How do I start to approach a major donor that knows nothing about us? – SHARITY

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Powering Nonprofit Success Through Participatory Processes:

Did you know that organizations prioritizing participatory processes and deliberately decreasing barriers see a significant increase in program effectiveness? This Fall, I’m excited to delve into how this framework powers real-world success through our three-part webinar series, Insights for Impact!

On September 18th, Dr. Inderjit Vicky Basra, President and CEO of the Delores Barr Weaver Policy Center, and Jessica Raymond, former Chief of Staff of the YWCA, joined Sharity Global Expert Anne Miskey to offer real-world examples of ways participatory processes elevated their organizations’ mission and impact. Dr. Basra emphasized the importance of including direct and indirect experts in decision-making conversations. She noted, “…layered communication makes the change.” When those in the community who experience the challenges your organization strives to address work alongside those with academic or professional experience in key areas, your organization can begin to affect systemic change. Jessica added, “When we talk about advocating for people and engaging their voices…here is the mic! You sit at this table, you tell me what you need from us, you make the decision…”

Key takeaways from the conversation included:

Write equity into your policies and procedures.
Avoid “tokenizing” the community you serve. Ensure that if you ask something of your community members, such as asking them to share their stories, you are developing and strengthening a mutually beneficial relationship with them.
Identify ways your organization may connect direct experts, those with lived experience, with donors, elected officials, and other community leaders and influencers.
Engaging all voices allows you to review and evaluate the impact of your programming with an open mind and heart.
Give credit to all the experts helping you execute your mission. Whenever possible, compensate and recognize direct experts, those with lived experiences, for their work on behalf of your organization, just as you would an indirect expert with academic or professional experience.

Dr. Basra summed up the importance of engaging all voices when she described the success her organization has had with connecting survivor mentors with the recently rescued. “[Survivor’s] concepts around hope look very different because they’re sitting across from somebody, that at some point, was in the same space that they are in…Their survivor-mentor becomes a beacon of hope!” Anne added, “The little ways you can connect your donors in real ways to people” will bring about transformation.

How do I start to approach a major donor that knows nothing about us?

Ask Me Anything Summary

Hi for this week’s ask me anything I’ve been asked: how do I start to approach a major donor that knows nothing about us and how soon can I expect a gift? Well cultivation of a major donor, meaning someone who’s going to give you at least five figures or higher, takes some time.

The first thing that you want to do is get them engaged. The closer someone is to your inner circle, the more likely they are to write a bigger check, because they understand who you are and what you’re doing. So don’t be disappointed if the first check isn’t five figures. If it’s something like $500 or $1000, get your foot in the door, get to know each other.

It’s kind of like dating. You want to just to start show them that you’re gonna be good stewards of that money. Report back the impact that happened with the donation that they made. Make sure that you steward and cultivate that donor. Bring them out, show them the impact if you can, and continue that relationship.

Once you’ve convinced them that you will be a good investment, then you can go for the larger ask and they’ll be ready to trust you with that larger investment. If you have any questions about finding and cultivating major gifts, please contact us at sharity. That’s our area of expertise and we have lots of wonderful professionals who can walk you through exactly how to do that cultivation and segmentation with your donor base so that you can start to increase the amount of money that you’re bringing in from people, maybe who are already committed to your organization and your mission.