you used the funds. People want to know that their gift makes a difference. Show them how they have been a partner with you in your work. Share stories of lives that have been touched.
- Communicate with donors on a regular basis. How? A good communication program includes direct mail, newsletters, social media, information receptions, telephone calls and more. Remember, it is much more to your advantage to keep a donor than it is to lose one and have to recruit another.
- Pay attention to what projects your donors support and target your requests for specific purposes. Not all people are motivated by the same projects, so the requests should vary.
- Seek to engage donors in meaningful ways. One of our theatre clients did an excellent job of creating community with donors. For example, they regularly invited top donors to visit with playwrights prior to the opening of a show or the creative director before the season opened. In addition, they would invite selected donors to provide reviews of certain live performances. They also sent donor welcome packs to new donors. These strategies were key in increasing donations and improving donor retention.
These are just a few strategies, but together they can make a significant improvement in your funding. Measure your donor retention rate and then work to improve it. That is really where the action of caring and building strong relationships begins!
Starting to Think of Some Foundations as Individuals
Source: Giving USA 2016 (Highlights)
Published by The Giving Institute, in cooperation with Lilly Family School of Philanthropy
Total Foundation Giving
Last year, according to Giving USA, 16% of the total philanthropic support came from foundations. In dollars, that amounts to $58.46 billion of the total $373.25 billion.
Often, when people think of foundation giving, they also think of a process that involves a foundation board, a written proposal according to the foundation’s guidelines and where possible, a formal presentation.
Structure of Family Foundations
While that is true in some cases, in almost 50% of the cases that is not the process that is used. It is much less formal. That’s because an increasing amount of the foundation giving totals come from family foundations, and the vast majority of family foundations do not have an Executive Director or a formal process. In fact, while some foundations do have a board of directors, many of them are operated by just one or two people who make all of the decisions.
Likewise, the largest category of foundation giving is giving from independent foundations (75% of all foundation giving), which includes family foundations. In fact, in that category, more than 64% of all giving was from family foundations. That’s more than $28 billion.
Advice on the Ask to Family Foundations
However, there are a few points you should consider as you approach family foundations for fundraising support:
- Make sure you know the person making the decisions, and then try to connect with him or her through someone who is close to that person.
- Understand what their interest is and try to match your project with their specific area of interest.
- In general, foundation support for operations is declining while support for specific projects is increasing. We often tell clients to carve out specific projects from their operations and seek funding for some of those.
- Don’t just look to community foundations for support from donor advised funds. For the first time in 2015, donor advised funds managed by the top three commercial providers (24.1 billion) exceeds those funds held by 274 community foundations (22.2 billion).
Do Your Research
While all of this information is important, you must have a beginning place. As fundraising consultants, we advise clients to start by first gathering information about family foundations in their individual cities or states. That’s because a good portion of those family foundations will make donations right there in the area in which they live. It stands to reason that people tend to give to organizations or people that they know, and the closer to home they are the more organizations and people they will know.
Well, how do you find the names of people who have family foundations? A good place to start is by examining the 990 reports in your state. Each foundation must file a 990 annually. They list not only foundation assets, but also the principal, past grants, and where appropriate, any additional board members.
Of course, once you figure out how many family foundations are in your area and who runs them, the next step towards increasing donations is to develop strategies to inform, cultivate and eventually solicit these foundations. Sure it takes work, but a few hits will make it well worth the effort.
GIVING USA, Philanthropy in Review
Source: Giving USA 2016 (Highlights)
Published by The Giving Institute, in cooperation with
Lilly Family School of Philanthropy
Thank you
A special thanks to everyone who came out last Friday to hear Len Moisan’s presentation on the results of Giving USA 2016. Also, thanks to the Center for Nonprofit Excellence for coordinating the event and Metro United Way for being such gracious hosts.
We trust that you found the data informative and applicable to your own development operations. We also hope that you are already finding ways to implement some of the strategies we discussed to enhance your fundraising efforts.
A Few Statistics
With 2015 being the most generous year ever that presents much optimism and opportunity for local nonprofits. Americans gave $373.25 billion to charitable causes last year and that was an increase of over 4% compared to 2014. The top five sectors that continue to receive the largest share of total giving are:
- Religion (32%)
- Education (15%)
- Human Services (12%)
- Foundations (11%)
- Health (8%)
Specifically, all four categories of giving experienced growth. Those include:
- Giving by Foundations: +6.5%
- Giving by Corporations: +3.9%
- Giving by Individuals: +3.8%
- Giving by Bequest: +2.1%
More than likely your nonprofit has received support from several of these sources. However, some categories maybe more than others, so how can you maximize your support from as many of these sources as possible? The following are a few of the key strategies we discussed.
Strategies to Consider
- Put a renewed emphasis on individual giving
- When conducting capital or annual campaigns, organizations tend to neglect giving from individuals.
- On average, individuals give 88% of the total giving each year.
- Of the total amount given, 71% came in direct gifts from individuals. However, individuals also are the ones who make bequests and nearly half of the gifts from foundations came from family foundations, again, controlled by individuals.
- The most effective form of solicitation is still face-to-face visits. In fact, 70% of the time a peer visits a peer in a face-to-face solicitation the answer is “yes”. However, it is still important to have a full program that includes social media, direct mail, special events and more.
More to Come
This is the first in a series of blogs that will continue to present strategies that you can apply to your own fundraising efforts. The next blog will focus on Starting to Think About Some Foundations as Individuals.
Remember, The Covenant Group is here to help you create and implement strategies to grow your fundraising. We have worked with hundreds of nonprofits to accomplish their strategic planning, capital campaign and fundraising goals. Our associates have raised over $1 billion in our 20-year company history. Contact us to put our experience to work for you.
