Year-end gift acknowledgments and tax receipts are going in the mail. For many development professionals, January is the time of year for shifting gears, perhaps from a winter appeal to an upcoming signature event, or from fundraising for operations to planning for a special purpose campaign. And while you know that major gifts fundraising is an ongoing, season-less process, this time on the calendar often challenges staff and volunteers to stay motivated and inspired.

Whether you just finished your fiscal year or are in the middle of one, here are six steps your organization can take to move your values-based relationships forward and further your mission in the coming months:

1. Acknowledge hard work. After summer planning, the fall frequently is the busiest time for staff and volunteers engaged in your development efforts. Now that it’s winter, take time to thank those stakeholders who have been cultivating, soliciting and stewarding relationships with donors and prospects. Recognize these efforts at your board and staff meetings and with a personal call or note before planning begins again this spring.
2. Engage your full board in thanking supporters. In a “perfect” fundraising world, all board members are involved throughout the major gifts donor cycle. Between now and perfection, ask board members to personally sign gift and tax letters during your next board meeting.
3. Devote time to data in order to evaluate progress and opportunities. Budgeting for philanthropic income often is based less on strategy and more on “the gap” between fees, membership, tuition, and other sources of earned revenue. Whether you met, exceeded, or fell short of your year-end target, analyze the donors who you acquired, who upgraded, who renewed, and who lapsed. What do the numbers tell you about where your development team should be spending their time this winter and spring?
4. Reach out to those donors who made a first-time major gift, and to those regular donors who didn’t. Use year-end results to “tweak” your prospect list. Sit with those prospects that made a new or upgraded major gift, and ask about their motivations. What other information would they like to learn about your organization? Who would they like to hear from, and how frequently? Would they like to get more involved, and if so, where might they fit in? For those supporters who did not give in 2010, invite further conversation about changes in their personal priorities or circumstances.
5. Refresh your case for support. The “new normal” means fundamental shifts in revenue sources for nonprofits in every sector. Make sure the story you are sharing reflects current realities, but always lead with the relevance, urgency and community benefit of your mission.
6. Remember why major gifts are a priority for your development program:
   • According to GivingUSA, almost 85 percent of charitable gifts come from individuals.
   • Research indicates that prospects are more likely to give, give again and give more when asked by a peer.
   • Donor-centered, face-to-face relationships will foster a deeper, mutual understanding and investment in your mission and vision than the most exciting event.
   • Retaining and upgrading current donors, vs. acquiring new ones, is good business. According to best practices, it costs $1.50 to raise a new $1.00. Investing in meaningful relationships takes time, but the ROI is well worth it.

After you have celebrated, acknowledged, and analyzed your year-end fundraising results, use the coming weeks to validate or shift your development priorities. Understanding your successes, challenges, and opportunities will reengage loyal volunteers and reinvigorate dedicated staff!

Looking for more ways to prepare for 2012? Join our webinar on January 24th for an interactive discussion on getting your shop in order: click here to register for this free webinar!

All of us at The Collins Group are also donors – somewhat picky and perhaps overly critical donors given the nature of our work, but donors nonetheless – and as it happens from time to time, we swap donor “horror stories.” With the holiday season in full swing, we felt it was time to share some of these true tales with you.  May your fundraising efforts never resemble these!

Assume the Best—and Follow Up

A staff member made a major gift to her employer’s capital campaign. A few years later, she accepted a job at another organization.  With one year left on her pledge, the staffer let the fundraising shop know that she was committed to fulfilling it. Fast forward another year: the donor and her husband are new parents. In the midst of this happy chaos, the charity sends the couple’s final pledge reminder, which disappears in a pile of diaper coupons, junk mail, and holiday letters. The sleep-deprived couple never noticed that they haven’t received the pledge reminder and are astonished to learn later that their pledge was written off.

Take away:  Assume the best.  We all get busy.  Most donors want to honor their agreements and fulfill their pledges. If someone misses a payment, it’s most likely an oversight.  If you don’t receive a pledge payment from a donor, pick up the phone. Too shy to pick up the phone?  Send a gentle inquiry letter, or ask the person who first solicited the gift to reach out.

A Lead Donor is Always a Lead Donor

A board member stepped up to lead a charity’s multi-million dollar capital campaign. Affiliated with the organization for 15 years, she made what was for her an enormous six-figure stretch gift in the form of a five-year pledge.  A year or so after the campaign successfully completed and with two years left to complete her pledge, the board member accepted employment at a related organization. From that moment forward, staff from her former organization froze her out. They made no attempt to remain in contact—no phone calls, pledge reminders sent unaccompanied by a personal letter, and a special invitation to her organization’s event was unceremoniously declined.  Will this organization ever receive another significant gift from her? No way. Have they lost tremendous good will and excellent word of mouth? Absolutely.

Take away: Unless your donor tells you explicitly that he never wants to hear from you again, he is your significant donor—no matter when the gift was made or what other organization he supports—and as such deserves your ongoing honor, recognition, and personal attention.

Timing is Everything

A young woman received medical care at a hospital for the first time. Three months after being treated she received a letter from the hospital.  Assuming it was a bill, she opened it, only to discover that she was being solicited for a gift to the hospital’s foundation.

Take away: Make sure your annual giving request could not be mistaken for a bill, and institute a rule—new patients are not added to mailing lists until at least six months after being treated.

Always Send a Thank You

A long-time former board member attended an organization’s fundraising event. She made an outright gift, noting on the gift card that she wished to be contacted about making another contribution.  Not only did she not receive a thank you for her gift, no one from the nonprofit responded to her note.

Donors, especially potential major donors, often test nonprofits to see how they respond to a gift. One donor’s rule: if she doesn’t receive a personal contact for a gift of $250 or more, the organization is dropped from her giving list.

Take aways:  A thank you note for a gift of any size is not only gracious good manners, but the foundation of donor retention.  Educate yourself on donor retention.

Keep the donors you have.  The easiest way to raise more money is to keep the donors you have, and one of the best ways to keep your donors is to make sure you honor and treasure not just their gifts, but their desire to support your mission.

The Chronicle of Philanthropy reported on a new survey that indicates two-thirds of donors plan to cut back on their charitable giving in the coming months due to economic uncertainty or personal circumstances. Considering many nonprofits receive 40 percent or more of their total contributed income between October and December, expect to see another challenging year for meeting revenue goals.

Below are some suggestions for bolstering fundraising plans to make the most of the year-end giving season:

1. Send an impact letter now. Before asking your donors for gifts during your fall or winter campaigns, send a stewardship letter thanking them for their last gift, and articulate how their gift helped further your mission.
2. Set meetings with your top donors. Face-to-face meetings with top supporters are critical for generating major gifts. It is hard to get meetings in November and December, so the time to schedule October meetings is in September (which means now).
3. Ramp up your online giving opportunities. The same gloomy survey referenced earlier offers a bright spot: nine out of 10 donors who give online plan to continue to make donations. Donors are much more comfortable making online transactions than they were just a few years back, so make it easy for them! Network for Good has a great Online Fundraisers Checklist, and the Social Media 4 Nonprofits blog is another great place to get tips to integrate and improve your on-line presence.
4. Secure a challenge grant to create a sense of urgency and leverage. As many times as this strategy is used, it continues to be effective. Donors love to know their gift is going further, and this goes for the “challengers” as well.
5. Thank properly. It goes without saying, but you never know when a donor who gave to your fall appeal will decide to give more before December 31. If your donors have a great experience, you may just end up at the top of their list.
6. Follow up requests to those who don’t respond. It’s a busy time of year so a follow-up letter or email with a link to give can be an effective reminder. Don’t convince yourself it will be received as an annoyance.

Are you trying new approaches, or have you found certain strategies particularly effective at year end? Please share!

She made this significant gift because the organization invited her to have a voice in its future. Despite the organization operating in the red, she stuck around because her daily work was meaningful and was part of a bigger vision that she had helped to forge.

Some of our most dedicated flag bearers are sitting in the offices next to us, and we should be cultivating them with the same attention and gratitude that we give to our major donors. Like donors and volunteers, nonprofit employees are investing sweat, tears, and years of their lives to further the mission. If we neglect to notice this, we risk losing employees who have engaged deeply with our mission, have a braintrust of program, donor and organizational history, and could very well be donors.

Nurture your fellow staff members’ professional development yearnings and long-term investment in your mission while they are still staff members and you will be rewarded with passion, a sense of connection, and, often, financial support for your organization.

Three Simple Staff Cultivation Practices:

1. Offer a Place at the Table—Just like donors, employees can find renewed energy from generative, big picture conversations. Set aside time for intentional, regular (quarterly or monthly) conversations with your colleagues about how specific parts of their job make a difference in the success of the organization’s mission, ideas for how to improve operations, and what they need in order to grow in their roles at your organization.
2. Recognize and Celebrate Accomplishments—You write your donors handwritten thank you notes for investing time and treasure in your organization: why not do the same for employees? After the grant is mailed or a program concludes, take the time to publicly acknowledge the staff’s hard work as well as a personal expression of gratitude through a note or over lunch.
3. Identify Opportunities for Meaningful Engagement—We know the best way to develop a major donor is engagement. We populate our committees, work groups, and advisory boards with volunteers and donors. Why not invite colleagues to carve out some of their work day to devote to special projects that both engage them in bigger picture work and help advance the mission?

One of the interview questions we always ask donors is whether they feel satisfied with the way in which our client organization solicits, acknowledges, and recognizes their gifts. Responses vary – from people who feel well connected and appreciated to those who only hear from the organization when they are asked for money once a year.

The Montana donors we interviewed each answered the question the same way, and it was an answer we don’t expect these days. The collective response went like this: “We don’t wait to be asked. The need is so great and the organization is so important, we just give as much as we can, as often as we can.”

Back to Anne Frank’s tree. This past week, wind, rain and disease felled this venerable tree that comforted a young girl hiding from the Nazis. Eleven prized cuttings from its branches were sent around the world. The news reminded me of a quote from young Anne that has captured pure generosity for generations: “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.”

Today more than ever, nonprofit organizations need to build relationships through which they communicate with their donors frequently and meaningfully. What a wonderful thing when those dialogues inspire giving that doesn’t “wait a single moment,” and is offered with the joy Anne Frank felt when she looked out her window.

As you begin a new season of fundraising, what inspiring donor stories do you have to share? Let us know. We’d love to be able to share your stories with a wider audience.

The Collins Group is honored to continue as campaign counsel with the Tateuchi Center and congratulates the staff and board for their tremendous accomplishments.

Read The Seattle Times’ generous coverage of this gift and check out the new Tateuchi Center website for more details and news!

Last year, a representative from my sorority’s foundation contacted me. She was coming to Seattle and wanted to meet me while in she was in town to let me know about this great new program they have. I’ve been a regular, though unspectacular, donor and have always intended to get more involved with the organization, but haven’t. When I met Lauren for coffee, I was surprised at how much research she had done on me. I realize this sounds naïve coming from someone in the industry, but I just thought she wanted to meet and maybe get me to volunteer for something, I didn’t realize that I had been flagged as a donor prospect worthy of a personal visit. I was flattered and so pleased to be considered in this new “young donor go-getter” category, that not only did I make a five-year pledge to the foundation (my largest gift to anyone ever), but I volunteered to plan an event for other young donors in the near future and invite all my alumna friends. Well, would you look at that – now I’m engaged on several levels.

Last week, I received a call from a local children’s theatre asking me to give to their scholarship program. The caller was informed, friendly, and persuasive. He knew that I was a season ticket holder and asked me my opinion on the four plays I’d seen with my son. He also knew that my son had attended winter break camp at the theater and thanked us for getting involved in the education programs – and from there he moved smoothly into explaining why my support of the scholarship program would allow other children access to plays and educational programs. Would I consider a gift of X? I hesitated – it was more than I wanted to give right now. He countered with would I give half today and the remainder in equal payments over the next two months? Could he charge my credit card that they conveniently have on file? Can he send me a voucher for two tickets to their currently showing play to thank me? Well, when you put it that way, yes, yes, and yes. He got his gift when they needed it; I feel good about helping other kids experience live theater, and my boy and I are seeing an extra play this weekend!

I understand there are stats and data to consider and relationships to carefully be cultivated, but if you make your donor feel relevant and special they’ll give to you. It worked on me.

But I have a big beef with my college. Their donor communications to me (eNews, eBlasts, event notifications) and phone solicitations are all geared toward remembering my storied undergraduate experience.

Remember living in the dorms? Nope. I lived in a crappy apartment across the river with my singer/songwriter/poet boyfriend (Hey, it was the 90s and I was in my 20s. Seemed like a good idea at the time.) Remember that bar that everyone hung out at? Nope. We grad students had no money and if we did, we hung out at that other bar – the one where the grad students hung out. Remember Parent’s Weekend/the freshman mixer/classes at the…NO! I don’t remember because I had none of those experiences.

Don’t call me to ask for a gift that is three times the amount of my last one (and what’s your rationale for that?) and invoked the new theatre complex and dorms as a reason I should give. I was in the graduate writing program – doesn’t it say that in my record? Ask me to give to the graduate school, the School of the Arts, or, even better, the Department of Writing, Literature and Publishing. Because that’s what I care about; that was my experience.

I don’t want to give my college a gift because it is clear that they haven’t considered the best way to approach me. I know I give small gifts – but I still want to feel special; like they know me.

Later this week I’ll post on an organization that made me feel special – and in return, inspired me to give my first significant major gift.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/outdoors/2011108575_nwwmaritimecenter18.html

BBMG’s 2009 Conscious Consumer Report explored consumer attitudes, behaviors, preferences and priorities during a moment of great social and economic transformation. Based on the national poll and in-depth ethnographic interviews, the study showed that Americans are re-evaluating what truly matters in their lives and seeking brands that deliver both value and values. It concludes, that, “in this age of radical transparency, nonprofit organizations must show how they live their values in every action and interaction.”

As the holidays approach, what opportunities do you offer that a values-driven consumer may perceive as a potential gift? Think through your programs, volunteerism, and communications. What types of gifts can be made available to the typical consumer? Take for example an experience – such as town hall tickets to a panel discussion on an issue they care about or a presentation by a favorite author. How are you marketing such opportunities for the holidays?

The nonprofit sector is a values-facilitator. We can help families think creatively about each other and about what is meaningful in their lives. Whether it is gender equity, animal rights, or non-violence, there is an organization living those values. I hope, by reevaluating the concept of a Christmas present, we can return to a holiday motivated by meaning, rather than one focused on fourth-quarter earnings.