Building A High-Revenue Major Gift Program: The 5 Major Hurdles That Are Holding You Back and How to Overcome Them With Gail Perry FiredUpFundraising.com [email protected] @GailPerryNC
Building A High-Revenue Major
Gift Program: The 5 Major Hurdles That Are Holding You
Back and How to Overcome Them
With Gail Perry
FiredUpFundraising.com
@GailPerryNC
Gail Perry: Who am I?
30 years in fundraising
Coached hundreds of
nonprofit
Coached/Raised over
$500M
Gail Perry: Who am I?
Recent Honors & Achievements
Fundraiser of the Year (NC)
America’s Top Fundraising
Experts (2016)
How much $ is out
there for your
nonprofit? (but you don’t have the
resources to go get it?)
Building a Successful Major Gifts
Program
Overcome The 5 Hurdles That are
Holding You Back
How to turn your development
office into a money-raising
machine.
How to get the most out of your
limited time and staff.
And Announcing my 2017
Major Gifts Coaching and
Mentoring Program
• 25 organizations who are ready to dive in and
make it happen
• Have me as your coach and mentor for 10 months
next year
• Get at least 10 asks on the table!
Serious
obstacles that
hinder fundraising success
Biggest Hurdles to Major Gift
Fundraising?
What’s Your Biggest Challenge?
18% TIME
35% PROSPECTS
18% STRUCTURE
31% UNSURE
11% ORGANIZATION
HURDLE #1:
Organization
Doesn’t Understand
or Support
Major Gift
Fundraising 11%
Internal Attitudes Toward Fundraising?
Board members and leaders try to dictate
fundraising strategy
based on personal opinions.
Good Fundraising is NEVER about
MONEY
--Lack of funding
--Lack of support
--Lack of
participation
• Everybody has a role!
• Everybody understands fundraising and how it works.
• Your organization:
• sees fundraising as a means to engage supporters
• offers opportunities for donors to engage
• Fundraising is part of the whole effort to engage
supporters with the mission
Developing a Culture of Philanthropy
People take a long term approach
to fund development.
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• Your organization honors your donors by asking
for more than just money – – you also ask for and
engage their help, support, ideas, skills, time.
• Your organization values listening to donors.
• You have a culture of terrific post-gift customer
service to donors.
Your Organization Values Donors
“Donors are seen as authentic partners in
the work, not simply as targets or dollar
signs.” (Beyond Fundraising Report)
HURDLE #2:
Need Structure
and Support 18%
Everybody wants to put the
monkey on someone else’s back!
There IS a Structure for Major Gift
Success!
• Major gifts Team working together
• $ Goal
• List of Projects to Fund
• Major Gift Prospect List
• Written Cultivation Plans
• Monthly Meeting of Team: Strategy Sessions
Your Major Gift Success Structure
Who, What, When, Where!
Sample Prospect List w Ratings
Ability: A: $1 million D: $25k –99K Likelihood: 1 = high
B: $500k–1 mil E: 10K –25K 2 = medium
C: $100-500k F: $1k -10k 3 = low
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Find a Prospect Rating System That
Works for You
1 - Hot 2 - Warm 3 – Cold
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Rating Your Prospects:
Ability to Give
A: $1 million and up B: $500k -1 mil C: $100k - 500k D: $25k – 99K E: $10K – 25K F: $1k - 10k
Set a Major Gifts
Fundraising Goal
• Add up your
potential
• Cut it by 1/3
• That’s how much
you can raise
HURDLE #3:
Not Enough Time
To Do It Right 20%
You are all alone with an
impossible goal
You are all
alone with an
impossible goal
No Plan, No Priorities,
Tackling Too Many Things
And Doing None of them Well
Getting Out of the Office
Really is a Challenge!
• Get everybody on board what you are up
to and why.
• Announce your goal of x visits/month.
• Ask everyone to help you get out of the
office to make the visits.
• Enlist the back office team as aids, not
critics.
How to Set Priorities and
Get Out of The Office
Brief Info Session:
Major Gifts
Coaching and
Mentoring
Major Gifts Coaching:
Help For You!
10 months – begins February 2017
Gail as your coach and mentor
Monthly goals to accomplish
Special trainings for board members
Group trainings and calls
https://www.gailperry.com/major-gifts-coaching/
Major Gifts Coaching:
• 6 instructional webinars
• 4 outside guest expert presentations
• 2 separate trainings for board members
• 10 monthly coaching calls with me and other
international experts
• Monthly goals to keep you accountable
• Supporting materials
• I am “on call” as needed.
Your Curriculum
Month 1: Build a Culture of Philanthropy and Identify
Your major gift prospects
Month 2: Research and Rate Your Prospects
Month 3: Create Systematic Cultivation Plans
Month 4: Getting Appointments with Prospects
Month 5: Preparing for the Ask Visit
Month 6 - 7: Coaching on asking
Month 8 – 9: Making Asks
Month 10: Wrap Up and Plan for the Future
$3900 Investment
I want you to see 1000% return on your
investment.
You should be able to raise AT LEAST
$40,000 this year.
https://www.gailperry.com/major-gifts-coaching/
Major Gifts Coaching and Mentoring
Send Your Letter of Interest
and
Apply For Your Free Strategy Session
https://www.gailperry.com/major-gifts-coaching/
HURDLE 4:
Not Enough Major
Gift Prospects 23%
The Dorothy School of Fundraising
There’s no place like home!
Your future major donors
are sleeping inside your donor files.
Start With What You Have!
Narrow,
narrow,
narrow
down your
focus (especially if you
are small)
Ruthlessly Practical! Focus On The Few!
Searching for Prospects
• Current donors
• Lapsed donors
• Former board members!
• Volunteers
• Small donors
Penelope Burk
What’s the Difference Between a
Suspect and a Prospect?
Vocabulary Words:
What is a “Qualified Prospect?”
A prospect who. . .
• has capacity
• is interested in your
cause
• can be cultivated for
a gift
Identifying Prospects Where Do Barry and Barb Fit?
High $$ Low Likelihood
High $$ High Likelihood
Low $$ Low Likelihood
Low $$ High Likelihood
DOLLARS
LIKELIHOOD
HURDLE 5:
Unsure, unclear of
how to approach
major donors 28%
Approaching Your Donor for a Visit- Creative Ways to Get in the Door
Advice Visits
Advice visits: If you want money ask for advice;
if you want advice, ask for money.
• We have something important to run by you.
• Can I pick your brain?
• Can I have some advice?
• Will you screen a list for us?
“We’d like to ask your input our
business plan.”
Resulted in a $1.5M Gift!
It’s About Your Donor and What He
Wants to Accomplish!
Tell me about your interest
in . . .
People
understand
smart
fundraising =
friendmaking
Donor Experiences =
Engagement = Cultivation
Events
Awesome Donor Experiences
Open Doors With Porch Parties!
Would Your Nonprofit Like to Establish
A Solid Major Gifts Program?
• What’s possible for your organization?
Six STEPS to the Perfect Ask
Join Us If This is Right For You! https://www.gailperry.com/major-gifts-coaching/