This week, I helped facilitate two 5-figure gifts.
They both felt accidental.
Neither was given in response to a direct ask – at least not the type of asks we had planned.
But neither was really an accident.
They were both the result of many years of good habits, carried out at a well-run organization.
I just had the privilege of being there to close them.
But without the direct outreach we performed, the gifts wouldn’t have come in.
Let me explain.
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Individual number 1, let’s call him Joe, had been a donor to this organization for nearly twenty years – during which time he gave at least monthly donations, sometimes more often, of anywhere from $30 to $500.
He did not particularly demonstrate wealth. He lived in a modest home, was a machinist for the entirety of his career, and lived on the income received from his retirement account.
But because he had been a faithful donor – over the course of nearly two decades – and because his cash giving put him in a moderately high percentile among other donors, the team at Major Gift Solutions began engaging him last year.
We invited him to participate in our Mission Feasibility Study, held a nondescript Zoom visit with him, learned about his story and why he supports this organization, and kept in touch over the course of the year.
Then, in response to a mailed appeal announcing a matching campaign, Joe randomly called the nonprofit office and said he’d like to donate $10,000 from his retirement account.
Unsolicited? Officially, yes.
Given without cultivation? No.
Given without personal interaction? Absolutely not.
We engaged Joe in the work of our mission, made sure he felt appreciated, reassured him that his philanthropic investments were going to a worthy cause, and he responded in kind.
Major gift success is often just a matter of finding the right donors: those who already love your organization and who have capacity to give at a level others may not expect.
~~~
Individual number 2 had also been a longtime donor, though less consistent.
Let’s call her Sally.
Over the last thirty years, Sally had given only ten times. Most of her gifts were small – between $25 and $100, with one gift last year at $1,000.
About this time last year, Sally reached out to the organization, inquiring about a program.
We answered her questions and stayed in touch.
I invited her to coffee, but she rejected my invitation.
A year passed.
Then earlier this fall, I sent her a handwritten note and invited her again to a conversation.
She accepted my invitation and invited me into her home.
We visited for an hour or two. She told me about her children, her professional background, her pets and hobbies and plans for the future.
We discussed her estate plans, and I left some information with her.
Then I left.
The “ask” was quite soft. And she had already planned to leave a bequest to this organization. So when I left without anything in writing, I didn’t see it as a loss but a seed planted for future success.
Then yesterday, Sally called me directly and said she wanted to make an outright gift of $15,000.
A periodic donor with gifts between $25 and $100 made a cash donation of $15,000 after one visit.
Was her gift solicited directly? Not exactly.
Was it accidental? No.
This donation was the result of a relationship many years in the making. It was the culmination of a long journey growing a reputable organization.
And I feel it is important to highlight this point – especially for leaders of small organizations.
~~~
I am often approached as a consultant with the expectation that I have a “magic list of donors,” individuals who simply follow me around and make big gifts whenever I call them up.
That’s not the case.
In fact, quite the opposite.
Major gift success often has little to do with a major gift fundraiser – although it is vital for fundraisers to perform their fundraising duties with both ambition and taste.
But there are likewise things nonprofit leaders can do to make their organizations ones that major donors want to support. Things like:
- Remaining faithful to a mission others can believe in and carrying out that mission in new ways without losing the rich tradition that preceded it.
- Being creative in communications and activities, so that all stakeholders – donors included – know what the organization is up to and can celebrate it accordingly.
- Forming a well-trained staff that can deliver high-quality programs that donors want to support.
- Building an active board that is a healthy cross-section of the community – specialists and philanthropists – who work together to make the organization better.
- Making phone calls and sending letters and being in front of people, engaging folks personally and investing in them as participants in the mission they make possible.
Major gift success is really never accidental.
A large gift may be a surprise.
But even in those extreme instances where a donor gives a large gift without any cultivation at all, your fundraising success is the result of your hard work building an organization that donors want to support.
When you add a decent fundraiser to the mix – someone who can represent your mission well, meet donors where they are, and remain diligent in their outreach – it will only be a matter of time before the major gift success really takes hold.
