Donor Cultivation

13 May Because: That’s Where the Money Is!

Posted at 08:30h in Board Development, Communication, Donor Cultivation, Featured, Membership 0 Comments

In the end, fundraising is about personal relationships. Done well, the relationship is between the donor and the organization, but every relationship begins between two individuals. And 90 percent of fundraising comes down to how well you’re doing at building those relationships. Maybe instead of “fundraiser”...

06 May Development Committee Makeover

Posted at 05:10h in Board Development, Donor Cultivation, Featured 4 Comments

I had a great time in Pennsylvania last weekend presenting at the Pennsylvania Land Conservation Conference. One of the sessions I presented was called Secrets of High-Functioning Development Committees. I had originally envisioned this as a Rally session featuring a cast of actors who would play...

31 Mar Anonymity isn’t Necessarily Friendly

Posted at 09:26h in Communication, Donor Cultivation, Featured, Membership 0 Comments

A land trust was recently confronted with a peculiar problem. A major donor with a keen and personal interest in protecting a specific piece of property offered an enabling gift equal to, and restricted to, the entire purchase price of the property. The gift amount...

03 Dec December is for Saying “Thank You”

Posted at 17:42h in Board Development, Communication, Donor Cultivation, Featured, Membership 1 Comment

Are you as engaged in fundraising as you should be? If not, December is a great month to change that – by saying thank you. Making calls to donors and members carries the twin benefits of increasing their connection to the organization and increasing...

17 Jul Thinking (or Rethinking) Membership Systems

Posted at 12:02h in Communication, Donor Cultivation, Featured, Membership 0 Comments

Most organizations, including land trusts, tend to default to a monthly membership cycle. However, managing such a system for organizations with fewer than 2,000 members or so is inefficient for staff whose positions are not solely dedicated to it. There are alternative systems that can...

21 May Access to Donors – It’s Personal

Posted at 12:33h in Board Development, Donor Cultivation, Featured 0 Comments

An important concept in fundraising is that of “access” to current and potential donors. Access in fundraising means that if you send someone an email or leave a voice message, it will be returned. Each of us has a circle of friends, family, business colleagues,...

16 Oct On Donor Clubs – Take 3 (of 3): Questions

Posted at 10:21h in Donor Cultivation, Featured, Membership 0 Comments

There is a more subtle point here. Donor clubs are not recognition strategies; they are solicitation strategies, employed to encourage members to make larger and larger annual investments in the organization. In that context, donor club decisions and decisions about recognizing long-term donors should be...

21 Aug On Donor Clubs – Take 2 (of 3): Branding

Posted at 03:30h in Donor Cultivation, Featured, Membership 0 Comments

The most important branding element for your donor club is the list itself. Like a social register, people like to find their own name and look for those of their friends. Make sure you spell everyone’s name correctly! ...

24 Jul On Donor Clubs – Take 1 (of 3)

Posted at 03:30h in Donor Cultivation, Featured, Membership 0 Comments

You can raise more money from your members just by systematically asking for more money. Donor clubs can help, and a significant side benefit is that the annual solicitations provide a useful way for board members to get more involved in fundraising....

22 Nov AHA Moments from the 2011 Land Trust Alliance Rally

Posted at 10:34h in Communication, Donor Cultivation, Featured 0 Comments

I thoroughly enjoyed your seminar at the recent Rally and wanted to share with you an "AHA" moment that I have had since returning from Milwaukee. ...