The ask didn’t happen. It should have. It was supposed to happen. But it didn’t. You’ve been there, right? Now, the meeting happened. I set it up so a prospect I’d been cultivating could meet the Dean of our school. And we’d ask him for a gift. Except, the ask didn’t happen. Great lunch, great conversation. And at the end…no ask. … [Read more...] about Preparing for the Ask
Email Essentials for Gift Officers (Use These Word-for-Word Templates!)
The world runs on email. Any guess how many emails are sent worldwide in a given day? Over 215 billion, according to the Radicati Group. That’s more than 149 million emails sent per minute. These numbers hurt my head a little bit. Now, yes, a lot of that is spam. But, spam aside, think about the amount of email you receive compared to the amount that actually gets your attention. Now think about your donors and prospects. They’re busy, … [Read more...] about Email Essentials for Gift Officers (Use These Word-for-Word Templates!)
Fearless Major Donor Solicitation
You’re ready to solicit your prospect—congratulations! Getting to this stage is often the culmination of many months, years even, of work. Let’s talk about how to make the most of the opportunity. … [Read more...] about Fearless Major Donor Solicitation
Have asking anxiety? Do these 5 things.
I had a hard time falling asleep the night before my first ask. My brain was in overdrive: What am I going to say? How will he react? There were also a thousand “what if?” scenarios I didn’t feel prepared to deal with. In hindsight, the stakes weren’t very high. But that didn’t matter. I had just been promoted to my first frontline fundraising role and this was my very first ask. I think it was for $2,500. Asking people to give their money … [Read more...] about Have asking anxiety? Do these 5 things.
Fearless 2016
I hope the early days of 2016 have been treating you well! And I hope your New Year’s resolutions are holding up. Last week, everyone at my office steered clear of the leftover holiday candy—pretty impressive. I tend to make more New Year’s resolutions than I can actually keep—or even remember over 12 months. Even if I only stick with one or two of them, I suppose I’m still better off in some way. Have you given much thought to your … [Read more...] about Fearless 2016