BECOME YOUR OWN FUNDRAISING LEGEND
BECOME YOUR OWN FUNDRAISING LEGEND
Andrea McManus, ViTreo Group Inc
November 5th, 2019
A new book about fundraising recently hit the bookstore shelves. From Bankruptcy to Billions by Naomi B. Levine, the fundraising legend for New York University and president of its George H. Heyman, Jr. Center for Philanthropy and Fundraising.
Disclaimer: I have not yet read From Bankruptcy to Billions. It is in the ever-growing stack of books in my to-read pile.
Be Your Own Fundraising legend
What struck me when I read about the book, and after writing last week’s blog about being proud of the great work we as fundraisers and nonprofits do is this: Why can’t we also aspire to become fundraising legends?
One of the ways to achieve this, first of all, is don’t blow the ask…
This is a great quote from an older interview with Levine in NonProfit Quarterly:
In the same interview…
“[Levine] has been hailed as a Master of Fundraising and also been credited with saving NYU from bankruptcy - helped to raise the institution's academic profile from a low-budget subway school that mainly served New Yorkers to an institution that today has a $1.17-billion endowment and attracts students from all 50 states and more than 140 countries.”
“When you sit down with someone and try to develop a relationship, you can’t just say, Oh, Mrs. Jones, would you give me $100 million? That’s not the way it works. It’s a slow process” (Nonprofit Quarterly, Naomi Levine: Insights from a Master of Fundraising, Ruth McCambridge, July 25 2013)
From Bankruptcy to Billions also addresses some of the same issues in other recent The Provocateur blogs: Hindsight…Don’t Leave Home Without It. Confessions Of A Veteran Fundraiser by ViTreo’s Vincent Duckworth, followed by our series on the always meaty topic of Nonprofit Boards.
Again, don’t blow the ask
Fundraising is everyone’s job
The role of the Board, the CEO, President or Executive Director in fundraising. For boards, their first priority before becoming involved in fundraising efforts, is governance.
Another fundraising legend and internationally recognized donor communications expert, Tom Ahern starts off his book Seeing Through A Donor’s Eyes, with this —
“Let’s pretend that a potential donor magically appears this instant and asks: Why should I give you my money now?”
As quoted from Seeing Through A Donor’s Eyes, Tom Ahern, February 2009
As with any other skill, brilliant fundraising doesn’t just happen. It’s the result of passion for your cause and preparation which includes:
a deep understanding of your audiences (what are their needs, motivations, world views?)
a depth of knowledge of the need being fulfilled and the ability to clearly articulate it
authentic relationship building
strategy, strategy, strategy
ongoing professional development
We can’t aspire to be legends in the fundraising realm if we don’t ask. And to get the results we’re after, the contribution we seek, we must be prepared. If we take a closer look at each of the bullet points above:
We must understand our audience(s)
If the story we are telling isn’t the right one - that one that touches their hearts, that speaks to a cause that is near and dear to them, all is lost. Tom nails it in his book — Why should I give you my money now? That question is foremost on every donor’s mind when you’re sitting across from them. If you can’t answer that, asking for the money will be futile.
Why is your cause important?
Explaining how this is critical, what will happen if the need is met, and what will happen if it isn’t, is crucial to making your case. If your potential donor doesn’t have a line of sight to how his or her $$$ will make a difference, why would they donate?
Before you make the ask, you need to have developed a relationship with the prospective donor. And it must be a genuine relationship. Major donors are approached frequently. Asking someone for a large amount of money 10 minutes after you’ve met is ineffective at best, and insulting at worst.
Strategy, strategy, strategy
Do your homework and ensure you have buy-in from your organization. Strategy is essential, whether you’re in the for profit or nonprofit world. What is your goal? How are you going to reach it? What are the different tactics you’ll employ? What’s your timeline? Is your board involved? What about the CEO, President or Executive Director — they must be part of every successful campaign.
Stay current. Keep up your education and your training.
What appeals to one generation doesn’t work with another. Develop a breadth of knowledge about new best practices and tools.
Improving and evolving our skills as fundraisers and raising the bar for our organizations is something we can all work towards. Much depends on our ability to do our jobs well and to be successful. If we don’t work towards this goal, the consequences are not just to ourselves, but to those we suit up and show up for every day.
I urge everyone in the charitable sector to work towards the goal of becoming their own fundraising legend. It’s a worthy aspiration and one, with relationship building and with the right strategies in place, we can all attain.
See you at The Provocateur next week!
Check out ViTreo's Braintrust as we bring you additional insights into what is and what will be important in philanthropy through our Weekly News Recap and our Podcast.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Andrea McManus, Chair, Board of Directors, Partner
ViTreo Group Inc
Andrea McManus is a Partner with ViTreo with over 30 years’ experience in fund development, marketing, sponsorship and nonprofit management. A highly strategic thinker and change maker, Andrea has worked with organizations that span the nonprofit sector with particular focus on building long-term and sustainable capacity.