The two-book set, Secrets To BIG MONEY Fundraising, is different than anything you have ever read on this topic. How? These books teach the reader the secrets to creating within each prospective BIG MONEY donor the motivation to make their maximum gift to your non-profit.
The role of nonprofit development professional is dramatically expanded in these books, converting the job description from that of a fundraising process manager to a HUMAN MOTIVATOR/PROBLEM SOLVER for BIG MONEY donors.
The following is a summary of just five skill sets you need to advance your BIG MONEY Fundraising success from OK to spectacular. How do you measure up?
- BE COMPETENT — The giants of philanthropy are not happy when professionals approach them for money with perfectly good intentions, but 1) incompetent in presenting their organization’s case, 2) having no plan to achieve overall financial success, 3) largely ignorant of how to build a fundraising campaign organization and manage it to victory, and 4) lacking a serious intent of holding their nonprofit organization accountable for the money that is raised. If you lack a mastery of any one of these skills, you are a PROBLEM CREATOR—not a PROBLEM SOLVER.
- BE A GREAT LISTENER— One of the biggest problems that BIG MONEY donors have is that nonprofit professionals possess poor listening skills. Therefore, when donor prospects share their QUESTIONS and CONCERNS they feel ignored. Ignoring the questions and concerns of potential donors will NOT put them in a mood to make a BIG MONEY gift. If you really listen, each prospective BIG MONEY donor has a set of PRESENTING INTERESTS, and also a set of DEEP PERSONAL INTERESTS that drive their philanthropy. Your job is to tune into these interests and support them, advocate for them, and make sure they are satisfied. This is how you begin to build a two-way empathy bridge between your nonprofit and BIG MONEY DONOR PROSPECTS. Are you doing this with every prospect?
- BE A BRIGHT LIGHT LEADER — When you are fortunate enough to have face time with PHILANTHROPIC GIANTS, both your case statement and your personality have 16 seconds to LIGHT UP THEIR LIVES and engage them emotionally. Can you do this? You can’t do it unless you are a BRIGHT LIGHT LEADER! Daily interaction with most people is humdrum and forgettable. But when a BRIGHT LIGHT PERSONALITY enters the room, the whole room lights up. Bringing LIGHT into the lives of anyone is the greatest gift you can give them. When you are a BRIGHT LIGHT for BIG MONEY donor prospects, you infect them with optimism, positive energy, and hope (see EXPLAINER VIDEO 4 & 5 on this website).
- SEE YOURSELF AS A PROBLEM SOLVER—and approach each PHILANTHROPIC GIANT with your eyes open to discover the problems they are wrestling with. Even if all you can do is mirror back to these people that you’ve seen, heard, and empathize with their problems you are giving them a form of validation that every one of us is starving for. Typically, your professional responsibilities will be limited to advocating for each donor prospect’s INTERESTS and CONCERNS surrounding your nonprofit’s case statement. Occasionally, however, you may learn of a BIG MONEY donor’s problem that is outside the scope of your normal duties as a professional. Think for a moment about Aesop’s fable of The Lion and The Mouse. That lion could not get a nasty thorn out of his foot, but the mouse could do this easily. Those who see themselves as PROFESSIONAL PROBLEM SOLVERS connect to the psyche of others on a level that is unexpected, but very gratifying for donors. Why is this important? Because it sends a signal that you are fully committed to being an advocate on behalf of your BIG MONEY donors. And from a human motivation perspective, this is a huge competitive edge.
- HOLD YOURSELF ACCOUNTABLE— BIG MONEY donors make their BIG GIFTS for many reasons. A professional’s job is to know as intimately as possible why each donor is making their gifts. Armed with that knowledge, the problem-solver makes sure every single donor believes (because it is TRUE) that their charitable interests and intent are going to be paramount in all communications with them. This reinforces in their mind how truly important they are to you, and when you make people feel important, and do so convincingly, you are taking a giant step toward putting them in their maximum giving mood.
The magic of creating authentic relationships with potential and existing BIG MONEY donors depends on your mastery of these skill sets and several more that you will learn in our books. By developing and employing these skills you will inspire within the hearts and minds of your PHILANTHROPIC GIANTS a level of confidence in, and a sense of family with, your nonprofit. And this is exactly what it takes to help BIG MONEY donor prospects reach their maximum giving mood.
