Major Donors

Category Archives — Major Donors

Get on the plane!

by Diane Remin
Posted in Major Donors Major Gifts Major Gifts Program

You likely know the answer before you call fundraising counsel for advice. “Yes,” get on the plane and complete your major gift solicitation in person.

Fundraising counsel for nonprofits of all sizes share this call in common:

A NY-based client gets on the phone and says, “Well, we have this donor in CA and oh, the travel, I was just out there last month….”

“How much is the gift for?” we inquire.

“$50,000” answers the client, who then adds, “I know. I know.” 

It’s a quick call for us.  We only utter two words, “How much?”

There is no question that it is challenging to maintain relationships with a national donor base.  But if you’ve gone so far as to qualify and cultivate a donor, you don’t want to give up on best practice at the finale. 

That means not only asking for the gift in-person, but also securing the gift in person.

Are you flying from the US to Hong Kong for $10,000?  Probably not, unless the relationship-building opportunity warrants the visit and/or you can combine the trip with other visits. There are travel judgment calls to be made.

Most of the time, you do know the answer before you call:  “Get on the plane!”

That extra plane ride is likely to be rewarding in so many ways.

50% of assets: The new benchmark for philanthropic major donors?

by Diane Remin
Posted in Major Donors

Through the Giving Pledge, initiated by Bill Gates and Warren Buffet, 40 billionaires pledged to donate 50% of their wealth to charity.  Will 50% become a new standard?

I don’t believe we’ve ever had a peer-driven giving standard for the wealthy.

From the religious community we have 10% tithing.  But tithing was not designed for the wealthy—quite the contrary. Many people of very modest means generously tithe.  

From the financial advisory community comes the 1-3% of asset rule.

Should donating 50% of one’s wealth take hold as a peer expectation, it is a quantum leap.  And it has the potential to have even greater impact if it trickles down to all wealthy donors, not just the mega-rich.

We’ll have to wait and see what happens.

Major Donors are out there! Giving USA 2010 estimates individual giving at $227B in 2009

by Diane Remin
Posted in Major Donors Major Gifts

GIVING USA 2010 estimates $227.41B of individual gifts in 2009.  As always, individual giving dominates total charitable contributions, accounting for 75% of the total.  Surprisingly, individual giving remained relatively stable between 2008 and 2009, falling a scant 0.4%.  Total giving fell by an estimated 3.6%, with bequests (-23.9%) and foundation grantmaking (-8.9%) experiencing the largest drops.

Now in its 55th year, this comprehensive study of charitable giving is researched and written by The Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University.  The Executive Summary of the report: “Giving USA 2010: The Annual Report on Philanthropy for the Year 2009” is available for free from Giving USA.

Check-out Giving USA 2010 and see for yourself!

Major gifts that add-up: The power of multi-year giving

by Diane Remin
Posted in Major Donors Major Gifts Smaller nonprofits

As a smaller nonprofit, you have limited resources. Multi-year gifts leverage your staff’s time. 

Research on your donor base will determine the multi-year giving numbers that are right for your organization.  For this example, let’s assume you have donors with the ability to give either $5,000 or $10,000 per year for five years.

$5,000 & $10,000 Major Gifts

The following chart shows what happens if you make 10 successful asks each year:  5 for $5,000 per year for five years and 5 for $10,000 per year for five years.  That’s less than one new major gift per month. 

 

By Year 5, you are generating $375,000 in unrestricted operating funds!

Thank your major donors seven times…. that’s right, seven

by Diane Remin
Posted in Major Donors Major Gifts

Seven is the magic “thank you” number for major gifts.

What is it about seven? The seven colors of the rainbow? My guess is the tradition of thanking donors seven times was someone’s measurable translation of “a lot.” It drives us beyond the usual two or three. It works.

What might seven major donor thank yous look like?

1) Acknowledgement of receipt of check: Call within 48 hours

2) Legal thank you: The one you are required to do. The letter that acknowledges the gift in writing for tax purposes. Don’t stop here!

3) Board Chair or Board Member thank you: A call, perhaps (leaving a message is fine)

4) Executive Director thank you note separate from the legal thank you

5) Solicitor Team member thank you

6) Development Director thank you

7) “Re-thank you” within 6 months describing/updating use of funds (Really important!)

8) Free cultivation/recognition event

9) Recognition in Newsletter, Annual Report or Program Book (much less personal—I would count this as ½)

10) Other forms of recognition depending on the magnitude of the gift: donor walls, podium recognition at events or a press release, if warranted

Thank yous are the time for calls, handwritten notes and snail mail. Email thank yous can be part of the mix, but only part. Be up close and personal. And don’t forget to extend the thank you process with a “re-thank you” down the road.

In addition to genuinely acknowledging a major gift, thank yous play an important role in inspiring your donor to make yet another gift in the future.