Fundraising Training Exercise: Where's the Money?

Fundraising Training Exercise: Where's the Money?: Fundraising Training Exercise: Where's the Money?

May 2014

Excerpted from Train Your Board (And Everyone Else) to Raise Money

If you've ever discussed fundraising with your board—or any nonprofit board—you've probably heard the following phrases: "The economy's not good, people aren't giving," or "I don't know anyone with money." These are perhaps the two most pervasive and persistent misconceptions about fundraising. The data presented in this exercise help to debunk these and several other myths.

Making Asking Easier for Your Board

Making Asking Easier for Your Board: Making Asking Easier for Your Board

October 2013

Excerpted from the second edition of Fundraising Realities Every Board Member Must Face: A 1-Hour Crash Course on Raising Major Gifts for Nonprofit Organizations

Anyone who's been in fundraising for at least a week knows that board members are reluctant to visit would-be donors in person.

And yet personal visits are the sine qua non of securing big gifts.

5 steps to a board member’s ask - TheNonProfitTimes

5 steps to a board member’s ask - TheNonProfitTimes: Speaking during the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) 49th International Conference on Fundraising, Laura Fredricks said the number one reason board members do not get involved in asking for money is that they fear they will not be as successful at it as they are in their business

Paul Jolly Interviews Andrea Kihlstedt about Asking Styles

Paul Jolly Interviews Andrea Kihlstedt about Asking Styles: Paul Jolly Interviews Andrea Kihlstedt about Asking Styles

May 2012

When I was a young fundraiser, it delighted me to contradict the stereotype of the fundraiser as a gregarious glad-hander. My "secret weapon" was that I was a very good listener.

And so, when my colleague Andrea Kihlstedt recently showed me her system of Asking Styles, it helped me understand my strength. In the Asking Styles lexicon I'm a Kindred Spirit—an intuitive introvert

The First 30 Seconds Of An Ask - TheNonProfitTimes

The First 30 Seconds Of An Ask - TheNonProfitTimes: The First 30 Seconds Of An Ask - 09/20/2011
By Rick Christ


Telephone calls to lapsed donors can bring them back. Calls to new donors, especially online donors, can turn a drive-by donor into a second-time giver, or even a monthly donor.

In fact, it’s more profitable to call new online donors and ask for a monthly gift, than it is to send them another email. And, while the first 30 seconds are key to the success of the call, the typical telemarketer wins or loses in the first five seconds.

Can a Thank-You Letter Contain an Ask? | Michael Rosen Says…

Can a Thank-You Letter Contain an Ask? | Michael Rosen Says…: "A thank-you letter to a donor can certainly contain an ask for another gift along with a response envelope. However, should it?

NO!!!

This is not just my opinion. Penelope Burk, author of Donor-Centered Fundraising, also feels that a thank-you letter should be a demonstration of appreciation and not another solicitation."

Take Care When Asking Staff and Volunteers to Make a Donation

massnonprofit.org ::: "It’s tempting and convenient to solicit your organization’s staff and volunteers. However, these two critical groups are in very different positions, so they can’t be treated alike in terms of asking for money."

Tackling the Problem of Asking Too Often - Resource Center - AFP

Tackling the Problem of Asking Too Often - Resource Center - AFP: "In an interview this week with AFP eWire, fundraising consultant and author Penelope Burk says the trend toward over-solicitation is very real and continues to weigh heavily on the minds of donors, who consistently rank ‘being asked too much' at the top of their list of reasons why they gave less or stopped giving altogether to a particular charity. Burk has been taking a readout of what donors like and dislike about their experience with charities and measuring giving habits for several years. Since 2000 she has asked why donors stop giving--and over-solicitation has been a growing theme."

From the Field » Blog Archive » The Preliminary Steps for The Art of Asking!

From the Field » Blog Archive » The Preliminary Steps for The Art of Asking!: "You think that you know all the earthly sins in the world, particularly those surrounding the Art of Asking, well what are the three most flagrant ones in all of philanthropy?

You are right if you immediately uttered -
“I forgot to ask the prospect for financial support“,
“I didn’t ask for a specific project, amount or need“, and
“At the last moment, I had another event to attend and did not visit the prospect personally - just sent a little hand-written note.”

In nine out of every ten solicitations that are not successful, these three items are, at least, one of the main reasons for failure and no bacon!"

Speaking of Fundraising: The Anatomy of a Major-Gifts Ask : FundRaising Success

Speaking of Fundraising: The Anatomy of a Major-Gifts Ask : FundRaising Success: "Serenic - DonorVision
AWAI- FS
Speaking of Fundraising: The Anatomy of a Major-Gifts Ask
By F. Duke Haddad
August 12, 2008

Henry Rosso, a legendary modern fundraising professional, created several working philosophies from his book, “Lessons from a Master’s Lifetime Experience.”

One, people need and want to give, yet many do not know how, to whom or how much. Second, people should be able to give according to their means, their own interests and their own inclinations, without pressure. The decision should be theirs."

At nonprofits, asking for money becomes part of the job - The Boston Globe

At nonprofits, asking for money becomes part of the job - The Boston Globe: "When Gina Purtell became director of Mass Audubon's Allens Pond Wildlife Sanctuary in Dartmouth, it seemed like her dream job. She envisioned spending her days clearing woods, building trails, and counting birds at the property's 1,000 acres of salt marsh, coastal oak woodlands, and grasslands.

But she didn't realize that she was also expected to beg patrons for cash. At first, soliciting donors 'definitely felt uncomfortable, and I was very hesitant and resistant, even resentful,' Purtell said. 'I was like, 'That's not my job!' '"

Fundraising success all in school of asking

Thanks for the heads up from Marc Pittman.
Coincidentally I'm in Maine myself at the moment.

Fundraising success all in school of asking: "WATERVILLE -- Sometimes to raise funds, you need to return the money you receive.

Fundraising expert Marc Pitman did that several years ago when he sent back a $40,000 check to a donor.

The donor, Pitman said, had contributed $40,000 annually to his former boarding school in recognition of a teacher who had changed his life."