Big Gifts for Small Shops

There's a myth that smaller nonprofit organizations have a harder time securing big gifts than larger organizations. In fact, any size nonprofit organization can be the beneficiary of significant philanthropic gifts, but when you have a smaller staff, you have to be extremely diligent about what you do to make these transformational gifts happen. Don't just wait for the contributions to drop in your lap! Here's what you can do:

Think BIG. Small organizations sometimes sell themselves short. We remind the organizations we work with, "you're small but mighty!" Transformational gifts only happen if you have a transformational idea. Come up with the big dream and sell it!

Determine what you can get donated in-kind. It's often easier to get physical items donated rather than cash. Be careful, however, to determine what quality you are willing to accept. Don't take something sub par just because it's available. Also, I'm not talking about a wish list in the newsletter--you actually have to ask for items just like you would ask for a cash gift.

Mine your files. Nonprofit organizations notoriously under-utilize the data they already have. Do you have a donor database? A vendor database? Even if it's just a list in the checkbook, you have a list of people who have an established relationship with your organization. If you look at the list, you might find some hidden gems. If you don't recognize the names on your list, ask around--your board, your other staff members, even the donor! Also, look for consistency of giving rather than just size of gift. People who have been giving to you consistently have established a certain level of loyalty; even if they don't have the capacity for a larger gift, they may know someone who does.

Start a planned giving program. Now. Today. It's easy--read Starting a Simple, No Hassle Planned Giving Program.

Start a monthly giving program. This is a hugely easy way to get people to up their investment in your organization. Think about it--it's a lot easier to do $100 a month than it is to give $1,200 in one lump sum. Even if you start low tech, like giving a donor 12 envelopes, it will bring in more consistent revenue throughout the year.

Ask, ask and ask again. It's a game of numbers--larger shops seem to have more success with major gifts because they are asking more! At least once a month, ask someone for "too much." Preferably, ask twice a month or more. You may discover what you thought was too big of a gift is actually quite do-able. As the old adage goes, you don't get what you don't ask for!

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Jim Anderson GoalBustersJim
Alice Ferris alice.ferris

The Power of "the Dark Side": What Fundraisers Can Learn from Salespeople (and vice versa)

This is a stereotype. It's not Jim.

In spite of the fact that Alice frequently describes Jim as "the older brother I never wanted," we've had a respectable amount of success as a business partnership. Our strategy has been to merge the most powerful traits of the for-profit and nonprofit sectors to increase resources for philanthropic organizations.

So how does, as Jim likes to say, "a cynical salesperson work with a Pollyanna fundraiser for six years without losing his mind?" Here's what we've learned about what translates to philanthropy from "the dark side."

Fundraising AND sales are about relationships.
Fundraisers like to think we have a lock on relationship development. We're "development directors" for that reason! Salespeople? They are focused on making the sale more than the relationship, right? Well, not exactly. Good salespeople aren't focused on the one-time deal: they know that long-term customers are better. Jim shares a story of a major broadcasting executive who once said to him, "This better do everything you said it's going to do. Because it's easy to sell me once, but it's going to be tough to sell me again."

Price is irrelevant; value is everything.
Many fundraisers obsess about how to determine the right ask amount. Salespeople set a price and talk about the value of the purchase. Successful fundraisers do the same--they talk about how communities will be transformed; how lives will be touched; how root cause problems will be solved. This is the value of the philanthropic investment--eventually the amount is less important to the donor.

Present from a position of pride, not poverty.
Many salespeople walk into an interaction with a bit of swagger. (Maybe too much at times!) In contrast, many nonprofit people present a position of neediness. "I know this is a tough economy, and you probably get a lot of requests, but would you consider donating...." Don't do that! Nonprofit organizations change lives, make dreams become reality, improve our communities. You do great stuff! You've earned a little swagger! Be bold!

If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.
Salespeople have a "book of business" that they work in a methodical way. Even though fundraisers have "moves management," very few nonprofits utilize a structured approach to managing donor lists, cultivating new gifts, and researching new prospective contributors. Whether you're in a one person shop or a large development department, you must take time to plan how you're going to approach your "portfolio" of contributors so that you can deepen the relationships.

Not every meeting is an "advance," but your advances should outnumber your "continuances."
One of Jim's pet peeves, both in sales and in fundraising, is the continuance--the meeting or interaction that doesn't lead anywhere. You had a nice lunch, but there wasn't any change in the relationship. Alice calls this "the cultivation vortex:" you spend too much time cultivating and never feel like it's "the right time" to ask. Move forward! Is there an action step, a deliverable, additional information that needs to be provided? Is there a scheduled time for a follow up? Do you know what's happening next? How will your prospective contributor deepen their engagement with your organization?

Having a mission, vision and an ethical code is a valuable asset.
Few for-profit corporations have a mission and vision for how to transform the community. And almost none have a code of ethics and standards of professional practice that they can point to and say, "here's what is important." This is what gives nonprofits the privilege of their tax status and the privilege of community loyalty. For-profit businesses are catching on to this: Toms is one of our favorites. (And they sell cool shoes.)

Trust is critical.
Generally, the culture of nonprofits is to trust people until they prove unworthy. In sales, trust is not easily earned. This is probably the most difficult part for someone migrating from the for-profit world to the nonprofit sector, because philanthropy is fundamentally based on trust: trust that you will do what you said you would do with the money. Trust that you both have the best interests of the relationship at heart. Trust that a fundraiser will put the needs of the organization ahead of personal gain.

On that note, we know that fundraising is not sales. But that does not mean that you don't have to sell. Selling is not only about an exchange for money, but also communication, listening, persuasion, and yes, relationship development. By studying the practices of reputable salespeople, we can "use our powers for good" to benefit of our communities.

This post is an abbreviated summary of our presentation formerly known as "Little Bit Country, Little Bit Rock and Roll," and was posted on the sixth anniversary of Alice and Jim's business relationship. 

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Jim Anderson GoalBustersJim
Alice Ferris alice.ferris

Lessons in Nonprofit Ethics from Three Cups of Tea and 60 Minutes

Often when we discuss potential ethical dilemmas, someone says, "Do you want to see this on the front page of the paper?" I guess the question now is, "Do you want to see this on 60 Minutes?"

After the release of the 60 Minutes story investigating Greg Mortenson, author of Three Cups of Tea and Executive Director of the Central Asia Institute, many questions have been raised about the truth of Mortenson's books, the legitimacy of his charity, and the transparency of the CAI's financials.

And all these questions have been raised just in time for me to do a presentation on fundraising ethics!

Originally, my presentation was supposed to summarize the findings of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Ethics Think Tank and use the case study format led by Paul Pribbenow, chair of the AFP Ethics Committee, to discuss fictional cases. Instead, I facilitated a discussion with participants from the AFP Northern Arizona Chapter about the issues and impact of the 60 Minutes story.

So, using Dr. Pribbenow's case study analysis process, here's what we learned from Three Cups of Tea and 60 Minutes: