Answers to Fundraising's Persistent Questions

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We recently conducted a webinar on How to Create a Yearlong Fundraising Plan, hosted by Stevenson, Inc. We got some good questions during the session, so we thought we'd share two of them, and our answers.

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Q: Do you have any strategies for donor acquisition during these tougher times?

Focus on donor participation, and not necessarily on size of gift. Right now we have a lot of people who are scaling back on their contributions, but are no less committed to the causes they believe in. Economic conditions may have led them to reduce their overall charitable giving budget, so if they could give $100 to a single charity last year, they may only be able to give $50 this year. They already feel sad about that—you don’t need to rub it in! Help them feel like whatever amount they can give is important.

If you have suggested dollar amounts on your solicitations, you may want to add a lower end suggested amount and drop one of your higher end levelsa

I would not, however, add premiums at this time, and if you are using premiums (tote bags, decals, etc.) I would scale back. Donors want to know that you are using their money for the cause, not for premiums. Anything that seems like waste will be a turnoff for potential donors.

Q: You have 10 minutes to introduce your organization to a business. How do you do that and once you do that, when do you make the ask? Do you leave and make a second visit or do you make the ask right there after the presentation?


First of all, if you said you were coming to provide them with information, you should not ask unless they tell you to. No one likes being ambushed. If you said you were coming to ask for their support, then yes, you can ask for their support after the presentation.

Before your presentation, you should already know basic information about the business—who is their target market, what other causes do they support, what kinds of connections do they have to your organization? Don’t use your valuable presentation time asking basic questions or giving them information they already know.

If you have ten minutes, focus on people and results. If possible, find a way to get them to ask questions. Adults are generally more engaged if they are an active part of the learning process and if they are provided with practical solutions to problems.

Pick a story: you could talk about a student who benefited from a scholarship, or a person who received lifesaving care, or an artist that provided an inspiring performance…whatever the human face is for your organization, talk about it. Your potential donors generally don’t need to know process, details on history—you just need to make them feel good about the organization.

Find a way to draw them into the story—questions like “what would you do if you were in such and such situation?” Of course, make sure that your organization solves that problem!

Ask for feedback to make sure you’re not talking at them. If they seem disengaged, ask what kinds of information they would like to have. Be ready to end the meeting early if necessary—they will appreciate you not wasting their time.

If they seem really excited about the program, go ahead and ask them if this is the kind of project they would like to support. Again, if you said this was just going to be informational, do NOT whip out a prepared proposal. But be ready to follow up with a proposal immediately after the meeting if they want one.

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